Black Bass USA on the NES is one of those weirdly addictive fishing games that shouldn’t work but somehow does. You pick your lure, cast into pixelated lakes, and wait for that satisfying blip when something bites. The controls are janky—reeling feels like wrestling with an old VCR—but there’s something zen about it once you get the rhythm.

First time I played, I lost like three fish because I kept reeling too fast. Turns out you gotta ease off when they struggle, or the line snaps. Also, the bigger bass hang out near logs and weeds, which the game doesn’t tell you—learned that the hard way after half an hour of empty water. The music’s just a cheesy bassline loop, but it weirdly fits.

If you’re into retro games with a weird charm, this one’s a surprisingly deep time-waster (pun intended).