Field & Stream Fishing

Take a stab at guessing what the most popular participation sport in the UK is. Go on, I dare you. Football - nope. Rugby - nah. Cricket - nooooooo.

In fact, fishing is officially the top dog, currently attracting 3.5 million sea and freshwater anglers to lakes and streams across Britain.

With Field & Stream Fishing, developer Super Happy Fun Fun seeks to eliminate much of the tedium in this ancient pursuit by speeding the action up tenfold.

But whilst the slick presentation, attention to detail, and controls are to be applauded, this particular piece of iPhone bait failed to reel me in completely.

Parking yourself and your all-important rod at one of three real-world locations, including the worryingly named Whitebear Lake, you are permitted five casts per visit with which to land monster rock bass and giant walleye.

Obviously, the heavier the catch, the higher the score. You can gain additional points by reeling the pike in quickly, visiting the various spots on location, and hitting the bull's eye target or assorted riverbank landmarks with your length.

Speaking of which, casting is performed much how you'd imagine: flick your device first towards your body, then away. Precision naturally comes at a cost, even if it is fun imitating a maggot drowner in this fashion.

The action then switches to underwater view, where you're able to monitor the fish as they swim by your tempting bait. If nothing bites on your lure immediately, twitching your handset serves as sufficient attraction.

It's worth noting that you can pick and choose your target by tapping on unwanted tiddlers, so you needn't seize the first willing mark, lest a king whopper is lurking in the vicinity.

Yanking on your device hooks the blighter, whereupon the real battle between man and fish commences. An on-screen circular reel flashes up, above which lies the tension metre.

Resisting the urge to reel the catch in as fast as humanly possible is crucial, since violent pressure on the line will result in a snapped length. Conversely, an overly delicate approach to reeling will leave only the memories of the one that got away.

To increase the motivational levels somewhat, a live ticker feed highlights the biggest hauls from across the Field & Stream universe and a well-designed journal records your progress.

Keen anglers will no doubt appreciate the Field & Stream branding, the posting of record-breaking captures to Facebook, and the detailed scale textures of 13 species.

The game's long-term value can be questioned to some degree, since multiplayer - even pass-around - is conspicuous by its absence and the monotony of the cast-hook-reel-yank process sets in all too quickly for my liking.

For some arcade-style ensnarement without buying wader boots, Field & Stream Fishing nevertheless offers enough to lure you in.