Remembering Sega Bass Fishing: Its Influence on Modern Casino Games and Simulators
At the time of its release, Sega Bass Fishing may have seemed like an unusual type of game, as fishing wasn’t exactly renowned for being the basis for many arcade games. Yet, it turned out to be a big success that is still remembered fondly by players, as well as inspiring other games.
The Rise of Fishing Games
For many people, Sega Bass Fishing was their introduction to the concept of fishing games. The fact that it became a much-loved game meant that it has led to other titles in different formats following on from it.
One notable success is the Fishin Frenzy slot game from Blueprint Gaming that features images of an angler heading out to sea on a fishing boat. This is a casino slots game that uses the Megaways engine to give players up to 15,625 ways to win on each spin. There are also scratchcard and Jackpot King versions of this title.
Another of the popular games with an angling theme is the Ultimate Fishing Simulator from PlayWay SA that is available on the Google Play Store for Android devices. Fishing Clash from Ten Square Games is another Android title that can be downloaded for free.
Fishing Sim World: Pro Tour from Dovetail Games gives players the chance to compete against the 100 best anglers in the world in different tournaments. It is available on Steam and there are versions for Windows PCs, PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One, with some Fishing Sim World reviews calling it extremely realistic but lacking in thrills.
The History of Sega Bass Fishing
This game was created by Sega in 1997 for their Model 3 arcade technology. A fishing rod controller added realism and although early critics were less than impressed with the fairly narrow scope of the action, it was ranked as the second most-successful arcade game in Japan in 1998.
It was then moved over to the Dreamcast platform in 1999, followed by the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The Dreamcast version was particularly important, as it offered a fine way of showing the great graphics that the console is capable of. The smooth gameplay and realistic graphics meant that it became a firm favourite with lots of players. An improved version for the Wii in 2008 expanded the game with new stages.
This review from Gamespot calls it “lightly challenging” and points out that it is more of an arcade game than a simulator. Meanwhile, the Push Square review called the simplicity of the gameplay both the strongest and weakest point of Sega Bass Fishing.
The success of the game led to a sequel, called Sega Bass Fishing 2, from WOW Entertainment being released for the Dreamcast in 2001. Opinions were divided over it, with some praising its enhanced realism and others feeling that it lacked an arcade feel.
Of course, it is impossible to know whether the other games we looked at – from the casino slot game to Bass Fishing’s console counterparts – would have existed without the earlier release of Sega Bass Fishing. Yet, it remains the case that the Sega title was the first game of this type for many people, meaning that it has undoubtedly exerted a great deal of influence on gamers and developers.
