Ridiculous fishing is a very aptly named “fishing” game for Android. Graphics are intentionally and artistically pixilated in an unique and effective way. The main point of the game is yes, to catch fish. However, Ridiculous Fishing is not nearly as simple and well, boring as that. If you are here for a general fishing game, then you chose the wrong one. You’ll have to be quick with your trigger finger and have a good sense of humor to really appreciate this game.
You are a fisherman in a small boat on the water and start playing by tossing your fishing hook overboard. Unlike other fishing games, the point is not to snag the first fish you see, but rather to avoid as many as you can while your hook sinks. The deeper your hook gets, the more difficult it gets to avoid passing fish until you can get to a rare ‘boss’ fish at the bottom of each level. As soon as you hook the boss fish, or if you accidentally get caught up on another fish the entire game changes. The hook immediately starts ascending and you must try and hook on to as many additional fish (that you passed on the way down).
Once your hook and hooked fish reach the surface, the fish are launched into the air and you switch to a gun of your choosing to shoot them! Each shot drives the fish higher in the sky and explodes the fish to give you a cash reward that you can then spend in the in game store for upgrades. Many upgrades are the different gun improvements you can purchase, but some are just novelty hats for fun, or assists for your hook when you initially catch your fish. There are upgrades to avoid the first 10 meters of water, or shields to survive one premature hooking of a fish.
The controls for the game are simple and are quite intuitive for playing with only one hand. When initially lowering your hook, you aim your descent with moving your actual phone and using the gyroscopes. Once the shooting phase of the game begins, you tap on your screen to fire and aim your gun. For fully automatic guns you hold and drag to fire continuously.
Not all of the game is directly catching and shooting fish. Your fisherman, Billy, has a smartphone (made from wood) which has an amusing version of Twitter to get news about rare fish and spots, a Fishopedia which has information on fish you’ve already caught, and Billy’s phone accurately displays YOUR own phone’s time and battery level. You use Billy’s phone to travel to new areas and visit the shop as well.
Good:
- Beautiful and fun retro styling really works well
- Gameplay is addictive and intuitive
- Challenging enough without being impossible
- Many options, from gun choice, to lure protection, and even hat choice
- Truly unique game
Bad:
- Gyro controls can be shaky on some devices
- Quirky style might not be for everyone
Conclusion: Ridiculous fishing is a great Android game. Gameplay alone would make it worth the price, but once you appreciate the charm and extensive meta world building that they did for such a simple game, it really is impressive. Reading the “tweets” on Byrdr (birds talking about fish to other birds), or the entries on the Fishopedia is always amusing. Ridiculous Fishing has a very high rating on Google Play store and has won multiple awards.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vlambeer.RidiculousFishing&hl=en
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