As you're reeling in the lure before you get a bite, it's a good idea to keep the line taut. That way, you can set the hook with a simple, upward jerk of the rod. If there's slack on the line, reel it in quickly while repeatedly yanking the rod back.

When You Get a Hit
Pay attention when a fish is closing in on your lure. If it bites, the game voice will shout "Bite!" Also, if you have a Fishing Controller or a Jump Pack in the standard controller, you'll feel a strong vibration.

Enjoy the Fight
When you successfully set the hook, you'll hear the game voice yell "Fish!" This indicates that the hook is firmly planted in the fish's mouth and it's time to reel it in.

The fish, of course, will try to make off with what it thought was something good to eat. Its efforts to swim away are pitted against your efforts to land it. This is the fight! Some anglers consider a good fight the best part of fishing.

Smaller fish will reel in easier, but big ones will give you a battle. The biggest thing to worry about is the line tension. After you set the hook, a vertical meter representing line tension appears on the right side of the screen. Your goal is to keep the tension meter in the lower yellow or green region. When it enters the red area, the line is in danger of breaking.

Shortly after you set the hook, you may hear the game voice announce, "It's gonna be a big one!" At that point, you can be sure you have a huge fish - and that it will put up a fight worthy of its size!

To keep the tension low, keep the rod pointed down. Reel in the fish with slow, deliberate pacing, and when the tension spikes, stop reeling. Listen to the verbal cues telling you which direction to turn the rod, and follow the directions.

Good tension: keep the line tension in the yellow or green area.

Bad tension: if the tension meter stays red for too long, the line will snap.

You can raise the tension by reeling in too fast, jerking the rod upward, or pulling the rod in the wrong direction.

Watch the distance your line is out, shown in the upper left corner of the screen. Work the fish until the distance is zero. At that point, you'll land the fish and its weight will be revealed.

Letting the Fish Go
Before you set the hook, consider whether you want the fish that's about to bite it. Under certain circumstances, you may want to relax the line and hope the lure slips out of the fish's mouth.

Most often, this will be when a small fish hits your bait and you know there's a big one nearby. Remember the timer, though; if you're running out of time, you may have to take the opposite approach. For instance, when you have 10 seconds left, the line is 15 feet out, and a huge bass bites the lure, you won't possibly be able to reel it in fast enough without snapping the line. As much as it hurts, you should let this fish go and try to grab a small one.

To let a fish go, simply fail to set the hook. When the fish bites, freeze and do nothing. Sometimes, the hook will fall out of the fish's mouth and you'll be free to work the lure again. This doesn't always work, though; if the fish grabs the bait and swims away from you, the force of its motion may set the hook anyway.

Sometimes, it's better to catch a small bass than try for a big one. Except in the later tournaments, you can still count the pound or two you get by landing the little fish.

Arcade Mode
The unforgiving timer in Arcade Mode puts a greater constraint on your fish-finding efforts than you'll experience in Original Mode. If you cast out the line and there's nothing there to bite it, you're suddenly in very bad shape.

Thankfully, the generous designers of Sega Bass Fishing built in an easy way to spot fish before you cast. Take a good look at the surface of the water, and you'll see shadows of the fish beneath the surface.

You can even judge the size of the fish from the girth of the shadows. Look for rich concentrations of fish before you cast the line.

Just because you can see the fish before you cast doesn't mean they'll bite your bait! Lure selection is just as important as finding fish in the first place.

Original Mode
Those helpful shadows aren't present in Original Mode. When you're looking for a place to cast in this mode, you're on your own. On the other hand, unlike in Arcade Mode, you can control where in the lake you fish. That's important, because the fish tend to migrate around in response to various conditions. These include the time of day, the water temperature, and the sky conditions.

Casting
Casting your line is relatively simple: you press A or, if you wish (and you have a Fishing Controller), perform a casting motion with the controller.

Now that you know how to cast, learn the strategy of where and when to cast. Although you should consider the location of the fish when choosing where to cast, you should also take the distance into account.

Each of the locations has a wealth of places where you can cast your line. As you move the casting cursor across the locations, it will move closer to and farther from you depending on the distance from your boat to the shore and structures. You can therefore cast relatively close to your boat or far away.

How do you decide how far to cast your line?

