Fishing: North Atlantic Review

User Rating: 6.5

Fishing: North Atlantic is a simulator type game that had me in control of my own boat as I traversed the Atlantic in search of various fish to haul back to port and make a living. I enjoyed the various ways I could do such things and everything I had access to but found the degree of difficulty a bit high for my taste. 

I started out in the tutorial which gave me the very basics to begin my career by harpooning swordfish. The tutorial felt a bit light for the scope of Fishing: North Atlantic. With the different ways that would be open to me once I bought bigger ships or other ways to fish, I would have liked tutorials to pop up to help me learn these new things. Granted the in-game wiki does have basic info on these as well as a gif that plays showing how it’s done, they could’ve been more detailed for me. Once I had successfully caught a swordfish, I was guided back to port to sell my fresh catch. I decided to delay that part of the tutorial and instead stayed in the area and filled up my ship’s cargo hold with all that it could carry, which I was grateful for later.

After dropping off my swordfish, the tutorial was over and I was on my own. I had the wiki I could go to for info and the local bar could give me tips on where some fish have been seen in the last week. After upgrading a few parts of my ship, I went out again to hunt for swordfish where they had been seen a week ago. I felt frustrated as I got there and circled further out and couldn’t find any fish. I decided to head back and try out changing my gear for deep line fishing instead, hoping the more passive dropping of bait would prove more successful. It helped and was easier to deal with than actual harpooning. The harpooning mechanic itself felt a bit off and even though I was fairly certain my aim was spot on, I still missed more often than not and felt frustrated as I reeled in a harpoon minus fish.

Fishing: North Atlantic is without a doubt a simulator game in regards to the details it gave me. I had sonar that could give me readings on various fish, and depending on the time of the year only certain fish would be available. Thankfully I didn’t have to maintain control of the ship as I voyaged longer distances and could set waypoints for the autopilot or to fast travel over the map which helped greatly considering the slow speed of my boat. 

The graphics were nice and I did take some time in between hauling in fish to appreciate the view during the day and during the night. The several ships traveling the sea varied in size and shape and were well done. The background music was a nice accompaniment to the game and I could choose between in-game music, radio stations, and my own personal music which was nice. 

Summary
Overall Fishing: North Atlantic should scratch any deep sea fishing simulator itch you may have. I felt the degree of difficulty was quite higher than I would have liked overall and the tutorial felt very bare-bones and could’ve done with more parts popping up as I acquired different gear or ships or crew, etc. I liked what I played, but felt it was made for those who enjoy harder sim type games.
Good
  • Lots of details to immerse you into the game
  • Good graphics with some beautiful sunsets
  • Some great in game music and features to include your own
Bad
  • Tutorial is very bare bones and could have used some fleshing out
  • Harpooning felt a bit off even when I was aiming at a swordfish that was nearly in front of my face
  • Some of the AI is wonky. A giant boat literally ran right into me in the middle of the sea as I was sitting still harpooning.
6.5
Fair

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