Hook a Lunker with Super Black Bass Fishing

Super Black Bass Fishing for the Nintendo DS infuses the thrill of competitive Micropterus fishing into your hands. You can fish for largemouth and smallmouth bass, bluegill, pike, and other species in this relaxing game for the most popular handheld system, the DS.

There are not many fishing games available for the Nintendo DS. Most popular is probably Legend of the River King: Mystic Valley. Also available are Tsuri Master, and Super Black Bass Fishing. Supposedly, there is a fourth game called PFT: Northern Hemisphere, but I have not been able to find info on it, making me believe it may never have been released. Fishing fans have it much easier on large consoles like the Xbox360, Nintendo Wii, or PC, where fishing titles abound (along with many other outdoor games, especially hunting simulations).

Super Black Bass Fishing is published by Majesco Games, and was designed by the Japanese game company, Starfish. It does not have the largest following, especially for a DS game, but it offers some fun action for dedicated anglers.

Multiplayer and single player are offered in Super Black Bass Fishing. The single player mode allows users to either compete in the tournaments, thus advancing the storyline of a scrappy kid trying to make it in the "big leagues" of professional fishing. Alternatively, players can just try out the lakes they have unlocked through the story line in "practice" mode. Honestly, the graphics for the cut scenes are pretty poor, certainly not on par with higher-end DS games. However, the actual fishing scene graphics are very good and remind me of an old favorite of mine, Trophy Bass, for PC. The gameplay view, when fishing, consists of a top down view, with angler at the bottom of the screen.

One of the downsides of Super Black Bass Fishing is the totally unrealistic fish weights. Of the several tournaments I have played (and won) on the game, I have been able to land 5 fish limits averaging 8 lbs or greater per fish. This is practically unheard of in real professional fishing, so I was a little shocked that this game made it so commonplace. Also, the bluegill in this game are absurdly huge, sometimes weighing 5-8 lbs! Not only is that completely unheard of, it is also pretty much impossible, as though fish do not get that big (super rare, if at all).

However, despite these drawbacks, I still have enjoyed playing Super Black Bass Fishing. It certainly is not the most amazing DS game, but true fishing fans will get some limited entertainment from it. Tight lines, anglers!