Ultimate Angler

I have a mixed relationship with Ultimate Angler. On one hand, it is one of the better StreetPass games, both in terms of its gameplay and its visuals. However, the randomness implemented in multiple layers of the game had a habit of stunting my progress and I almost quit the game multiple times. I did end up finishing all of the main content, save for collecting every species of fish, but it wasn't always a fun road to get there.

At the start of Ultimate Angler, you can unlock up to nine islands, giving you a wide selection of locations to fish, each requiring different bait to catch their local species. This is when the game is at its best. There is always a clear path for making progress, and you're all but guaranteed to be catching something new with every play session. As you finish islands, this selection narrows and progress can become frustratingly slow. Completing islands is the name of the game though, so there's no avoiding it.

Ultimate Angler's story has you take on the role of a traveling fisherman visiting a resort that has access to a number of ecologically diverse islands. Your skill with a rod and reel capture the attention of the resort owner, as you might be able to catch the aquatic behemoths her scientist father has been ostracized for believing in. Each island is home to one of these legendary creatures, but you'll need to prove your mettle on each island by catching fish throughout its locales before you can try your hand at nabbing the big one. Each successful legendary catch marks the island as completed and unlocks a new story event. I thought the narrative was cute enough to finish, and the ending was a bit unexpected, but the payoff didn't feel equivalent to the work required to get there.

In order to go fishing at all, you'll need bait. You get one piece from each of the StreetPass tags you bring along with you. The variety of bait is determined by the color of the tagged Mii's shirt. While I can't deny its a clever approach, the uncontrollable nature of which bait you bring into any given scenario ended up being my biggest problem with the game. This comes down to the fact that there is a clear hierarchy as to which shirt colors are the most popular.

If you need to catch a fish with bougie taste in bait to finish an island challenge, you could be stuck for a good three or four play sessions before you even have a chance of continuing. Then, once you finally have the bait you need, you're still at the mercy of RNG. Everytime you cast your line, you have the chance of pulling up junk, so you try for your white whale and pull up an old boot instead. Can you tell I'm speaking from experience?

Please don't get me wrong, most of Ultimate Angler plays great and is an excellent addition to the StreetPass Mii Plaza. It's just unfortunate that your never know if your next excursion will be utterly futile. Thankfully, I did have a lot of fun with the fishing portion of the game, and I thought the story was a nice addition. If I had to make a list of StreetPass games that were worth playing, this would no doubt be on it. I would just encourage you to go in knowing that, like the activity it's emulating, not every day is going to end in success.
Although the game is no longer being distributed, you can learn more about it here (as of 12/27/24): https://antifandom.com/nintendo/wiki/Ultimate_Angler

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