Throwback Thursday: The Black Bass

For today's Throwback Thursday, we are going oldschool outdoors with The Black Bass for NES!

Developed by HOT•B and released in June 1989, it was actually the second game of The Black Bass NES fishing franchise. The second game was released in America after the 1986 Japan exclusive, which was also called The Black Bass.

When it comes to playing The Black Bass, players have a couple of different options. The point of the game, as the title suggests, is to catch as many black bass as the player can. At the start of the game, you can either select beginner's game or ranking game. Once you have selected what you want to play, you pick a spot on the lake, select your lure and cast away! Fish can be attracted by moving the lure around in the water and reeling at different speeds. If a fish bites on the lure, the player has the chance to reel it it. You need to be careful because the fish will fight back and might snap your line, taking your tackle with it.

The game also contained a few extra features. In between casts, players could choose to change their lures and the colors of their lures to attract bigger fish, move spots and check previous catches. The game was one of the first to appeal to outdoorsmen, but received a mediocre review from critics are players in the U.S. After hearing reviews, HOT•B took the input and used it to create The Blue Marlin which included better graphics and better objectives.

Despite the simplicity of the game, we at GGR have a soft spot for The Black Bass. It was apart of growing up and for that, we welcome it to the vault!