There are many things one could enjoy doing in virtual reality. Playing video games, traveling to remote locations, or even meditating are just some of the options. Going on a fishing trip isn’t necessarily something most of us would think of, even though the experience may turn out to be rather enjoyable. Fishing Master, available for the PlayStation VR, is an interesting approach to tackling this option. It is a mixed bag of game mechanics and choices, though, but still a valiant first attempt.
Fishing Master Brings Fishing to PlayStation VR
One thing that immediately comes to mind when talking about fishing in virtual reality is how the experience can get boring pretty fast. Regardless of how you approach fishing, there isn’t much variation in this particular activity. Hooking up bait, throwing the line, wait for the fish to bite, reel it in, and start over again. It doesn’t sound any more appealing in VR than it does in real life. People who aren’t into fishing in real life will not necessarily enjoy the VR experience whatsoever.
Fishing Master has a lot of aspects that work quite well. It has a tutorial to get people acquainted with the concept of using Move controllers for fishing. There are different locations and different fish to catch. Upgrades come in the form of different rods, lures, and a few other gadgets sued while fishing. It is equally important to release your line at the best possible time, just like it is in real life. Plus, the fish actually pull hard on the line, forcing you to adapt before it is tired enough to be reeled in.
That being said, there are a lot of things that don’t work all that well in Fishing Master. The tutorial has so many spelling errors it will make you question the English language as a whole. There is no real variation in terms of gameplay itself, as fishing is fishing. The missions and their rewards grow stale pretty quickly. After about an hour or so, the novelty wears off very, very quickly.
While the locations are different, it is only the background drop which changes. You are not effectively fishing in these locations, as it is just a graphic on a wall, so to speak. Progression in Fishing Master feels a bit broken as rewards are quickly outpaced by just buying gear with all of the money you earn. It is evident Fishing Master has a lot of potential, but it is severely underutilized right now. Some people will certainly have fun with it, but for $19.99, it is hard to justify buying it at full price.
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