Pocket Fishing Review

Game: Pocket Fishing
Genre: Action, Simulation
System: Nintendo Switch
Developer|Publisher: Ultimate Games
Age Rating: EU 3+ | US Everyone
Price: US $12.99 | UK £11.69 | EU €12,99
Release Date: February 26th, 2024

Review code provided with many thanks to Ultimate Games.

Pocket Fishing a Broken Experience

Pocket Fishing, as one might expect from the title, is a fishing simulator. But putting ‘pocket’ in the title seems a little overambitious for a Nintendo Switch game unless you happen to have a pair of trousers with enormous pockets. It brings me no pleasure to report that Pocket Fishing falls into the category of bad simulator games. What on the surface appears like it would be a basic but casual fishing experience instead delivers a frustrating and awkward experience that is not optimized for Nintendo Switch. I do not recommend this game, but if you need to know more specifics, read on.

Cast a Line

The premise of the game is you are a humble fisherman. Possibly taking a break from their awful and demoralizing day job to do a spot of fishing. The game has no story to really speak of apart from the imaginary one you create in your head. You visit up to 5 locations, including New Zealand, Norway and the USA. Essentially, in different bodies of water, you can freely wander around and catch fish at your own pace. It feels like the only job the game needed to achieve was just to create a relaxing fishing experience, but it doesn’t take long before you start to experience the game’s issues.

First-person perspective screenshot from the game "Pocket Fishing" showing a player having caught a common Brown Trout weighing 1.310kg. The user interface displays the fish's information along with rewards of 20 coins and 40 experience points, also indicating that this is a new species record for the player. There's a prompt to 'continue' or 'collect' the catch at the bottom. To the right are game icons likely for settings, help, and other menu options. The background features a tranquil fishing environment with clear blue water, grassy banks, and rocks. Published on: LadiesGamers — I think I caught a fish.

Barmy Controls

Right out the gate you soon discover the controls for Pocket Fishing are baffling. You control your character in the first person perspective. Unlike essentially any game in this genre where movement controls are tied to the two analogue sticks. In this game, the movement of your character is mapped to the left analogue stick and the left d-pad. What this means is movement is exceptionally awkward as you sidestep about right and left like a crab and turn with the d-pad. You may be thinking, what’s the right analogue stick used for? Well, that is to control a tiny little mouse cursor, which is used to select button prompts on the screen.

So let’s set the screen on how you catch a fish. You cast your line with the shoulder button. When you get a bite, you have to move the mouse cursor over a button prompt on the screen, then move it up to start the catching mini-game. From there, it’s this rather simple mini-game of mashing the shoulder buttons and sometimes mashing a face button to land your catch.

Pocket Fishing makes absolutely no use of touch controls in handheld mode, making the concept of playing it a total slog. The movement of the mouse cursor is so slow the fish often gets away before you can use it. It feels optimized for mobile and not the Nintendo Switch. You can control boats in this game as well, but I had absolutely no idea how they function.

First-person perspective from the game "Pocket Fishing," featuring an underwater view where the player has hooked a large brown catfish. The game's interface includes a green stamina bar and a blue tension bar on the left, indicating the status of the fishing attempt. A timer in the top center shows 15 minutes and 81 seconds remaining, and a camera icon in the top right suggests a screenshot function. Underwater vegetation and submerged logs create a natural fish habitat in the shallow waters. The controls for reeling in the fish are displayed on the right, with a fishing reel icon. Published on: LadiesGamers — Insert sinister music

Glitches

If somehow you can slog through the bad controls, which I regrettably did, you discover a pretty bland flow of gameplay. Really, all you do in this game is catch fish and then spend your earned money unlocking new equipment and upping your abilities. Here’s the funny thing, though. When I started playing this game, I experienced a glitch where my character would not level up, making progression impossible. I was stuck in a bland fishing purgatory, which was not a nice place to be. I found out the fix was to restart the game, literally. But even then, progress was slow and grindy, not helped by just how dull it is to play the game.

Nice Water Effects

Graphics are the typical bland and boring realistic look you see in most simulator games. I guess the smallest praise I can give this game is the water effects look nice. You can see the waves move about on the banks of the rivers. Mild effort has been made to populate environments; you’ll sometimes see the odd duck on the other side of the river, but it all feels mostly hollow. It would probably work if the gameplay held up but that isn’t the case here.

First-person perspective from "Pocket Fishing," showcasing a player in a kayak on calm blue waters, fishing rod in hand. The clear sky is dotted with a few clouds, and a small island with palm trees is visible in the distance, centering the view. The game's interface includes icons for what appear to be a backpack, settings, tools, and map on the right, and a joystick control to move the kayak on the left. Buoys are scattered on the water, likely marking fishing spots or boundaries. The scene conveys a serene and inviting virtual fishing experience. Published on: LadiesGamers — Taking a boat ride

Conclusion: Throwing The Fishing Line Away

I did not enjoy Pocket Fishing. It’s been some time since a game made me genuinely as miserable as this. Awful controls combined with bugs and glitches made this a game I can not recommend in its current state. Possibly, with some significant tweaking and optimization for the Nintendo Switch, this game may become a straightforward fishing game to enjoy in small bursts. But that’s not the game I played here.

Final Verdict: I Don’t Like It