SEGA GET BASS 2™ for the SEGA Dreamcast™ >>> THE REEL ANGLERS FAQ - VERSION 0.71 © 2001 BY RUE4GAMES >>> CONTENTS ___________________________________ I---INTRODUCTION II---SELECTING THE BEST CHARACTER III---KNOW YOUR CHARACTER ABILITIES IV---LEARN TO NAVIGATE THE BOAT V---SELECTING THE RIGHT LURE VII---HOOKING THE BIG ONES VIII---LOCATION IS EVERYTHING VIV---JACKAL RIVER SPOILER X---KUDOS! >>> INTRODUCTION ___________________________________ This FAQ is a mini-guide created to help Dreamcasters hook the big ones in SEGA GET BASS 2. This is not a replacement, or reproduction, of all the basics covered within the instruction manual. The writer assumes you are smarter than a fish by using these simple TIPS & TRICKS to have fun. I hope you enjoy this resource as much as I enjoy playing this game! GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR FISHING!!! ~RuE4games >>> SELECTING THE BEST CHARACTER ___________________________________ Each character has their own abilities. From the main menu you can select the CHARACTER option to choose your character. To start off the game you will only have 7 characters to choose from. By experimenting with different characters you can also change the narrators voice in the game. More characters can be unlocked by successful completion of the various Tournament Modes. The different characters can be customized as shown below: PLAYER TYPE---Choose your favorite character based on their abilities!* CLOTHING---Protect yourself from the fashion police and dress for success. SUNGLASSES---These are very cool but they won't improve your vision. CAP/HAT---You might need a hat so you don't get too much sun and burn. BOAT COLOR---Are you color coordinated yet? ***SPECIAL TIP #1*** The PLAYER TYPE is the most important selection here! True beauty is more than skin deep for this game, so find the best character to fit your style! I used A. Taylor and then J. Carter to start off with. Why not give them a try? >>> KNOW YOUR CHARACTER ABILITIES ___________________________________ You picked out a character that is dressed to impress. But what do all these abilities really mean? CASTING DISTANCE---How far can you cast your line? The maximum casting distance is 34.5 yards, but you won't want to hook one from that far out most likely! By selecting the A button before you cast, you can change your style of casting from overhead, side armed (left or right), and a skipper across the water. You can adjust the distance slightly using the very cool Fishing Rod Controller too. CASTING ACCURACY---Is your lure hitting all the right spots? It seems easy enough to start off, but sometimes when you see a big one underwater you will want minor adjustments to the location of the cast. RETRIEVE SPEED---How fast can you reel in your line? This can help reel in the fishing line faster. Use the B button to pull in your line automatically if there isn't the fish you want around. SIGHT---You snagged the cool shades but can you see fish from above the water easily? As you ride around in your boat looking for fish you will sometimes see silhouettes of fish from above the water. FIGHTING TECHNIQUE---You gotta fight hard to land the big ones! This changes how accurately your fight meter displays the line tension as you reel in the fish. CATCHING TECHNIQUE---You hooked the big one and have the fish next to the boat. With a larger red zone to use the A button, you can stay calm and pull it in! ***SPECIAL TIP #2*** For beginners the most important ability is FIGHTING TECHNIQUE! Finding the right fishing spots take some luck at first, but reeling the fish in takes all your skills! I prefer the Fishing Rod Controller when I play because it offers a more realistic game simulation. >>> LEARN TO NAVIGATE THE BOAT ___________________________________ The speed of your boat varies using the X and Y buttons combined with the joy stick for movement. You will find a lot of tight quarters to navigate as you search for hot spots on the water. Immediately crank the gas up all the way and use the joy stick to direct the boat. Time is precious so don't worry about being slow and quiet, the sound of your boat will not scare away the fish. You will also notice you have a Depth Finder when you enter the various play modes. When cruising the waters you can hit the A button to see different options. You can change your depth finder to a Fish Map to see the boundaries of the fishing area or select Go to Other Areas. Remember that you can't switch to other areas when less than an hour of fishing remains. ***SPECIAL TIP #3*** Pay attention to the DIFFERENT SOUNDS you hear while riding in your boat! Your boat has a special SONAR DEVICE directly under its bow (front) for locating fish under the water. If you hear a beeping noise, try to stop and back up--before--you cast your line into the water. This works effectively for both the Depth Finder AND the Fishing Map too. >>> SELECTING THE RIGHT LURE ___________________________________ Watching the FMV INTRO to the game not only gets you excited to play, it gives you TIPS ABOUT LURES! Although the graphics of the silver truck didn't match my beat-up Pathfinder, it effectively demonstrates some of the lure motions/movements you will need to master to catch the big fish. You have