Big Bass Fishing 2002

Description
Developer
Publisher
Platform PlayStation

I've played and enjoyed several fishing games, so I feel qualified to say that ESPN Great Outdoor Games: Bass 2002 fails the most basic test--being enjoyable. Not even when I was sipping a Corona early in the morning, tapping the A button to reel in a six pound large mouth bass was this game fun. With most fishing games, the D-Pad is utilized when reeling in fish. Bass 2000 requires you to tap the A button, no D-Pad necessary. Rather than feeling like I'm fighting against a spotted bass, I feel like I'm struggling to stay awake. Tappa-tappa-tappa. There's a whole lot of methodical tapping of the A button going on. I really wanted to enjoy Bass 2002, but I just couldn't. There was no exhilaration when I caught a fish. It was just too easy. It doesn't take long to figure out which lures work best for which fish. Once you have your lure rhythm down (tappa-tappa-tappa), nabbing fish is easy like a Sunday morning. Bass 2002 gets old fast.

The game does offer over a dozen lures to choose from and you can change the color of the lure. Some lures stay shallow and others go deep. You'll need to tap the A button to attract fish. Different lures require different rhythms to attract fish. Yeah, that means tappa-tappa-tappa.

There are three modes available in Bass 2002: Tournament, Free Fishing, and Cable Versus. In Tournament mode, you are entered in the Great Outdoor Games, as seen on ESPN (or more likely, ESPN2). You have two days to come up with the five fattest fish. This follows the rules of the official games, so you can feel like you're taking part in the actual competition. Free Fishing lets you choose a lake and fish your heart out. Try different lures in different locations to catch a large variety of fish. The Cable Versus mode lets you link up with a friend and compete against each other for specific fish within the decided time limit. It's always nice when a game can slip in link play, it definitely helps the longevity of Bass 2002.

Bass 2002 looks nice. There are a variety of lakes to fish, each with a unique realistic background. The fish are ugly, but in a good way. Because well, fish are generally ugly creatures. Konami nailed these fish. You can tell a rainbow trout from a Florida bass with no problem. Each type of fish is unique and accurate. Unfortunately, once you go underwater the uniqueness disappears. Every lake has the same bland look under the surface. The music in Bass 2002 in a throwback to the 80s, but not in a good way. Haven't I heard these two or three tunes a dozen times before? I had to turn down the volume after my third fishing trip.

A nice feature is the Livewell, which allows you to view the fish you've caught throughout your play time. It only took me two hours to catch every type of fish in the Livewell, but it did give me a goal outside of winning the tournament. I did find myself trying to catch bigger fish to beat my old records. I managed to get a monster ten pound Florida bass in one of my early ventures. It felt good seeing it in the Livewell and knowing I'd never get close to catching another one that big for a while.