First, consider your bait. Some lures are more open to close casting, while others require a long line to get the best results. For instance, you have to reel the Buzz Bait in quickly, so you should cast it far away to give fish a longer chance to bite it.

Feel free to cast your line far out - but only if you've got plenty of time left to land a catch.

The other factor is the timer. It takes time to land a bass after you set your hook. If you run out of time while a fish is on your line, you lose it! Therefore, when you're short on time, you should cast close to your boat so if you do get a bite, you can crank the fish in before the timer robs you of your catch.

Four hours may seem like a long time in Original Mode until you consider that this game ticks away the "minutes" at one second apiece. Watch that clock, and remember to cast accordingly.

After Casting
When the lure is in the water, you're treated to an underwater view of it. Use this view not only to lure fish, but also to check out the surroundings. Do you see a lot of fish in this area--Bear that in mind.

If there aren't any fish around at all, reel the line in as fast as you can and try casting somewhere else. Don't bother trying a different bait in the same area - if there aren't any fish the first time, there won't be any the second time!

If there are fish, watch their reaction to your bait. Do they look? Do they follow it? If they do, even if you don't get a hit, try the bait in the same place again. If all the fish completely ignore it, don't cast the same lure again; try a different one!

Time of Day
Bass have daily routines, just as people do. When they're not spawning or dormant, they tend to follow similar patterns throughout each day.

Their appetites differ from morning to noon to night as well. Baits that work well in the morning might not attract even a single fish in the evening.

Morning
Bass like to feed in the morning, and to do so they tend to head to places rich in minnows, insects, grubs, and other tasty morsels. In general, that means the shallow waters near reeds and other plant life.

In the morning, head for areas such as the Reeds on Lake Crystaldew and the Cape on Lake Paradise. Otherwise, try other shallow areas unless it's really sunny or cool. See the discussion of weather below.

Start the morning with hard baits like the Shallow Crank, the Suspend Minnow, and other lures with similar action. If those don't work, try rubber baits such as Worms and Grubs.

Noon
Full from breakfast, bass tend to retreat to deeper waters or shady areas as the day warms up and the sun gets bright. Most fish don't like direct sunlight. Check for bass in the deep water near the Inlet on Lake Paradise and the Bridge areas of Lake Crystaldew. If those areas seem abandoned, head to the shadows near Lake Paradise's Lodge or, on the other lake, try the Cave.

There's no ironclad rule to choosing your afternoon bait. Try deepwater lures like the Deep Crank and the Rubber Jig. If those don't attract attention, give the flashier Spinner a shot.

Midday is the hardest time to catch bass. Sometimes they just don't bite, no matter where you look and what you toss at them. Don't be discouraged if you're not very successful during this time.

Evening
Fish tend to jump in the evening, when insects such as mosquitoes, moths, and other juicy bugs come out. Fish head for shallow water in the evening, as in the morning. Your choice of bait will differ, though. Use surface baits such as the Popper, the Buzz Bait, and the Pencil Bait.

On Lake Paradise, the Lodge and the Cape are prime locations to check for bass; on Lake Crystaldew, you should concentrate your efforts on the Reeds.

Weather
While the time of day certainly affects where fish tend to gather, weather often has an even greater impact. Fish readily respond to water temperatures and to sky conditions, such as sun and rain. Combined with the daily routines of the bass, weather makes it hard to pinpoint exactly where the big fish will be.

Thankfully, the weather has less of an effect on which lures the fish are likely to be interested in. Stick to the lure suggestions given in the last section. The weather should, however, affect the color of the bait you cast. Fish don't have the best eyesight, so the sharper the bait contrasts with the background, the better they'll be able to see it. In dark conditions, such as on cloudy or rainy days, choose bright bait colors. When it's sunny and glaring, choose darker colors. When you're selecting your lure, you can toggle the thumb controller up or down to change the color.

Conditions
Just as the temperature inspires fish to move around, so do the weather conditions. Although some people wouldn't expect it, fish are affected a great deal by what's happening outside and above the water they live in.

Sun
You already know that fish don't like sun. Like cool water, sun often causes fish to retreat to deeper areas.

You can't treat bright sunlight like cool water, though. Bass don't have to dive to avoid it, as long as they can find shady shelter. If the water is warm, they'll stay near the surface (provided they were there to start with) and seek refuge under docks, in caves, or in the shadows of various structures.

