I would like to thank Dovetail Games for the review key to this title.

Licensed properties, when adapted to games, have to be faithful to the license while still being enjoyable as games in their own right. Bassmaster® Fishing 2022: Super Deluxe Edition attempts to cover both sides of this paradigm, and mostly succeeds, albeit with a few flaws along the way.

Bassmaster® Fishing 2022: Super Deluxe Edition is based on the Bassmasters fishing franchise, which has a television show, magazine, official equipment, and other related media dedicated to the sport of fishing. It both serves to allow the player to fish for real-world fish at real-world locations, as well as allow them to play as actual competitors in the Bassmaster television series, should they so choose. There is support for fishing alone, against the computer, or with other players around the world.

Like all fishing games, it is a simulation devoted to the mechanics of the fishing experience. Things like casting lines, using proper bait, struggling to hook and reel in the fish, and otherwise making sure one is optimally prepared to catch any and all fish are key elements this particular game emulates with a reasonably high degree of realism. There are a few video game concessions, like a togglable underwater camera for easier fishing, but this game otherwise is fairly realistic.

Several things this game places high emphasis on are the art of firmly hooking and reeling in the struggling fish, snagging, and proper judgment of various weather and location data to ensure one has the best chance to catch fish. The first focuses on the real-world issue of making sure the fish is firmly on the hook, then reeling them to your fisherman before it either breaks away or slips the hook. The second focuses on the common problem of getting one's hook caught on underwater debris and how to either break free or cut the tangled line and rehook. Finally, the time of day, the location of your fishing boat, and where you cast your line are highly important, as some fish vary by differences in this data for their availability.

The game allows the player to make a male avatar of their choosing or use a preset based on real-world Bassmasters competitors. After a brief tutorial, the game allows the player to fish alone at places of their choosing, or they can fish in various tournaments for prizes. The game also features a wide variety of fishing equipment that the player can purchase for different fishing loadouts, purchasable with in-game currency points.

Graphically, this game is generally high quality, insofar as the Switch allows, with the fish and fishing equipment rendered with a high degree of accuracy. The human models are generally good-looking, though some have "patchy" looking hair at certain angles. The environments are based on real-world locations and look decent enough, though lighting effects look somewhat bad, with an apparent "banding" effect at a distance and the distance LOD is pretty jaggy looking.

The sound and music are generally ambient and based on real-world fishing, with the exception of the catchy theme at the beginning based on the Bassmasters TV show. There are also voiceovers for the tutorial that is crisp and distinct to go with the accurate fishing sounds.

The game is controlled by the Switch controls, and I found this to be a mixed blessing. While the tutorial covers the basics well enough, and while the controls are responsive in most situations, the underwater camera toggle has issues at times with the toggle working properly. The snagging feature is also affected by a game bug where it does not stop reporting the line is snagged even after it's freed, forcing the player to move to a different location in their fishing boat to flush the issue. The game ordinarily has fishing by automatically casting the line and it also supports motion controls. The latter works well, but I recommend doing so with something other than a handheld to avoid wrist strain. A Joycon controller bare minimum would be a good idea if you insist on doing the motion control approach, but I recommend doing so with a much larger screen as well if only to direct your line better.

The online features are reasonably robust, and it's easy to find other players to compete against online. There is also an in-game form to sign up with the Dovetail Games website so as to keep track of statistics and receive news on their products. You can play offline, but the most enjoyment is derived from online play in tournaments if you wish to play with others.

This game is reasonably stable, with no crashes, hangs, or serious problems aside from some slightly longer load times when loading up locations. After these load times end, the gameplay is seamless and the framerate is quite solid.

Morally, this is completely clean. There is no objectional content of any sort, and it's fit for play by anyone of any age.

Overall, some minor bugs aside, I did have fun playing this, and it does come with enough content the price isn't too unreasonable if you are a fan of Bassmasters games in general. Otherwise, I'd recommend something that may be cheaper but still offers a similar experience if the price tag bothers you. Morally, this has no issues whatsoever.