FIX FISHING ITS TERRIBLE

[Quirinea]

Can someone tell me if there is a mod to make fishing easier? I suck and I can't keep the fish from staying at the bottom of the meter.

If rather this play like Animal Crossing or Rune Factory

There are several. My favourite at the moment is https://www.nexusmods.com/stardewvalley/mods/3623 (Fishing made easy).
If Teh's Fishing overhaul would be updated... that was even better. Giving nice information too.
Yeah. I still suck at fishing. I could get nothing when I started. When I got those fishing mods, that was a saviour. And to the extent that when I couldn't find a fishing mod compatible with my translation mod (StardewFinnish) I made a private version with easier fishing. Now I find "60 % easier" to be a suitable level, and I've played a lot! OK I want relaxing, not "challenge" (read frustrating).
On PC this isn't a problem, but if you cannot use mods. I've heard of people who'd like this game but the fishing is physically impossible to them. Due to rheumatic hands or the like.

 

[Tom]

I can't keep the fish from staying at the bottom of the meter.

Is it possible you misunderstand the minigame? The object is not to get the fish to the top of the meter. Fish that stick to the bottom are your friends!

Here's a suggestion based on some trials I ran a long while back: Buy the 25g training rod from Willy and fish at his doorstep for a while (maybe even an entire day) using minimum length casts (fast and basic) and without touching any buttons during the minigame (except see note 1). You will catch plenty of fish that day that way (I caught 16 in the linked trial log). In my tests, fishing this way for an entire day will level you up once or even twice, and you will even have a few perfect catches (which are worth extra experience points; I had 10 in one trial).

Note 1:
From my test logs
0640a,Cast 1,Bamboo Pole,That first "fake" fish can be impossible to catch or pass without moving the bar. So I finally moved the bar and caught it,Sardine

 

[Quirinea]

One way to raise fishing level is to fish in places that just produce trash. The small pond in the standard farm works for this, at least. And Desert pond after 8 PM if you have access to it. Any trash picked gives some points.

 

[HomeintheValley12]

I found fishing annoying at first, but I soon learned to master it after a while. I now find it better than the fishing in Animal Crossing and Pokemon. I'm on PC, by the way.

 

[Quirinea]

And then I forgot (I was going to check that from wiki and got interrupted): Collect the Crab pot bundle (you can get cockle, mussel, oyster and clam by foraging and crab as a monster drop from mine crabs) and befriend Linus to get his bait recipe. Then just collect three items and 15 fishing points a day.

 

[Phate4569]

Out of every game with a fishing mechanic this one is my favorite. My skill IRL makes a real impact. I love it all, Except for Hard fish that plunge to the bottom. Because the bottom bounce is way too strong.

 

[Elenna101]

Out of every game with a fishing mechanic this one is my favorite. My skill IRL makes a real impact. I love it all, Except for Hard fish that plunge to the bottom. Because the bottom bounce is way too strong.

It takes a little practice, but if you click quickly right before the bar reaches the bottom, you'll get rid of all the momentum and the bar won't bounce.

 

[LRangerR]

Or get a lead bobber, if it bothers you that much.

 

[Phate4569]

It takes a little practice, but if you click quickly right before the bar reaches the bottom, you'll get rid of all the momentum and the bar won't bounce.

I know, but it is still annoying when you miss the timing and your bar rebounds half the distance, especially if you end up losing the fish (m****erf**king octopus year 1, literally every time).

Lead bobbers just aren't worth it, there are better things to fill the slot with, especially when going after the difficult fish.

 

[LRangerR]

To be fair, catching an octopus year 1 is like trying to catch a legendary year 1.

 

[Phate4569]

To be fair, catching an octopus year 1 is like trying to catch a legendary year 1.

Oh, I usually do it. But it is just annoying. Trying to keep up with his pace and accidently bouncing usually is the nail in the coffin.

 

[Jocea Rose]

I really hated the fishing with a passion when, I first started playing SDV. So I would just get frustrated and leave it. I play on PC where the fishing game mechanic is easier than on mobile.
During my current playthrough, I decided to try the training rod and boy does it make a difference. I went from hating fishing to finding it actually FUN!!!
I spent a lot of winter 1 fishing to raise my level, so I could finally buy the fibreglass rod. I also managed to catch my first squid in Winter 2. Now I have my Iridium rod, an item I thought I would never ever get, when I started this game. I take the fishing quests from the notice board, instead of ignoring them and actually look forward to doing them.
My advice give the training rod a chance, you never know, you may end up enjoying fishing just like me. :)

 

[haywud]

I have mixed thoughts about the fishing. Sure it can be erratic at times, and some fish can be a huge pain to catch, but at the same time at least it's not as boring as it is in some games. For example I recently started playing Terraria, and it seems the fishing in that is just casting your line then pressing a button with the proper timing to catch anything. Heck I'm fishing in that even as I type this, because all I have to do is press a button to cast then listen for the sound to press the button again.

Here's what I do like about it in Stardew. The actual mini game doesn't try to take a realistic approach to fishing, yet at the same time there are elements of realism in the fishing mechanics. For example in real life you just aren't catching some fish without the proper equipment and skill, just like in this game. When trying to reel in a hooked fish in real life some fish will behave more erratically than others, just like in this game. So while I can get annoyed by the actual fishing mini game, I think it does do a good job of representing just how unpredictable fishing can be especially if you aren't prepared.

Having said that though, I do think that providing some options to alter the mini game could be good for those that just don't like it as it is. For the most part I'm okay with it as is, but sometimes even I get annoyed with it and use a mod to make it less annoying lol.

 

[Dragonheardt]

It is so hard at start, will try training rod and controller not keyboard. Makes sense to be hard at start I guess if it gets easy with time. good to know to keep going and not deep water didnt think of this. Thought I started with training rod but not I guess

I agree and sometimes I don't wanna put up with leveling fishing from 0 so I will toss crab pots everywhere and get fishing levels from that until the bobber is a decent size lol.

Training Rod I feel is underused for those who hate fishing at first.

 

[Hazy]

I used to not be good at it either when I first started playing, but I've gotten the master angler achievement at this point in one of my saves. You just have to keep trying. You will get the hang of it. Fishing has become a mechanic I utilize a lot.

 

[FarmerJoJo]

Ditto what everyone else says. Get the training rod. Have some patience - maybe even start a game just to learn fishing so you don't feel you're wasting 'real' time. I've gotten all but a few fish at this point - Octopus seems to be my bane!

 

[dbroersma]

Whatever the lengendary glacier fish is was truly terrible to catch!!!! But, once I got it, was was so satisfying! I'll admit a few bad words left my mouth trying to catch it. I swear that one got harder the closer the bar got to being filled up.