How to Fish Review (PC)

Statistically speaking, you are more likely to spend the first several hours as an island castaway either seeking out shelter, signaling a passing cargo ship, or rubbing two sticks together to create fire. How to Fish, on the other hand, chooses to form an alliance with the one percent—the trigger happy stowaways who prefer to tackle dire consequences with violence and blind rage. Rather than keeping in line with the likes of Stranded Deep, Green Hell, or just about any survival sandbox sim, for that matter, it opts to weave its tackle with a fishing pole, a sniper rifle, and a stick of dynamite.

If we’re going by tradition, a textbook survival game would typically involve a bit of pre-catastrophe plot-building, a lot of eye-opening legwork, and an hour-long tutorial that would take you through the basics and teach you how to keep your head above water. In How to Fish, things are a little different. Rather than having you fumble around in the sand and forage for sticks, coconuts and stones to make spears out of, it asks you to fish. It asks you to fish, not just for the sake of keeping your immune system intact, but for the benefit of the environment, too. Fish, weirdly, are the in-game currency, as are they the one thing that drives you to survive another day. Because if you’re not fishing, then you’re slowly watching your sanity curdle.

In any other case, fishing would be an easy, cathartic affair—an experience that would either consist of a basic mini-game or single button prompt. In How to Fish, however, it’s a little more chaotic. It isn’t just about casting a line and reeling a fish in; it’s about pulling off ludicrous trick shots with a sniper rifle, unlocking weapons that make no sense whatsoever, and hooking gargantuan blowfish with a switchblade. It’s also about using fish to gamble, gloat, and earn passage through the ocean and onto various islands. It’s all incredibly strange, but that’s How to Fish, in a nutshell, and it honestly couldn’t care less what you think about it.

While How to Fish can be played as a lone idiot, it is a game that is far better experienced in larger schools of fish. See, most of the game is about buddying up with other survivors to compile a pantomime—a series of events that are as equally ridiculous as they are oddly interesting. As you work together to slaughter fish and finesse your shots, you each earn the right to pass on to new biomes, where bizarre bosses lurk in the shore and even more ludicrous merchants wait for a chance to pepper your arsenal with greater weapons. And to an extent, that’s all How to Fish’s loop consists of: killing fish in oddly creative ways, and trading an in-game currency to unlock greater opportunities.

If you’re looking for a decent storyline that caters to rich character development and thought-provoking twists, then you might want to consider casting your line elsewhere, as How to Fish is anything but a deep dive into the nautical realm. As there isn’t a serious game here, but rather, a simple  gameplay loop that doesn’t involve a lot of interaction with the world, it’s a lot easier to take it all in your stride and enjoy it for the pointless exercises that it brings to the table. It isn’t visually appealing, and it definitely isn’t bursting at the seams with genre-altering details. It is, for lack of a better description, a ridiculous game, and it wears its silliness on its sleeve like a decade-old pair of boxer shorts.

As with most multiplayer games that turn a blind eye to basic rules and regulations, How to Fish is a game that you can quite easily spend a lot of time in and not get bored of. Granted, the process of finding, catching, and trading fish is a little on the easy side. That being said, it is an unpredictable game that knows how to keep you on your toes. Bosses, for example, are a little otherworldly and unconventionally aggressive. What’s more, as each section of the island has its own species, weapons and stylized kill systems, it does provide you with a good variety of options to choose from.

Of course, the heart of How to Fish isn’t in the bottom of the ocean, but in the company of friends who each crave a taste of idiocy with their salt-laced protein. As there is a sizable amount of set pieces and things for you to fool around with in the game, fishing is often seen as a side hustle that you only need to tend to every once in a blue moon, whereas fumbling around like incompetent islanders and causing havoc is the thing that binds you to the adventure. Again, it’s all a little sloppy and mechanically inept, but that’s partly why it’s so easy to fall in love with. Is it perfect and completely without flaws? No. Is it still a lot of fun to experience alongside a couple of friends? Absolutely.

The last thing that How to Fish is is perfect. As far as independent games go, it’s all rather simple and bone-headed. But, again, that’s partly what makes it so darn appealing. As it’s a game that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but instead embraces its own weirdness, you don’t need to have high expectations in order to enjoy it. With friends, it’s an easy way to burn off a bit of steam and frolic on the shoreline for a couple of hours, give or take. If you can take it as that and little else, then you shouldn’t struggle to make something of your time with the fish that populate this ocean.

Verdict

How to Fish is just as odd as it is enticing. As a game, it clearly leaves a lot to be desired. But as a meeting point for friends who simply want to have fun and kill time with their tackle, rifles, and switchblades, it’s an ideal spot to call home for a couple of hours. Perhaps it’s best not to think of it as anything more than that. Sure enough, it falls short in several crucial areas, as does it fail to frame a picture-perfect world with bold and memorable elements. That said, it does deliver on its promise to provide a nautical sandbox for fledgling fisherfolk to romp around in. It might not be a great place to cast your line, but it is a spot that you’ll likely enjoy fishing in, nonetheless.