Released: 19991006 Publisher: SEGA Developer: SEGA Genre: Sports

Review by: Mike Otoole

Sega Bass Fishing is a better than arcade-perfect translation of Sega's fast paced bass fishing game. Packed with stellar graphics and non stop angling action, Sega Bass Fishing is easily the best fishing game out there. Don't expect to spend hours trying to figure out how the weather affects the fishes' feelings towards the lure you're using, these fish are programmed to bite! Throw in the new Sega Fishing Controller and you're about as close to real fishing as you're gonna get indoors.

The graphics in Sega Bass Fishing are absolutely beautiful. They surpass the arcade version in clarity and detail. The underwater graphics of the fish swimming and the fight when they're caught are extremely realistic and will blow you away. Sega Bass Fishing uses an underwater "lure cam" view that really puts you in the middle of the action. You get to watch as the fish swim up, inspect your lure and either swim away or bite. The big fish are absolutely HUGE! You'll shudder in anticpation as they slowly inspect your bait and watch in glee as these monsters go in for the kill and snag onto your line. Other excellent underwater effects include crawfish crawling by, realistic rocks and vegetation and other smaller schools of fish swimming about.

Sound is fun in the game. There's a cheerful Japanese narrator who highlights the action. Birds chirp in the background as you cast your line. Each lure has a distinct sound. In fact, some of the lure require you make a certain sound with them to attract fish. The music kicks in when you catch a fish and the narrator yells, "Fight!". The splashing of the fish as he flails about on your line is excellent and you'll be happy as hell when you hear the narrator proclaim "This one's HUGE!" after you land the big one.

The game is broken into 3 modes of play: Arcade, Original and Practice. In Arcade mode, you must catch a predetermined amount of fish in 3 separate areas to get to the Palace area, where you try to catch the biggest fish to beat the game. Fortunately you don't need quarters in your living room! Original mode is a tournament mode where you fish for 4 hours each morning, afternoon and evening. You must meet certain weight requirements to advance in the tournaments and doing so will unlock new lures, areas and options for use in practice mode. In Practice mode, you have unlimited time to fish and practice with your lures and reeling techniques.

Although there are only 2 characters to choose from, a male and a female, there are many different areas to fish in, each with it's own particular personality. You'll be fishing among the reeds, off the docks of a lake lodge and at night in the Palace area. The Palace area is a special area that contains ONLY Super Bass (larger than 15lbs). As you progress through the Original mode of the game, you will be able to unlock this area for use in Practice mode. This means you're free to catch only the biggest bass available with no time constraints whatsoever (best replay value). Replay value is a tough call. On one hand you will never play the same game twice because each game will have different fish swimming around. But with no 2 player mode, and the lack of true fishing skill and knowledge needed for the tournament mode the game seems a bit shallow (no pun intended). Throw in the $40 price tag on a fishing controller that you might not use until a new fishing game possibly comes out and replay value becomes a definite issue.

Control in the game is fantastic with or without the fishing controller. With the Sega Fishing controller, gameplay becomes very realistic. Swing it like a fishing pole to cast, then start to reel in your lure and wait for the bite. The rod vibrates when the fish hit and start to bite, and you simply reel 'em in while following the commands yelled at you by the narrator ("turn the rod left, turn the rod right, lower the rod"). If the line tension gets too strong, stop reeling for a moment or you'll lose the fish. Each lure responds well to it's reel-in method (reel and stop, reel constantly etc...) and you'll need to keep these in mind when out on the lake.

Overall, the non-stop arcade style action of this game will definitely help to appeal to people who don't like fishing. Arcade mode is a blast when all you want to do is catch a lot of fish, fast. Original mode suffers a bit because the fish seem to stop biting for no other reason than to make the game harder. There is no explanation as to how morning noon and dusk hours, or even lures, affect fish' appetites. This means you're left frantically switching through lures to get a bite in the later tournaments and this can be a little frustrating. Also, without a fishing controller, this game would be rather pointless. It's entire appeal rests in the fact that you use the fishing controller to simulate fishing. Without the controller, you're really only getting half the game. Unfortunately, the fishing controller costs $40! This puts the cost of the game around $80-$90! Sega better be coming out with some future games to support a controller that costs this much. It would be excellent to have a 2-4 player fishing game for a totally new home game experience.

Sega Bass Fishing is a blast of pure arcade fishing fun. The steep price tag and questionable replay value involved might keep this one off of most gamers' lists, but the hardcore videogame enthusiast will not be disappointed.

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