Fishing Master

Simple pleasures, simple fun. Fishing in real life is an enjoyable way to commune with nature in a quiet setting on the lake. Fishing on a console system can also be fun, even though it’s not outside. It’s a way to make that perfect catch and have it recorded for history. Fishing on the Wii is a great combination, as the interactive controls can be used to simulate the fishing rod, which makes the experience seem more realistic.

Fishing on consoles can take one of two approaches: Simulate real fishing, or dispense with reality in favor of arcade play. Fishing Master is a blend of the two, with more of an arcade flavor than a true simulated fishing game. The characters are cartoon in appearance, and the overall gameplay is reminiscent of the fishing found in games such as River King, Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing, although it offers a more in-depth experience than in those games.

There is really only one main gameplay mode in Fishing Master, although there is a multiplayer Battle mode. This is a single-player campaign mode, where players will advance through the game by catching different types of fish. From time to time, there are special challenges and also tournaments. By catching fish and winning challenges, players will earn points to purchase bait and other items in the store. Your pet dog will even find and give you maps and bait!

The beginning of the game starts with Grandpa demonstrating the basics of fishing. Once these fishing techniques are down, it’s off to a fishing spot. The first fishing map that is open in the game is the Kanto area. These areas all have several fishing spots.  The fishing spots are different in their basic appearance, but the animated details are the same.

At each fishing spot, the player will stand on a small area of land facing out to the water. The player can walk a little ways from each end of the beach, and different fish will be available in the different locations. The basic mechanics of fishing are simple; players will cast by pressing the B button on the bottom of the remote, flicking down with the remote, and then releasing the B button to cast the line.  

Hooking the right fish requires using the right bait. This is where the campaign mode is useful in that more and better bait is earned by fishing, so as to catch better fish later. However, sometimes you still end up with just an empty can. Either the remote or the nunchuk can be used to reel in the fish once it is hooked. Using the nunchuk to reel can get tiring pretty quickly, so we usually use just the remote to fish. There is a meter on the screen which will show a scale depicting the range between the fish escaping or breaking the line.  Reeling in a catch is usually not too difficult, but sometimes it can get a little tricky with big fish.

An arcade element is added to this event by incorporating a “fighting” aspect to reeling, where players will need to move their remotes left or right as directed by onscreen directions. This will tire the fish out.  If too many of these commands are missed, the fishing is over. Different rods allow for more or less mistakes. Once the fish is landed, a short animation showing the fish jumping out of the water will show, and then a picture of the fish will be displayed. The size and weight of the fish is listed. These pictures are large and detailed, and it is fun to see what was caught. Most of these are real fish, but some of them are fantastical.

The act of casting, hooking and reeling in a fish is quite fun and satisfying. Fighting the fish and bringing it in without the line breaking is challenging at times, and then seeing exactly what was caught is neat. The dog even adds some excitement. This dog is cute, and really helpful. He will cheer while players are trying to land their fish.

At the end of the day, players will head back home, where Grandpa will list the fishing points that players have earned, as well as their new titles. A new day will dawn, with more fish to catch.

Besides just fishing, spend points in the store for rods and bait is a fun incentive to continue fishing. The challenges and tournaments also contribute to this overall sense of accomplishment. There is a bulletin board in the shop, too, which will list interesting information about fishing, bait and fishing spots.

This is a game that is single in purpose: fishing. There’s not a whole lot else besides fishing, but it doesn’t really need anything else. We’ve all had fun with Fishing Master, but my husband has literally spent hours with it. He’s played other fishing games on different Nintendo systems over the years, and he rates this one up with the better ones in terms of fun. However, he does tend to be little obsessive about anything that offers gains in experience or points. As this game as a whole is a one-trick pony, other players may enjoy shorter sessions. And, the price has just dropped to $30! I can definitely say that Fishing Master is worth that price, and is a great gift for the fishing enthusiast in your family.

Gameplay: 7.5
This game is quite enjoyable! It’s all about fishing, and there aren’t any features besides fishing. However, the fishing is enough and any fishing game fan will have fun.

Graphics: 7.0
The graphics are good, but not spectacular.

Sound: 6.0
The music is average.

Difficulty: Medium
The game isn’t hard to play, but catching all the fish is challenging.

Concept: 6.0
It’s just fishing, but the overall design is good.

Multiplayer: 6.0
The battle mode offers a multplayer game for 2-4 players. This mode is alright, but the single player is more fun.

Overall: 7.5
Fishing Master is a lot of fun, which is the point. There aren’t any extra bells or whistles, but true fishing fans don’t need fancy. We are enjoying it, and the price is right at $30.  I can truthfully say that we’ve had more fun with this game than with some more detailed and more expensive games. A good gift for dad this Christmas season.