Sega Bass Fishing

If any game can convert a non-fisherman into someone who actually uses words like Jointed Shad Rap, Hula Popper and Buzzbait, it's the action-packed arcadery of the Sega Bass Fishing series. It doesn't make you hunt down the fish, and when you find them, they're ravenous. What does that leave? Action, mostly.

While most fishing games make you spend huge amounts of time seeking out the fish, Sega Bass Fishing spreads them three layers thick just about everywhere, and then shows you their silhouettes between casts. And casting is mindless - you simply put the reticule where you want it and swoosh the Wiimote.

With that taken care of, the reel, er, real skill comes in selecting the bait most likely to entice your piscean prey, dangling it in front of them as tantalizingly as possible, and then dragging them to the boat without them snapping your fragile fishing line.

We'll handle the second part of that challenge first - the Wiimote works as your fishing rod, pointing up, down, and to the side according to your gestures. Reeling in can be done using the buttons (there are three speeds, depending upon which buttons you hold) or by "turning" the nunchuk like a crank or just shaking it up and down like a lunatic. It works, but we'd still love to see someone make a real fishing pole controller (not just a goofy add-on).