Fishing is impossible

[Sam Alchemist]

Have played a lot of video games. Looking for a break from combat-heavy ESO so decided to try Stardew Valley on PC. Similar to Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life, which i liked on GameCube. BUT the fishing minigame is just impossible. Have hit perhaps 50 times and have caught two fish. There is not enough control in mouseclicks to keep the bar where it needs to be. Strange thing, first few tries did not seem that hard, then suddenly became utterly impossible.

Is there some way to turn down the difficulty?

 

[Odin]

Sort of, you can purchase the Training Rod from Willy which will limit you to only getting easier fish. In terms of the mechanics, the game actually gets a lot easier the more you fish, as you level up that skill and purchase the better fishing rods that let you use bait and tackle.

It terms of actually getting better at fishing, keep in mind that the bar you're controlling accelerates as you hold down the mouse button. So you basically never want to hold down, just small clicks to move. For example to keep the bar still you'll need to tap the mouse every so often. It takes some getting used to.

 

[iridium quality]

The bar gets bigger as your fishing skill levels up, so keep that in mind!

 

[PorkChop]

Definitely. Different rods have larger bars and as you do it more it gets easier. Trust me. Also if you get an iridium rod, you can attach certain hooks to make a larger bar and more.

 

[imnvs]

Definitely. Different rods have larger bars and as you do it more it gets easier. Trust me. Also if you get an iridium rod, you can attach certain hooks to make a larger bar and more.

Rods don't change the size of the bar... except the Training Rod. It sets the bar's size as if your fishing skill was level 5, even if your fishing skill is higher. What the other rods do, as you upgrade, is simply allow bait (which increases the chances of a quicker hit), and then tackle (which has all sorts of effects).

 

[PorkChop]

Rods don't change the size of the bar... except the Training Rod. It sets the bar's size as if your fishing skill was level 5, even if your fishing skill is higher. What the other rods do, as you upgrade, is simply allow bait (which increases the chances of a quicker hit), and then tackle (which has all sorts of effects).

sorry. Just saying what I know.

 

[Ereo]

Imnvs is correct, the training rod is the only one that changes the bar size.

Different fish have different difficulty, and I suggest starting with the fish in the mountain lake. Carp never moves.

The training rod will adjust your bar size to level 5. Additionally, you can eat some food that gives a fishing bonus. Trout soup is available at Willy's shop in early game.

If clicking doesn't work well, try going with the keyboard. I think it's easier. I think it was the c key, but it might be x.
Don't long press, you want to do many short clicks to be able to move down quickly. Pressing the key just before the bar hits the bottom keeps it from bouncing.

 

[shurpresa]

It is difficult indeed at the first levels, tho once u get 8-10 level and a iridium rod with extra things attached to it, it becomes much easier, you never miss a fish, except the legendary ones

 

[Boo1972]

My piece of advice is to play Geometry Dash. Similar mechanics, especially when flying. It also can be super frustrating but it’s a change from fishing. I’ve become decent at in-game fishing and it almost brought me to tears at first. I really think Geometry Dash helped.

 

[imnvs]

I really think Geometry Dash helped.

Flappy Bird was another with a similar mechanic.

 

[ISSsloth]

Sort of, you can purchase the Training Rod from Willy which will limit you to only getting easier fish. In terms of the mechanics, the game actually gets a lot easier the more you fish, as you level up that skill and purchase the better fishing rods that let you use bait and tackle.

At level five stop using the training rod as it limits the fish you can catch and the bar size will stay fixed no matter how high of a level you get. I originally didn't know this and it took me over an in-game year to figure out why I couldn't catch a largemouth bass.

 

[imnvs]

I usually skip the bamboo rod, because long before the time you get to Fishing 5 the fiberglass rod is available and I can start using bait (Fishing 2)...

...and I switch from the training rod to the fiberglass around Fishing 4, because while my fishing bar is a bit smaller, I can start catching more valuable fish which are more difficult, but difficulty affects experience gained. Getting these fish means I can level my skill faster, and I find the level 4 bar isn't that much smaller than 5 and doesn't prevent my catching the fish much.