a limited number of lures to start with in the game. However, there are 102 as you advance through the various stages. (After catching about 3,000 total pounds of fish to date, I still have 31 lures left to unlock! ~laughs~) Because gamers use different controllers and there are so many lures I wont go into details of all of them. Instead I will help explain the best factors to keep in mind using my favorite lure as an example. I played using the Dreamcast Fishing Rod controller and used the DOUBLE WILLOW (lure #38) almost exclusively to unlock the new fishing locations within the game. Listed below are its attributes: NO---38 NAME---Double Willow CATEGORY---Wire Baits COLOR---Chartreuse LENGTH--- WEIGHT---3/8 oz. RANGE---Medium-Deep Like the characters in the game, you will discover lures all have special attributes and are best used for specific situations. For best results experiment to find a lure that YOU can use effectively. I liked this lure because I can use it in shallow water as well as medium and deep waters. Factors such as Water Temperature, Color of Bait, Time of Day are important too. However this particular lure worked for me in every situation of the game until much later when I had to use the BUZZ BAIT and NOISY BAIT as well. ***SPECIAL TIP #4*** Use a Sinking Lure for GREATER VISION under the water. Cast your line into the water and look for fish as you reel in your line in quickly. If you don't see any fish you can use the B button to automatically reel in your line and cast elsewhere again! Maybe you will find the big one right away? >>> HOOKING THE BIG ONES ___________________________________ When you are going for big bass try to think of a BIG SHARK! They are attracted by sounds, motions and sights which induce a FEEDING RESPONSE from them. You can tell when you have a sharks attention! (Although the soundtrack for the game is cool, just imagine if you heard the JAWS THEME music when a fish was about to bite the lure! ~laughs~) ***SPECIAL TIP #5*** Catch the BIGGEST FISH OF THE DAY when playing the Tournament modes! This will unlocks special lures that are not available when you start the game! Keeping these factors in mind, use a lure that makes NOISE! This is a good way to get attention from a bass. Cast your bait against walls so they fall into the water and create a large splash. Let your bait sink and drag it slowly over rocks and wood structures under docks. Trash and/or junk make noise too. You can also use a noisy surface lure to drive the fish bonkers too. When reeling your lure try to give it natural MOTIONS! Imagine a frog jumping into the water and then quickly diving for safety. Or reel a bit faster so the bass thinks its a small fish showing panic to get away. If you notice that you have some attention from a fish, DO NOT alter your lure movement too suddenly or you might lose the fish! Usually fish will charge and attack the lure at higher speeds. If for some reason your fish is staring at the bait reconsider the lure motion and the time of day. Mornings and evenings are best times to catch fish. They prefer shade or deeper waters when the temperature gets too hot. When its cold they are more likely to be near the surface or shallow waters. Also keep in mind that fishing in deeper waters takes more time! Also, the Largemouth Bass tend to be more dumb than their Smallmouth relatives. They are more likely to hit the lure if you have the bait between your boat and the fish. If you cast past the fish, most likely it will not chase the bait until you have reeled it past the fish towards your boat. Keep in mind that fish generally won't come closer than 7 yards to the boat! Use a bait that has a noticeable COLOR! If its morning, evening or maybe just cloudy and/or raining you may want a bright colored lure. Consider darker and more natural color lures for sunny days. Also, lures that make reflections in the water will attract attention. When the fish does finally bite, PULL UP THE ROD TO HOOK THE FISH! This is very important to set the hook so they don't get away. Don't start reeling them in right away or your line might snap. Instead give the fish a brief moment to run with the bait. The maximum line length for your rod is usually about 38 yards. Always be patient and keep your eyes on the LINE TENSION, red is bad and green is good for the meter. Use left and right motions to fight the fish in the opposite direction so its struggles will work for you! When the fish struggles with its mouth open is also a good time to reel. EXAMPLES: If the fish is running right, then tap your line to the left and occasionally reel. When the fish changes directions to the left you can reel in the slack more quickly and then tap to the right. If the fish runs down and away, tap left and right (or pull up and down on the rod). Most oft en you will have the best luck fighting the fish from left to right. Repeat this process until you have the fish near the boat to catch it! Most of the time a hungry fish will jump on your hook right away. If you miss the fish try and give it some time to get back to the original spot where you lured it out from hiding. Fish seem to be creatures of habit and like to feed at various times of day in different areas and conditions. If the fish doesn't