In Fishing Master: World Tour for Nintendo Wii, you’ll be reeling up fish in waters all over the world as you strive to become an International Fishing Master. Perform realistic fishing moves using the Wii remote and nunchuck to catch more than 200 different species of fish in 40 different areas. So, is Fishing Master: World Tour a keeper or should you toss it back? Read on to find out:

First, choose to be a boy or girl angler, and you even get to pick a fishing buddy pet (dog or cat) to sit by your side at the fishing spots. Then hop on board your boat and travel to fishing locations all over the world. Go deep sea trolling in Hawaii, or sink your hook in lakes and rivers in Japan, San Francisco, even a fountain in Paris, France.

When you’re ready to go back to your boat at the end of the day, the captain will tally up your points based on what you caught. Sometimes the captain will give you a special quest for a certain fish to find, and if you catch it, you can get bonus points. Use your points at the shop to buy different kinds of bait and better fishing rods to help you land bigger and better fish. As you play, time will pass and seasons will change, offering different kinds of fish to catch and tournaments to compete in. Players can brag about their biggest fish by uploading their data to online WiFi leaderboards. Four people can also fish together on one Wii system in the multiplayer modes.

It’s easy to figure out the intuitive controls in Fishing Master: World Tour because there are picture cues to show you how to move the remote. To cast, just press the B button on the bottom of the remote, then pull the remote up and flick it back. When you’ve hooked a fish, pull up on the remote and use the nunchuck to wind it in, just like a real fishing rod. But if you’d rather just use the buttons on the nunchuck to reel in, you can do that, too. Or if you don’t have a nunchuck, just reel in with the buttons on the remote. Watch the meter at the top of the screen as you reel in. If it moves too far to the left or right, the fish will either escape or break the line, so don’t reel too much or too little, depending on the situation. While you’re reeling in a fish, sometimes picture cues will prompt you to swing the remote left or right. If you do so correctly and quickly, you’ll stun the fish for a second, giving you a chance to reel it in faster.

The visuals are colorful and cartoony, but can be a little grainy in places. But it doesn’t affect the gameplay very much. The only other big problem with Fishing Master: World Tour is it’s a bit repetitive and slow-moving at times, especially when you have to wait for a particular season to catch fish in. But other than that, Fishing Master: World Tour is the best fishing game on the Wii yet!

Kid Factor:
Fishing Master: World Tour is rated E for Everyone with an ESRB descriptor of Mild Language. I haven’t come across any mild language in the text yet, so it must be used VERY sparingly. Reading skill is helpful as the text tells you what kinds of fish to catch and which bait to use, but there are picture cues to show you how to control the game as well. Kids will love the cartoony graphics and easy to learn controls, making it an excellent fishing game for young players. It can also be considered an educational game, too. When you catch a new fish, the game will add it to a journal where you can learn fun facts about the fish, such as its diet, behavior, how to handle it, if it’s poisonous, and if you can eat it. In my experience, I’ve found that kids love to learn about sea life, so they’d probably enjoy learning about fish in this game, too. Also, maybe it’s because I’m from the south, but every kid I know loves to fish in real life, too. So, parents, I think it would be a great idea if you all took your kids fishing for real at least ONCE in their childhood. I bet they’ll have fond memories of it later.

Tags: Game Reviews