When it's sunny, first apply the rules of the time-of-day habits described above. If you can't find any fish based on that strategy, try casting in shady areas and deeper water.

Clouds
Overcast days are always welcome to anglers. Basically, they have very little effect on fish behavior. The fish don't have to scurry away from the direct sunlight, and their habits aren't affected by rain, either.

When it's cloudy, use the guidelines set out above for the times of day. The only factor that should affect your search is the water temperature - besides, of course, the whims of the unpredictable bass.

Bleak, overcast weather shouldn't affect your choice of casting locations.

Rain
Bass love rain. The fresh insurgence of water rejuvenates the waters of their habitats. Rain will often bring fish toward the surface of the lake to enjoy the pure, new water. The loud, bubbly action of raindrops hitting the surface may also be a factor in attracting them. When it's rainy, check out shallow areas near shelter, such as docks. Try floating bait, and if that doesn't work, use shallow lures. You may find that you get your best hauls on rainy days.

The Cape Area
You'll find this structure to the left of the Cape. The water is a medium depth and it's a good location to fish on sunny mornings or during the noon phase of a tournament.

That tree hangs over shallow water, sheltering fish from the sun. Cast beneath it on bright mornings or evenings, and cast nearby during rainstorms.

This shallow water along the shore isn't always a popular area, but you'll occasionally find fish here in all kinds of weather.

The small dock to the right of the Cape is a good spot to check in the evenings or at any time on cloudy days.

The Inlet Area
The shore to the left of the inlet drops into deep water at a steep angle. It's a good place to cast dragging bait, such as the Paddle Tail or the Straight Worm.

The inlets themselves are nice and deep. Check for big bass here around noon.

The right inlet allows the longest casting distance in this area. It's also deep, so choose your lure accordingly.

To the right of the inlet you'll find a medium-depth, rocky shoreline. Use a Jig or a Paddle Tail to lure big fish there.

The Palace
The right side of this area offers a medium casting distance, and beneath the surface is a lot of solid debris. Bounce various lures off of it to generate noise.

The center of the Palace Area is the entrance to the spooky castle. The depth is uneven, and big bass tend to lurk in the nooks and crannies at the bottom.

Moving to the right, you'll find more medium-depth water with lots of solid debris.

The right side of this area holds a little bridge, offering shelter in a more shallow location. This is a great spot to hit on rainy afternoons.

The Bridge Area
Off to the left, you'll find a steeply sloping shore that leads down to the first bridge support. If it's morning or evening, try hitting this area with a medium-depth lure.

You'll find very deep water at the center of the bridge. Check it out during bright afternoons or when the water is particularly cool. The bottom slopes sharply upward to this shore where you'll find a good number of rocks over which to drag bottom lures.

The rest of the shore, right up to this small dock, is of shallow to medium depth. It's not a popular spot for bass, but you'll occasionally find a few here in the evening.

The Reeds Fish near this dock, on the left side of this area, whenever it's raining. Use a floating lure. You won't be disappointed.

These wooden stumps are popular hangouts for huge bass, especially in the morning. Lure them with grubs and worms, or try shallow, hard baits.

Fishing is good near the little bridge in the evenings. Try the Popper or the Pencil Bait.

If you don't find any fish near these wooden stumps in the morning, head to the right, past the bridge. Drag a grub out of those reeds and you'll have to fight off the bass.

The Cave The jagged, rocky bottom in this area practically screams out for a paddle tail. Drag it along the rocks and you're almost sure to attract the attention of nearby bass.

The dead trees here are a gathering spot for bass in the afternoon. Try a medium-depth, hard bait.

The Cave itself is a perfect shelter from the sun, and its medium depth also attracts fish when the water is too cool in the shallower areas. Try the Spinner Bait here.

To the right, you'll find shallower water with plenty of rocks along the bottom. Check out this area in the evening.

The Falls (Bonus Area)
The far left side of this area has a shallow shelf that drops off suddenly into deeper water. Experiment with different lures here.

Beneath the first waterfall, you'll find the deepest water in the game. Drop a deep-water lure there to see whether there's a huge bass lurking.

The bottom gets a little shallower near the second waterfall, near the decaying trees. The most fish in this location can be found here.

The jagged bottom near this pool is a good place to drag a lure.