seem interested be prepared to move on to another spot and save time. ***SPECIAL TIP #6*** Learn to DROP THE HOOK and land the big ones! By using a faster reeling technique you can get a fish to chase at a very fast pace. Keep an eye on the distance of your line as the fish approaches. Once the fish and lure are close to the boat (7 to 10 yards) sometimes you can time it so you stop reeling for a split second and the hook will literally fall right into its mouth! Try finding other techniques to catch fish closer into your boat and then you will eat less time on the clock! >>> LOCATION IS EVERYTHING ___________________________________ By winning the tournaments you can unlock NEW LOCATIONS and SECRET CHARACTERS! You can also earn some extra points and/or SPECIAL LURES for the Biggest Fish Award of the day. Always remember to save your game before you power off your dreamcast when you do well! The adventure begins at LAKE EAGLE, which has 5 default locations to choose from when you start the game. Although its challenging at first you should find great success fishing in these waters as the game continues. Take this opportunity to practice BEFORE you challenge the Tournament in the FREE FISHING MODE. ***SPECIAL TIP #7*** Remember that PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE and practice always makes perfect! When you unlock a new location it becomes available in the Free Fishing Mode. Find out where the hot spots are before you compete in the new tournaments for best results! Then hope for some good luck fishing! 8^) Below is a listing of the various tournaments and fishing locations you will discover in the game. I also ranked my favorite locations to help you find those SUPER BIG ONES! (1 = 1st, 2 = 2nd) LAKE EAGLE---SGBTA AMATEUR SERIES TOURNAMENT ---BEAVER DOCKS - 2 ---DEER CREEK - 1 (tie) ---ANDERSON BRIDGE - 1 (tie) ---EAGLE DAM ---CORMARAINT COVE LAKE RATTLER---SGBTA PROFESSIONAL SERIES TOURNAMENT ---HUMP POINT - 1 ---TIGER MARINA ---GOLDEN FALL - 2 LAKE GATOR---SGBTA TOP ANGLERS SERIES ---ROSALIE DOCKS - 2 ---REED AREA - 1 ---CYPRESS CREEK ---JACKSON CANAL ---GATOR LOCK JACKAL RIVER---SGBTA WORLD CLASSIC ---CENTRAL BRIDGE - 1 ---GREEN INLET There are many varieties of fish to catch in the game but you will want to focus on the BASS! The biggest Largemouth Bass i have caught to date was from Hump Point at Lake Rattler (18 lbs 09 oz.). I landed a few Super Big Ones, over 18 lbs., at Deer Creek and Anderson Bridge as well. Whats your biggest catch? ***SPECIAL TIP #8*** Always THINK AND SAVE WISELY when playing the Tournament Modes! If you have done well through the first stages of a tournament and have a bad day in the rain you can quit and go back to the start of the last stage you were playing! By winning the various Tournament Modes you can unlock 4 Secret Characters in the game! >>> JACKAL RIVER SPOILER ___________________________________ Beating the World Classic Tournament was a hard fight as SMALLMOUTH BASS are the new catch of the day! The trick to beating this level is not easy. You will probably need an average 30 pounds of fish per day to win first place in this tournament as it is based on weight only. But here are some helpful tips for hooking the big ones to win it all! Try starting at the bridge using E. Vick as a character. Then rotate immediately to the right. You will see people wearing all white clothes in the background. Cast directly at them with a good lure that lets you see underwater (such as #38). Most often there will be a BIG ONE or two right there every time! Use a Surface Lure to catch them while they are near the surface in the morning (such as a Noisy Bait). Take them both out and work to the right along the perimeters to get all the others you can (use trusty #38 or the Buzz Bait). Don't bother fishing too deep because you really don't have the time to spare! This sounds easy enough... But, from my experience you need to catch all your fish BEFORE NOON! The last day of this Tournament is probably the most frustrating part of the game. So hang in there and keep trying! The biggest Smallmouth Bass I caught was 11 lbs and 12 oz. ***SPECIAL TIP #9*** Use the tips above to UNLOCK THE ULTIMATE CHARACTER! By finishing the World Classic Tournament ranked in the top 3 you will unlock E. McCrary with all attributes 100%. Now that your a TRUE BASS MASTER you can go back through the earlier stages again to catch those Super Big Ones that got away. Congratulations on a job well done! >>> KUDOS! ___________________________________ If you made it this far along... I want to THANK YOU for taking the time to read this FISHY FAQ! I hope this mini-guide helps you with your adventures in SEGA GET BASS 2! GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR FISHING EVERYONE! 8^) be creative, dare to dream! ~RuE4games ***SPECIAL TIP #10*** Don't forget to use the MESSAGE BOARDS AT GAMEFAQS for timely answers to your urgent questions about video games! Who knows, you may find some new friends? GAMEFAQS ROX!!! ___________________________________ © 2001 BY RUE4GAMEZ All contents of this publication are copyright. However, this document may be reproduced in whole or in part with prior written approval of the original author. Send requests by e-mail to RuE4gamez@aol.com.