Deadliest Catch: Alaskan Storm
Deadliest Catch: Alaskan Storm
Battle 40-foot waves, storms, ice and a nearly 100-percent crewmember injury rate in the dangerous hunt for undersea riches on the Bering Sea with the new video game Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm. The game was inspired by Sig, Edgar and Norman Hansen - three brothers who have made their living crab fishing on the Bering Sea aboard their family’s fishing vessel, the Northwestern.
User Ratings and Reviews
2 Stars Mildly entertaining … for about 1 hour total.
Having watched every episode of Deadliest Catch from season 1 all the way up to the current season 5, and tuning in every Tuesday night, I can honestly claim to be a huge fan of this television series.
When I found out there was a companion game I thought “Great, now I’ll have something entertaining to do in between new episodes” I didn’t bother to read any reviews from any gaming sites before playing this game for the first time. As I started the game I was a little surprised as just how much information was being shoved into my face in terms of the tutorial and getting started.
After spending probably better than an hour getting through the tutorial, I was ready for some real game play. As I fished through my first king crab season it became very obvious to me that this game was SLOW. From jogging between strings of posts to even picking them up, sorting them, and everything else I was amazed at just how slow this process was. This really wouldn’t have been a bad situation if there was a way to time lapse the action, but of course there isn’t. So here I find myself spending yet another hour of actual game time setting off all the pots on the boat. Only then was I able to fast forward the time in order to soak the pots.
After unloading and making endless repairs, setting another series of pots, rinse and repeat several more times, I finally came to realize that this truly was then end of any fun you could possibly have with the game.
Frankly Pac-man which is far more simplistic than this game, can hold my attention for far long. Needless to say I was very disappointed in it. The graphics really aren’t that great considering the power that the 360 has.
My advice to anyone thinking about this game would be to either rent the game, or borrow it from somebody else (assuming you can actually find someone who owns the game) At least then you will be able to take it back after you’ve wasted 2 or 3 hours of sheer disappointment. The only reason I gave this game 2 stars instead of one is because at the very least it encompasses some of the realities of the tv series.
3 Stars Not quite what we thought it would be
My husband and son love the show so I thought I’d buy them the game. It’s much harder than I thought it would be. I myself have never played it (they hog the xbox 360 all the time) but my husband said it’s too hard for even him to play. He’s read the directions but still can’t play it well. For us it doesn’t meet our expectations but it might meet or even exceed the next persons.
4 Stars Deadliest Catch: Alaskan Storm
This game was purchased for my son–he has had a blast with this game–selecting his own crew and getting his own boat. Has spent many hours at sea!!!
4 Stars Time to review, time to cast off
Ok, after reading a few of the other reviews on this game, I must say that some make good points, and some state their own harsh opinions on the game itself. Myself, I love this game, its fun to me, and its enjoyable at the most.
The game gives you some very good tutorials on how to do a multitude of things, and helps you out with tips from the Northwestern captain himself, Sig Hansen. These tips come in from videos that play after certain things happen, things like a pot comes up full, or a pot comes up empty. The games also has lots of little side games, or missions as they are. These consists of racing against the clock into a packed harbor, and parking your boat in a selected spot. Helping the Coast Guard out by finding another crab boat who is in a area stuck. These little side games are fun on their own, as they provide a little thing to do if you decide you want to stop the game for a little while.
The career mode itself is a lot of fun in its own way. The career mode has 4 different difficulties, ranging from very easy to realistic. I play on the moderate difficulty, because I want to be able to just play for the heck of it and not worry about things. I have played on realistic once, and it is a bit hard. In career you choose your boat out of 5 boats, name your boat if you want, change the color of the boat, and go on your way. You then hire your crew at a port, and you go find your place to fish. The game once you learn how to play is not too dificult, there are just a lot of little things to remember.
I definitely recommend trying the game if you are curious about it. Everyone has their own opinion about things, so it just depends on what you think. I rented it and enjoyed it, but did not buy it until I got fully into the tv show. So definitely rent it from someplace and see how it is. Thanks for reading.
3 Stars Slow..but I admit it is pretty addicting
I see the complaints on here about “Deadliest Catch” being slow….and they are right. “Alaskan Storm” gameplay can be pretty repetitive and slow. When setting your pots to fish, it seems like it takes forever! (If this happened on the show Capt. Phil Harris would be pitching a fit!!)Most likely I’m spoiled by the TV show and the magic of editing. I’m sure setting the pots is a much more drawn out process than what we see on the TV show, and I guess the game kind of captures that. And while the gameplay is a bit slow…it can be kind of addictive. (As an old-school gamer I kind of relate it to Intellivision’s “Utopia”…God am I old!!) Depending on the weather, setting pots can be kind of tough, as you want to make them easily retrievable, or as close to a straight line as possible. In storms you will be battling huge waves, currents and other boats in the area, so there is some challenge….just very slow paced. So, while the gameplay can be slow at times, it’s still fun.
The other main complaint is the amount of miniscule text you have to read while playing. I agree completely with this complaint. There is simply too much to read during gameplay. For the XBOX 360 you would expect sound bites, and like “Dead Rising”, the amount of text does affect the gameplay, and to make it worse, the text is soooooo small as to make it almost unreadable! If a sequel ever comes out for “Deadliest Catch” that is the one big thing I would change.
Still, if you like your games to flow at a slower pace, you may want to give “Deadliest Catch” a chance. If nothing else, the graphics are fantastic, and the ocean simulation is beautiful…..well I better go have Edgar start chipping away at the ice on deck before I capsize.
Filed under: Xbox 360 Video Games