Read Part 1 here!
I spent most of Part 1 explaining all the mechanics in this game, now it’s time to take a closer look at the plot! Not like there’s a big one, anyway… It’s just "go there, catch fishies, move to next spot, catch fishies". I mean, there’s not really a plot outside of this smug rival who suddenly showed up… I never understood why rivals are so often portrayed as smug a-holes who believe themselves better than everyone else. Weren’t they taught politeness by their parents? Do they even know what humility is?
I spent most of Part 1 explaining all the mechanics in this game, now it’s time to take a closer look at the plot! Not like there’s a big one, anyway… It’s just "go there, catch fishies, move to next spot, catch fishies". I mean, there’s not really a plot outside of this smug rival who suddenly showed up… I never understood why rivals are so often portrayed as smug a-holes who believe themselves better than everyone else. Weren’t they taught politeness by their parents? Do they even know what humility is?
The only place where trolling is acceptable. |
At Campbell River, you stumble upon the rival yet
again. This time, he presents himself as J.J.. What’s that for? “Jerkass Joe”?
After fishing a bit here, we unlock the tourney in New York. Oh, by the way, if you hook an ant lion to
your line, you may catch in Campbell River a pink Princess Trout. Yes. With
tiara and all. Not joking. That fish got a freaking tiara on its head.
I don't remember where we could catch that one, so I,m just putting it here. See all that detail on the fish. They look real, don't they? |
Having won the tourney, Nicolas receives the North
American Angler title, which means they can move on to the next place of
interest: Asia! Sadly, the boat gets caught in a storm, causing it to crash
near a sector of Japan we haven’t visited yet. The Captain strongly encourages
you to go out and fish for a bit in this part of Japan while he gets the ship
repaired. Wow, this guy is so professional it hurts. Nurse, bring the First
Aid!
And yet his boat is in good enough shape that it can
still travel between Japan and America. This not sense make. Logic: It’s not
just for real life, y’know.
Yup, definitely a kappa. Or a prototype of Michael Bay's Ninja Turtles. |
Once that – AAAAAH! SCARY! – fish is caught, you can
move on to Asia. There, you gain access to four fishing spots, and many, many
kinds of fish. In the Indian Ocean you can catch a Regal Tang (I’m so sorry to
all Finding Nemo fans! I caught Dory!), there’s a giant Taimen in Mongolia, And
in the Mekona and Yangtze rivers respectively, you can catch a male and a
female “Humanface” Fish. As in, really “Human-face”. A fish with a human face.
Please allow me to have a freak out.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!
Will you catch something big in here? |
So, now we’ve unlocked Europe. There are six fishing
spots there, and of course we have a random encounter with J.J., who brags
again and slips out info that there’s a fishing tourney in Paris, France. Ah
oui, I will like to go there. But first we go fishing in the North Sea, the
Loch Ness, in Venice, and finally in the Caspian and Mediterranean Seas. Wished
I could just train my kappa and teach him to punch J.J.’s lights out. A couple cucumbers should do the trick.
Oh yeah, you can catch some crazy giant pink fish
here. There’s the giant squid (which is considered small at 30 feet long!), a
“Dinofish” in Loch Ness (I guess it’s Nessie’s kid? I dunno. It looks like a
cross between a shark, an eel and a crocodile), or a remora in the Mediterranean Sea.
Of course, new fish to catch means new bait, so you may have to buy the new
kinds of bait available at the shop. The Dinofish will only accept a piece of
raw ham, as an example. And yes, there’s raw beef meat for future locations
where even piranhas can join in the fun. Because who never wanted to catch a
fish that had a liking for flesh?
And I’m not gonna spend too long fishing with a ham
hock, I’m afraid I’ll catch a wild Ponyo. Especially in Japan. I don’t wanna
catch Ponyo.
So, the protagonist finally gets to the fishing
tourney in Paris. Ah bummer, there’s only, like, three different types of fish
here. Not the most exciting place. Once again, you can’t predict which fish
will be demanded nor what the task will be: Catching the longest? The heaviest?
Mine was as follows: I had to catch three or more Posh Halibut, after which the
heaviest three would be kept, and whoever has the highest sum weight wins. I
won, I have beaten J.J.’s catches by 4 lbs. Take that, J.J.! If you can’t be
damned to show respect to fellow competitors, why should I show you any
respect?
This is Egypt. Cue obligatory pyramid shot. Or else we wouldn't know we're in Egypt. |
And of course, J.J. shows up at Lake Tanganyika to
mock you. Because of course he does. No sense on respect was taught to that
kid. He says Nicola (the main character, for those who didn’t get that I named it
after me) must be feeling pretty proud of winning two competitions… but of
course he says that by still claiming he’s better. Dude, your ego wouldn’t have
enough space on the Moon! Cut that out, will ya? Thankfully, this guy never
stays around for very long. He just brags, mocks the player, then leaves.
Well, there’s at least one good thing in Africa; there’s no trash anywhere in the fishing spots. I mean, pots, boots,
that stuff? You won’t find any here. Just cast your line, and you’re certain to
get points if you land a fish. I dunno what that says about every other place,
where junk can be fished out easily… I mean, the major fishing spots here don’t
contain any kind of junk!
You can attack the animals around the savannah with your line. Can't catch them, though. |
So, we were supposed to head to Oceania, but our
ship’s captain, always the trained professional, accidentally brings us to
Japan. Either way, he forces us to stop here and fish for a bit. Hey, Gramps,
can I fire this guy? Please? I’m sure there are much better captains out there
who would drive me around the world for this competition.
Again, I have no idea where that is.... it might not even be in Japan. |
After the Kanmon Straits, we find out the final part
of the tournament takes indeed place in Japan; in Yakushima, to be precise. So
give yourself plenty of time to complete the fish journals, rack up points,
you’ll need to buy a lot of bait! So, our protagonist enters the final
competition of the game. (But it’s not the final part, as there are numerous
bonus locations after this tournament is won.) This time around, I had to catch
a Dorado, and the longest one would be kept. I fished out only Dorados, and the
biggest I got was 5.8 feet long. Needless to say, I aced that competition, with
Ryan being second (at 5.0 ft.) and J.J. not even making it in the Top 3. Sure,
Ryan still brags, but look, I caught the bigger fish, I won. Still, Ryan
decides to throw a dare to the player: Catching a Fiendfish, an extremely rare
and powerful fish that can only be caught in select areas. Only then will the
player earn the title of Fishing Master.
You know what? I think I’m fine with that. I have
finished the actual competition, so I think I can stop here. Tune in next
Friday for the final part of this review, where I (hopefully) catch plenty of
exotic, dangerous or nonsensical fish!
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