How To Fish may seem like a slow-paced fishing game, but once you start speed running, you'll find it's not as leisurely as it appears. Each island has different resources and bosses, so planning ahead is crucial for when to earn money, when to upgrade equipment, and when to leave.
Early on, saving time is paramount. Instead of slowly fishing, prioritize faster ways to earn money and prepare the necessary items for boss battles in advance.
Below, EZG will guide you through a complete How To Fish speed run route, following the boss order.
Spider Crab
The early game of How To Fish isn't actually that complicated. The fish on the first island don't sell for much, so instead of slowly fishing, collect clams directly. Give the clams to the fisherman, and once you've collected $15, you can exchange them for a Crab Fishing Rod and a can of beer.
Once you get an empty beer can, take it to your boat and throw it out to summon the first boss, Spider Crab. A very useful trick during the fight is to stand on one side of the boat and trap Spider Crab near it. It will still attempt to attack, but it will rarely hit you, so you can safely deal damage.
You don't need to slowly save up money for the knife. Upgrading weapons requires time and How To Fish Gold, while directly killing Spider Crab with your fists is more efficient. After the boss dies, pick up the dropped Meat Sticks and Crab Shells to obtain Boat Keys, then leave the first island immediately.
The Old Pike
Upon arriving at the second island, there's no need to rush to exchange for Radar. Once you're familiar with the route, you can determine direction by observing the sky patterns and directly sail your small boat to your target location. Upon landing, prioritize obtaining Dynamite and extra Inventory Slots, as blasting fish is still the most effective way to earn money at this stage.
Using dynamite allows you to blast a batch of fish at once, up to 5 per blast. Giving the fish to the fisherman will earn you How To Fish Gold, but the value of the fish is somewhat random, with Trigger Fish and Salmon fetching higher prices. Once you've saved enough funds, exchange them for a new lure, a fishing rod, and a gun with upgraded ammo. Then, use boss lure to fish out The Old Pike.
The Old Pike itself isn't difficult to defeat, but it moves very fast, making it hard to consistently land headshots. If you're aiming for a speed run, you can take advantage of its last bullet. When the boss has only one shot's worth of health left, jump and perform a 360-degree turn before firing. This kill method will trigger a multiplier, allowing the fisherman to pay an extra reward.
After defeating The Old Pike, collect the leeches on the ground and give them to another NPC to obtain leech bait, preparing for the next Giant Piranha boss fight.
Giant Piranha
For Giant Piranha, it's recommended to prepare 8 Dynamites beforehand, placing 4 on one side and the other 4 near the rocks. With Friendly Fire option enabled, you won't take explosion damage even if you're standing near dynamite you've placed, so you can safely use explosives to control the boss's position.
After catching a Giant Piranha using boss lure, lure it near a machine to trap it, then detonate a pre-placed Dynamite. This will significantly reduce its health in one go. Smaller piranhas nearby can also be cleared out with explosives to prevent them from interfering with the fight.
When Giant Piranha dies, it leaves behind Meat Chunks and its head. Meat Chunks can be sold directly for money, while boss's head is given to How To Fish NPC to exchange for Coordinates for the next island.
Puffer Fish
Upon entering the third island, fish prices will increase significantly, so prioritize acquiring new Inventory Slots and Standard Lures. In How To Fish, higher-level lures make it easier to catch high-value fish, significantly improving your earning efficiency at this stage.
Here you'll also start encountering Drip Fish, which are actually ordinary catfish wearing hats. To complete Fishipedia achievement, you must collect many Drip Fish, which relies heavily on RNG. Additionally, you need to find Endangered Fish; giving them to an NPC will reward you with Bait for the next boss fight.
The strategy for dealing with Puffer Fish remains primarily dynamite-based. After pre-planting explosives and defeating the boss, you'll obtain new coordinates. Furthermore, giving the boss's dropped meat to NPC will allow you to exchange it for a larger motor, further increasing your boat's speed and reducing travel time later.
Albatross
Starting from the fourth island, the fish themselves become more dangerous. Mini-bosses like Tuna will randomly appear, Parrot Fish will actively attack the player and move very quickly, and Red Snapper will also cause damage. Therefore, it's best to replenish health with clams before entering this phase to avoid excessive health loss while traveling and planting explosives.
Prepare sufficient dynamite before the battle, concentrate explosives in the center of the island, and prepare the professional boss lure. After successfully summoning Albatross, lure it near the shop and use pre-placed TNT to focus your attacks.
Once Albatross's health bar reaches its maximum, detonate the explosives to instantly kill it and obtain the corresponding How To Fish achievement. Finally, take Albatross's head and give it to NPC to obtain the coordinates for the next island and continue the story.
Mutated Bowhead Whale
How To Fish Handyman achievement requires delivering a finishing blow to the final boss, Mutated Bowhead Whale, with your fists. Therefore, it's recommended to prepare 20-25 Dynamites and bring Foot Snails before the fight. Cooking snails provides a significant amount of health, crucial for survival and health management in the final phase.
First, use Fish Bucket to summon Bowhead Whale. Lure it near the pre-placed dynamite and detonate them to quickly reduce its health. After killing Bowhead Whale, throw its corpse into Volcano to trigger the final boss, Mutated Bowhead Whale.
Mutated Bowhead Whale's primary attack methods are jumping and lava attacks, with particular attention needed to avoid the lava near the ship. At the start of the fight, you can guide the boss to crash into the dynamite, using the explosion to quickly reduce its health significantly. Then switch to the assault rifle to continue lowering its health.
When the boss's health is close to the kill threshold, you need to control your DPS. Because punches only deal 3 damage per hit, and How To Fish doesn't display specific health values, even if the health bar appears low, you can't accurately judge how much health the boss has left.
At this point, don't continue with gun attacks. Instead, replenish Health using Foot Snails while dodging the boss and Lava attacks, slowly dragging the fight into the final phase.
Once you've confirmed the boss is low on health, switch to punch attacks and finally deliver a finishing blow. New Creature Caught message indicates that Mutated Bowhead Whale has been captured, and the final boss achievement in How To Fish is completed.
The core strategy for How To Fish is to make good use of Dynamite, continuously upgrade equipment, and master the kill mechanics of each boss to maximize earning efficiency. Once you're familiar with the routes on each island, the latter stages will be much easier.