 

[Sam Alchemist]

Great explanations all! I must have had the Training Rod which is why the first catches weren't so bad. Then upgraded to Bamboo while still at level 1. I think it was a couple game days before i tried it out and forgot it was a new rod. Went back to Training Rod so i can actually level up.

 

[Lew Zealand]

Fishing was the biggest annoyance for me when I was starting out in SDV and it really takes a while to get used to it. And that was before the Training Rod was added to the game. Boo1972 and imnvs are right on with the mechanical similarity to Geometry Dash and Flappy Bird, and as writing this I just figured out what it was like for me: Joust! Yeah, old-skool, but also the same mechanic.

Nowadays Fishing is easy and a lot of fun, and easy profit early-game. Just stick with it and take a break every now 'n then to vanquish Slimes in the Mines and eligible hearts in the Valley.

 

[CaptMurphy]

I have had it with fishing! Tonight I trash canned my fishing pole; I haven't caught a single fish in about a hundred tries. I'm not going to waste my time fishing when there are crops to look after and ore/stone to get.
No more fishing!

 

[LRangerR]

Foods that beef your fishing skill also help in small ways. Even if it's just a +1 like the Trout Soup that you can buy from willy.

 

[Lew Zealand]

I have had it with fishing! Tonight I trash canned my fishing pole; I haven't caught a single fish in about a hundred tries. I'm not going to waste my time fishing when there are crops to look after and ore/stone to get.
No more fishing!

Give Fishing up if you hate it and play the game your own way. It's all good.

However I've found Fishing to be differently difficult based on how and what I play the game on:

PC with mouse: Most responsive and easiest
Switch with joycons physically connected: very close to PC
Switch with joycons over Bluetooth: slight delay in response making Fishing notably harder, maybe can adapt for non-Legends
iPad: imprecise tapping making Fishing notably less precise
iPhone: worse than iPad just because smaller screen for tapping, more of an ergonomics issue

I haven't tried PC with wireless controller though I have one, and I don't have an XBox or PS to test there.

And do not give up on fishing until you:

1. Try the Training Rod (buy from Willy)
2. Use many multiple quick presses for raising and controlling the height of your green Fishing Bar.

#2 made Fishing doable for me. Mashing the button does not work.

 

[Pangaearocks]

True, controlled button pressing is the key. I love fishing, it's so relaxing. But it isn't easy in the early game, because the fishing bar is tiny and some of the fish can jump all over the place. Once you get a few levels, the fishing bar increases, and I think it makes the fish a little calmer too. In any case, it makes it easier to catch them, and by level 10 just about all of them will be easy or 'feasible' to catch. Even more so if you strap a bobber on.

Another small tip can be to try to keep the top of the fishing bar near where the fish is. Because if it jumps down, it's slower to move the bar down. But if it jumps up, you can react faster. Though at level 1 or the low levels, just getting the fish within the bar is challenging enough because the bar is so small. I've never tried the training rod, but that is bound to help a lot.

Also, when a fish dive and stick to the bottom and you need to dive after it, tap a little as you near the bottom, so there is less chance of the bar jumping back up again when hitting the bottom. Sometimes you nail it perfectly, and the bar sticks to the ground.

 

[Lew Zealand]

Also, when a fish dive and stick to the bottom and you need to dive after it, tap a little as you near the bottom, so there is less chance of the bar jumping back up again when hitting the bottom. Sometimes you nail it perfectly, and the bar sticks to the ground.

Yes! When this happens I think that maybe I should break out MS Flight Simulator and have a go at landing again but that comes with a risk. Of ruining my perfect 100% record of crashing.

Ha, who'm I kidding? The first thing I do after takeoff is jettison the landing gear for reduced weight and drag to put off the inevitable for a few precious extra minutes...

 

[Pangaearocks]

I'm confused now :D