Rapala Pro Fishing
Depth and realism? In a fishing game? At last!
Tags: Rapala Pro Fishing Categories: PS2 Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Craig "American Idle" Hansen on Sep 21st, 2004
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rapala Pro Fishing (title page) | 1 | ||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Sports | No | ||
It’s been a long time since a fishing game has really lived up to my standards.
The last time I can remember a really satisfying fishing game coming downstream was around seven years ago, at least, with a little game called Trophy Bass, published by Sierra, which offered enough variety in terms of number of lakes, lures and fish species to really be a satisfying sim. It was a Windows 95-era PC title and a lot of fishing titles have come and gone since then on many platforms, but no other has come close to Trophy Bass.
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Until now. That’s because Rapala Pro Fishing has depth to spare. The game features over 750 genuine Rapala lures and which ones you choose actually do have an effect on whether a fish will bite or not; that’s right, unlike so many recent fishing games, Rapala Pro Fishing is more sim than arcade, meaning you can cast a line and NOT get a bite! Notch one up for a slightly more realistic fishing experience!
But the depth doesn’t stop there. The game features 20 tournaments, around a dozen lakes and rivers including TWO Minnesota lakes (which is a personal plus, as someone originally from Minnesota), Lake Minnetonka and Mille Lacs Lake. As a matter of fact, the game boasts 500,000 square acres of fishing waters in the game, including at least a couple that you can only reach by unlocking them via in-game achievements.
Adding even more variety, these lakes are not populated with bass alone, but with over a dozen species of fish, including some surprise species not listed in the game manual. This variety of underwater life adds realism to the fishing experience; find the wrong spot and while your competitors are pulling in the muskies you’re trying to find, you could be stuck with crappie-nibbles.
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Of course, to make the large lakes in the game a bit more accessible, Rapala Pro Fishing provides “guides” – a fellow who gives advice on where to fish, where to cast, what to use while fishing and how to play the fish to land it successfully. This proves handy, as the advice they give generally works, though after losing a fish after a tough fight, it can seem annoying, like a bit of back-seat driving from an annoying, know-it-all uncle. Oh well, that just makes the whole game experience more genuine.
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One innovation the game offers that makes a lot of sense is drag control; once you learn how to adjust the drag, you’ll lose a lot fewer fish while landing them. And the Dual Shock 2 makes a pretty good standard controller for the game, though many will regret that there’s no fishing pole controller, such as the Dreamcast offered back in 1999. The only complaint is that the process of casting is adapted from recent golfing games, involving a virtual swing using the right analog stick combined with another button press for the release of the lure at mid-arc of the swing. It can work beautifully if you put some time into learning the method, but for the impatient, there is thankfully an “Easy Cast” system that brings back “point and click” casting for those who don’t want to be bothered with, or can’t master, analog casting.
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The feel of the game is just right, despite graphics that are only standard and lack any real polish. The sound work is standard but adequate, with soothing music and nature sounds. And… for those who get tired of the “arcade style” underwater interface and want a “realistic” fight from the fisherman’s point of view, Rapala Pro Fishing offers a camera mode that offers just that – no underwater view, fighting the fish just as you would in real life. Of course, if you like the underwater cam, it’s still there. Which you use is up to you and both work relatively well, though the underwater camera often hides the approach of most fish until they strike … a problem that plagues all underwater cams in all fishing games. Oh well.
In the end, fishing titles are a niche genre, but Rapala Pro Fishing offers enough depth and variety to keep most anglers happy from the first time snow flies this fall to spring ice-out. And it’s a lot toastier at home in front of your PS2 than out in an ice house, waiting for your first ice fishing catch of the year. Besides, it takes a long time for the ice to be thick enough to support an ice house anyway.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
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+ Tons of fish breeds, 20 tournaments, over 500,000 acres of lakes, rivers and more – depth unlike any seen in any recent fishing game. + The guides who give you game hints are actually pretty good – it pays to listen to them. + More of a sim than an arcade title, you won’t catch a fish on every cast – at last! |
7.1 |
| What Doesn't | |
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— The graphics are fine but nothing special. — A fishing controller would be a nice touch, as long as it’s an optional purchase. |
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| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| If you like your fishing games a bit more real and less arcade-like, Rapala Pro Fishing delivers depth unlike any fishing game to hit the shelves on any platform in a long, long time. Although the game could look sharper, it plays deep and offers tons of variety. | |
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Tags: Rapala Pro Fishing
Posted by Craig "American Idle" Hansen on Sep 21st, 2004 and is filed under PS2 Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
