Review: Legend of the River King for 3DS

When you're presented with a game that has the word 'legend' in the title, you know you're in for some form of epic journey.

Images of vast open worlds, intricate storytelling, and deep lore all flood into your mind, perhaps triggered by the word's association with Nintendo's Zelda series.

When you start up Legend of the River King, you're met with something considerably less meaty than the title might suggest.

A soleless adventure

Taking on the role of a fisherman, you set out on a journey to catch the legendary Guardian fish to help cure your sick and bed-ridden sister.

The game doesn't disclose what illness she has, but this hardly matters. Unfortunately, Legend of the River King makes some more significant omissions.

For a game so focused upon the art of fishing, it's surprising that at no point are you told to catch one of those slippery critters.

Heading to the digital manual does provide you with such information, complete with some terrible fish puns. But given that the game that came out on the Game Boy Color as recently as 1999 it should ease you into the art of fishing more elegantly than it manages to.

A place to fish

It isn't all bad, despite the fact that I was left playing for six hours without having caught a single fish.

Depending upon where you decide to cast off, your experience when fishing will differ as different species of fish reside in specific environments. You'll also have to make sure that you have the right bait and lure attached to your rod - otherwise, fishing for a particular catch will be fruitless.

Your reason for catching fish is to sell them so that you can buy new equipment to help you catch bigger fish.

There's also some rudimentary random battle system whereby a whole variety of creatures, such as bats and spiders, attack you. They're easily despatched with a rather poor punching system, but to expect much more from a fishing game is probably asking too much.

Legend of the River King is most definitely not going to be for everyone. If you have fond memories of the game, or you've always wanted to explore this incredibly unique Japanese Game Boy Color title, then it still comes recommended. But if - like me - you've never been inclined to explore the world of retro fishing RPGs, this won't change your mind.