Call of the Wild: The Angler Review

Call of the Wild: The Angler Review: What you can expect from the productions of which you know the nature of the developer, is almost certain before it comes out. Well, as someone who’s played theHunter: Call of the Wild for years, I know what Expansive Worlds can and cannot do, so I didn’t have high expectations for Call of the Wild: The Angler. Let’s examine the game, which can still disappoint despite all these low expectations.

First of all, the idea of ​​an open world fishing game was removed from this team if it ever came out. They currently have the Apex Game Engine, developed exclusively for open world games. But we know that the developer is pretty lazy too. Instead of solving the problems that players on theHunter have been emphasizing for years, they have been releasing DLC ​​content. That’s why before the game came out, this issue was also mentioned in the Steam forums I was in. We said, “If the game runs smoothly, everything is fine. They bring the content somehow.” It’s not what we expected…

Call of the Wild: The Angler, a game that never happened

When the system requirements for the game were announced, my eyes sparkled. Since the game, which requires a much lower system than expected, is not yet released on new generation consoles, I hoped that “my computer will probably handle this”. However, when the game was released on August 31, even the recommended system requirements were very inadequate. Even while playing Where did they hide the early access tag?I’ve also tinkered with it. First of all, what you should know is that if it doesn’t recover with regular updates – and I don’t think so with this developer – this game looks like it was just released mid-development.

Performance is a real problem.

However, it is worth adding that it is not the bugs or various bugs in the game that create this early release feeling in The Angler. I can even say that the basic mechanics of the game work like clockwork. But its open world and optimizations make you think you’re really playing an unfinished game. I had the chance to try the game with two different video cards. The first of them still has 4GB of VRAM, which is above the minimum system requirements 1050Ti it happened. Even at low settings, I was getting an average of 19-24 FPS performance. With 8GB VRAM RX 570 I tried with Here too, I achieved a performance of 25-30 FPS, with almost all settings on high. However, he noticed almost 3-4 FPS between the performance of the RX 570 at low settings and performance at high settings. So no matter what I did, I couldn’t run the game above 35 FPS.

Gamified fishing rather than simulation

It should be noted that the developer has also gamified hunting simulations before. In other words, while making Call of the Wild: The Angler, they did not adopt a spirit of “Only people who are skilled in fishing should play”. In games like Ultimate Fishing Simulator 2, at least a certain level of knowledge was required. In The Angler, just like in theHunter, it is more a gamified experience available. This makes the subject of fishing, which may seem boring to some, relatively more enjoyable. We can say that they tried to minimize the effect of the patience factor on the gameplay.

When you lower the fishing rod into the water, you don’t need to have great skills to catch the fish. When the fish hits the hook, nothing appears on the screen until the moment when you absolutely have to start shooting. When that moment comes, a “Strike” indicator appears and if you pull it right away, you’re hooking the fish. It was also necessary for this indicator to be concealable. After that, by adjusting the drag settings of the machine, it looks at you to pull the fish to the edge of the water by fighting the fish if necessary, without breaking the line. Although the realism is not in the foreground in the basic structure, the animations give you the feeling that you are really fighting a fish and trying to bring it to the water’s edge.

Of course, you also create your fishing rod set yourself. You attach it yourself from the rod to the machine, fishing line, hook and bait. You also have a mastery level for equipment. The more fish you catch using the same fishing rod and machine, the higher your mastery level in that equipment. After you have fully mastered an equipment, you can start using more powerful equipment. This means that at the beginning of the game, you cannot take a screenshot of the 8-pound Pike in your lap. We said; a more gamified experience. It has a system where you start from scratch and progress slowly. Although it extends the playability period, I cannot say that it is a situation that appeals to everyone.

Cute NPCs of the small fishing town

There is only one map in the game yet. Looking at the developer’s history, we can say that new ones will continue to come for a long time. But the only map available yet Golden Ridge. We are using this area where we hunted in theHunter before, and now we use it for fishing in lakes and streams. There are dozens of spots to explore and many rivers and ponds with different fish populations. It also has a small fishing town. Here you can shop, get quests or find small games to meet your equipment needs.

Yes, besides fishing, some mini-games also appear in Call of the Wild: The Angler. For example, they stuck a photo on a bulletin board and said, “What is this place?” he is writing. When you go and find it, your reputation in Golden Ridge increases and you also earn a little money. Again, there are various struggles like this. For example, there are tasks such as “Go catch the one with the least silver level of that fish”. Doing these also gives you new information about the map. It is possible to get answers to various questions such as which fish live in which region, how to hunt, which bait you should use, during these missions.

The most annoying thing about the quests is that the NPC Warden, who gives you the main quest, travels to different regions at certain times of the day. So if you want to do quests, you must first find out where the Warden is. Put that NPC in a fixed place, let’s not keep chasing it… Hundreds of players like me are complaining about this issue. Hope they change it.

Fish variety and reward system is the kind we are used to.

I can say that the variety of fish in Golden Ridge has been quite sufficient. If you can watch the landscapes that adorn every part of the map above 30 FPS, you can fish and take pictures on the other hand. You have to travel in the huge open world with your vehicle, which has one of the worst driving mechanics in history, and look for the most suitable spot to catch the fish you target. Each region has its own unique fish varieties, and you can have the chance to wrestle with monsters in large lakes and rivers, while cruising with relatively small fish in small lakes.

Just like in theHunter: COTW, The Angler categorizes the fish you catch from bronze to diamond. The mastery level and experience points you gain according to the grade of your catch, as well as the income you get from fish increases. Of course, as always, although your goal is to catch the biggest fish, your fishing gear must also allow you. As in some games, you cannot pull the big fish out after long fights with weak fishing rods. In fact, some of them can’t be there at all, they can move your fishing line tens of meters with a hook in their mouth. Again, this seems a bit strange for an experience we call “gamified”.

long story short

In short, if you’ve played theHunter: Call of the Wild or theHunter: Classic before, you already know the developer. In the long run, they can enrich their games with content and sell you paid DLCs for years. They also do this at a very affordable price. The pricing of the game is also 50 TL and it is much cheaper than any new game released today. However, it has huge problems.

The problems mentioned are things that can be fixed today and tomorrow. However, it is debatable how much the developer team will do this. Some adjustments were made with an update that came yesterday, but these updates need much more. You must have at least an RTX 2000 series graphics card; You can play the game literally comfortably. If you are good with fishing and looking for a distraction game, this game might be one of your options. However, if you want a well developed and smooth gaming experience, I would say stay away from this game for at least a few more months. That’s all I’m going to tell you from Call of the Wild: The Angler. Hope to see you in another review, stay with love and game!