Fishing Sim World review: Something smells fishy on PS4 and Xbox One

After surprisingly enjoying earlier this year, I was keen to try more of the studio’s virtual simulations.

Fishing Sim World seemed especially promising given the fact that I’ve always had a soft spot for Sega Bass Fishing, quite enjoy the , and am even partial to a bit of Final Fantasy Monsters of the Deep on PlayStation VR.

Unfortunately, however, despite some pretty visuals and an impressive attention to detail, Fishing Sim World never managed to reel me in.

The game starts off promising enough – once you get past the disappointing character creation suite, that is – featuring seven different lakes from the Europe and the US.

The lakes are absolutely huge and really quite beautiful, especially if you set the time of day to morning and the weather to clear.

I think the game could do with a few more species of fish – 18 seems a bit on the stingy side – but other than that, Fishing Sim World gives you plenty of things to tackle.

Fully exploring the different lakes could keep you busy for weeks, and that’s before you get to the various tournaments and online multiplayer.

But despite the vastness of the lakes, the lengthy list of items to unlock and the promise of online competition, Fishing Sim World is just a bit boring.

Once you’ve mastered your fishing rod and the best places to fish, there’s not much else to figure out. You also spend a lot of time waiting around doing nothing.

It’s certainly not as challenging as mastering the controls of a train, and then trying to reach your destinations on time.

Train Sim World also provides a greater form of escapism, because while I’m never likely to drive a train for real, I can quite easily go fishing – and have.

If you really enjoy fishing and want an experience that simulates your hobby as closely as possible, then I have no doubt that Fishing Sim World is the game for you.

For me, however, Fishing Sim World is just a sim too far, and one that I’m unlikely to return to.