➤ Ridiculous Fishing EX: the review of a welcome return, perhaps not too necessary 🕹

Ridiculous Fishing EX is a modernized version of the mobile classic Vlambeer, available exclusively on Apple Arcade – here's the review.

It seems incredible, but ten years have already passed since the first release of Ridiculous Fishing, one of the biggest mobile hits to emerge from the indie scene. In theory, enough time has passed to warrant a remastered version, which brings us to this one. Ridiculous Fishing EX Review, although we are quite surprised to learn that the game that launched Rami Ismail into the firmament of international development already needs an aesthetic restructuring to be more attractive to a modern audience. In fact, we remembered it exactly like that, as it appears in this edition just released on Apple Arcade, but in fact, by seeing the original again it is easy to realize the good adaptation work done in this new EX version. After the thousand clones that invaded the market in the period immediately after the explosion of the original, the formula has become a little overused, but it remains the realization of a very strange idea and, curiously, also perfectly functional.

The only problem with this new title is: was it really necessary? After all, resolution and graphic quality are not exactly central elements in Ridiculous Fishing and, to be honest, the original is still perfectly enjoyable. The idea is that Vlabeer saw an excellent opportunity in the Apple Arcade catalog, considering that the always very careful selection of the subscription service could be the ideal place for his work.

However, re-releasing a game from 10 years ago would not have made much sense, so the opportunity for a remastering was taken as a result of the numerous projects of this type that have invaded the video game market for some time. The need for such an operation remains small, but it makes some sense in the context of Apple Arcade, where Ridiculous Fishing has every right to be.

ridiculous fishing

In case you have never had the opportunity to come into contact with the strange fishing of Vlambeer, you should know that the game Ridiculous Fishing essentially develops according to a sequence divided into three phases, with regard to the fishing action itself. We begin, as always in these cases, with the casting of the line, but contrary to what one would expect in this first phase, above all, we must avoid the fish and try to make the bait descend to the maximum depth. The second phase is the recovery phase, and here we must try to catch as many fish as possible while the bait quickly rises to the surface. Once this point is reached, the most absurd phase of all begins: all the fish collected along the way are thrown into the air by the fisherman, who takes out a firearm and finds himself shooting at the creatures, to hit them first. Fall into water. For each fish hit you will get points and money, mainly linked to the different types of animals you can hit.

The mechanism is simple and crazy at the same time, but somehow it works very well, creating a kind of addiction.

The descent phase, with the tilt of the smartphone to direct the bait towards hidden sea depths, the quick recovery required to collect the fish, trying to target the quantity but also the different sizes and, finally, the "trigger" phase With the We need to touch the creatures with precision and speed to collect as much money as possible, they fit together perfectly, with a really well thought out alternating rhythm. The lack of depth of the game and the repetitiveness Obviously, some of the action takes its toll, especially if you've already played a lot of the 2013 original, but the progression and surrounding elements can serve to keep interest high, at least for a while.

What's new in the EX version?

Ridiculous Fishing EX features several new fish and new environments which may also be of interest to great experts in the original. Accumulating money gives you the opportunity to invest in longer lines, unlock new areas and use more effective tools to "harvest" fish, allowing you to discover several species never seen before. There is a kind of endgame mode that may be particularly suitable for more experienced fishermen, in addition we also find the support of the pseudosocial network based on fishing, capable of building a kind of narrative (or rather communicative) framework around the central absurdity. action. Note that, perfectly in line with modern times, instead of an X (Twitter) parody, in this case it's a TikTok parody called "BikBok."

La technical rework Overall it's really remarkable: Ridiculous Fishing's particular minimalist and geometric graphic style didn't require much adaptation work, considering it's universal and still perfectly enjoyable, but the work done by Vlambeer and KO_OP Mode on this remaster (or remake, one I could say) is brilliant, because it takes up the characteristics of the original without distorting them, updating them and making them more pleasing to the eye, going from the original 2D to 3D.

Higher resolution, improved animations, greater color richness and variety of environments correspond precisely to the definition of "more of the same" that can precisely be applied to the entire game, but there is very little to complain about.

Conclusions

Tested version iPad 1.0.3 digital delivery App Store Holygamerz.com 7.5 Readers (2) 6.1 your vote

It's natural to wonder what the point of Ridiculous Fishing EX is, considering that the original still represents one of the best interpretations of the classic smartphone mini-game, which certainly doesn't focus too much on graphics and technical features. That said, however, it must be said that the work done by the developers is very respectful of the original material and ensures that this classic remains perfectly enjoyable both for a new audience and for those who already know the game. In the context of a re-release within Apple Arcade, the Ridiculous Fishing EX project makes some sense, which would make much less as a standard release through traditional distribution.