Motion gaming is something that has had highs and lows popularity-wise. While most of us know about the likes of the Nintendo Wii and the Kinect sensor that was big in the Xbox 360 years there have been a number of other examples of motion gaming that are a tad less well known and indeed successful. In part two of this two-part feature, we’ll cover two more pieces of motion gaming-related hardware and software that are pretty interesting and that may have been overlooked and forgotten about in the passage of time. This time we cover the Sega Dreamcast Fishing Controller (plus Sega Bass Fishing) and the Tony Hawk’s Motion DS game package.
Hardware and Software: The Sega Dreamcast Fishing Controller And Sega Bass Fishing
Fishing is something that may not spring to mind as one of the most crowded gaming genres, but there have been quite a few games that have tried to bring this reel-y (sorry) popular hobby into the world of gaming. Sega Bass Fishing is one of the best-known examples in that category and has graced a number of consoles throughout the years but it’s the Sega Dreamcast version of the game being covered in this feature, alongside the special Sega Dreamcast Fishing Controller. Let’s start with that very unique gaming accessory…
Originally brought out in 1999, the Sega Dreamcast Fishing Controller was a distinctive motion controller for the commercially unsuccessful and also overlooked Sega Dreamcast. There were only a handful of gaming titles that were compatible with it, with Sega Bass Fishing being among them (more on that game later).The controller also works with a number of other Dreamcast releases such as Virtua Tennis, which is a game that seems very similar in gameplay to Nintendo’s Wii Sports Tennis when you see the Fishing Controller being brought into play with those motion-sensing abilities. The controller does seem slightly unusual but that oddness does add a bit of extra curiosity value, in my opinion anyway. Although lacking a rod, the Fishing Controller does mimic some key aspects of the real thing to some degree, albeit with added buttons and a joystick. In terms of motion-sensing, it detects when the player is moving the controller left or right, up or down and has vibration features which is kind of like the Wii-Mote from a number of years later.
Based on an arcade game from 1997, Sega Bass Fishing was ported to Sega’s Dreamcast home console in 1999. The aim of the game here is to catch a set weight of fishes against the clock which is an objective the player must succeed in to proceed through the game. There are four levels in total and the fishes vary in size, with the games tiddliest being classed as “Small One” and the biggest as “Huge”. You can play the game with the standard Dreamcast controller or use the Fishing Controller should that be your thing and, all in all, the game is generally quite well thought of.
In conclusion, the Sega Dreamcast Fishing controller was something of a niche offering but really was imaginative as an idea (like Tony Hawk’s Motion which will be covered next) and created something with few (if any) direct rivals in what it brought to the table. The platform it supported had a short run at best but it interests and intrigues people, particularly within the area of retro gaming, I reckon. As for Sega Bass Fishing, it’s generally seen as quite a catch if you want a bit of virtual fishing and is available for a great many modern platforms…
