I realise there’s something inherently ridiculous about starting a blog on working through your never-ending gaming backlog with a game you’ve literally just bought, but here we are with Sega Bass Fishing. It’s a game I not only bought recently but also finished on that very same day. This does not mean I completed it, mind you, for reasons I will get into soon. Let’s just say it’s definitely something I should have left to those hazy nostalgic days of my youth. It’s true what they say: never meet your heroes.
Back in 1997 or so, I first cast my lure into Sega Bass Fishing, picking it up alongside the fishing rod peripheral as a fresh-faced pre-teen. My dad has always been big into fishing, so I’d hoped it would be a way we could bond over a tangential shared interest. He and I both absolutely loved it, and my dad ended up grabbing a Dreamcast, a copy of the game, and a Dreamcast fishing rod himself!
However, I later found out he could never be bothered to set it up since he could just go fishing in real life. So, it all sat in a carrier bag behind the sofa for a year before ending up at Computer Exchange. But that’s by the by.
Recently, I’ve been yearning to play the game again and have been scouring eBay for a deal on a Dreamcast, the game, and a rod. I’ve even sifted through a mountain of research on how to get the best out of the setup on a modern TV. I am, however, very guilty of having more fun over-researching things than actually doing the thing itself.
I soon realised (potentially for the first time in my life) that spending a few hundred quid just to satisfy a bit of nostalgia was a tad ridiculous, especially given my previously mentioned disposition for collecting things and then never following through on doing them.
The whole experience of slowly reeling in your lure by pressing one of the shoulder buttons and sometimes waggling the left stick does not make for an enjoyable gaming experience.
After this bit of soul-searching, I spotted Sega Bass Fishing on Steam for only £6.99 and was incredibly excited that the game was Steam Deck compatible. Even without the rod peripheral, it being playable on the deck must be a good compromise, right?
It turns out I was wrong. Massively wrong. It’s not a good compromise. The fishing rod peripheral absolutely made this game what it is because it’s legitimately one of the dullest experiences I have ever had.
There’s none of the tension and excitement (well, this may be the nostalgia speaking) that the game had with the rod. Instead, the whole experience of slowly reeling in your lure by pressing one of the shoulder buttons and sometimes waggling the left stick does not make for an enjoyable gaming experience.
To give the game its due, though, Sega Bass Fishing still looks pretty nice in its charming, blocky way. I’ve always thought Dreamcast games looked quite lovely anyway. The sound of the water trickling along is also quite relaxing, something that cannot be said about the god-awful music. The fella getting excited about how big (or disappointed in how small) your bass is when you catch one is the absolute highlight, but it certainly isn’t enough to carry an entire game.
If I’m to take anything out of this experience, it’s knowing that I no longer want to spend a good chunk of money on buying a Dreamcast and all the peripherals. My nostalgic hankering for Sega Bass Fishing has also sadly been utterly destroyed. I suppose at least it was only £6.99 to ruin some great childhood memories!
