Designed for the armchair angler in mind, Bass Landing captures the essence of being on an actual lake and boat without the hassle of reaching into your tackle box and pulling back a handful of slime! There are five different lakes in all, ranging from the murky Lunker Lake to the mountainous clarity of Crystal Lake. Each contains natural and manmade hazards (branches, poles, rocks) and different kind of fish--depending on the kind of fish you want, choose your lake accordingly.

For instance, the Silver Carp can only be found in dark, murky lakes or swamps and the Spotted Bass resides in the chilly, colder water areas. While the name of the game is bass, there are 14 different types of fish including the small but feisty Blue Gill, massively dynamic Carp, and the multiplying Rainbow Trout.

In addition to his or her game, the armchair fisherman will need to know how his fishing rod works and what lures to use on the various fish. There are fifty different tools in all ranging from Spinner Bait to the MHB-665 Bait Rod--one will want to know the functions of each lure and rig and choose an appropriate rod for the type of fish being hunted.

Carp, for example, love to eat other fish; the lure of choice would probably be a Floating Minnow or fishlike device. Because some fish max out at 77 pounds, don't expect to reel one of those bad boys in with a skimpy little rod and line--you'll have to break out a strong, sturdy rod. If not, that big fish will break your fishing poll like Arnold Schwarzenegger snapping a dried-out branch.

Bass Landing features a variety of game play options including the tutorial, free fishing, B.A.S. Pro Tournament, and record modes. The tutorial mode introduces the world of fishing to new players--it is a step-by-step instructional on how to cast your line (overhand and sidearm), pitching, skipping, selecting lures, and reeling in your dinner for the evening. Free fishing allows players to select a lake and water pressure, weather condition, season, temperature, etc. After doing so, an armchair fisherman can fish to his heart's content without the pressure of catching a certain amount of fish.

The latter statement comes into play with the Bass Angler's Society Pro Tournament--a series of six different tournaments spanning all five lakes. Each takes place in a two-day time period (or one if so desired) and requires players to catch a certain pound limit of bass--anything other than a bass will be discarded into the lake. At the end of day two, a player's bass total for each day is counted and if it meets the set criteria, the player will advance to the next tournament.

Finally, the record mode saves any and all data about the various fish you may have caught in the free fishing and tournament modes. Players can also save instant replays and view them here--got a war story about catching a 50-pound bass? No problem, save the replay and show it to your fisherman friends!

Bass Landing ships with Agetec's own Bass Landing Fishing Controller designed specifically for the game. It comes with all the standard PlayStation buttons including an analog stick, reeling device, vibration support, and motion-sensing. Additionally, there are a few in-game tools to help players find bass: The Depth Finder emits radio waves from the boat into the water and displays any objects within range. The GPS is a satellite device that shows a geographic map of the lake (overhead perspective).

Bass Landing (Sony PlayStation 1, 1999)