Fish cards are dealt by a friend of yours who wants to help you out on your quest. They provide detailed information about the type of fish you’ve caught, such as preferred environment, best bait and rod to use, etc. Items are usually sold by creepy people, and, in typical RPG fashion, you just upgrade the type of item you already have. Bait, lures, rods, so on and so forth.
Along the way your character meets some weird monsters. Mostly, they are helpful and offer clues and/or advice to help you in your quest. Some monsters can even be kept as pets that will follow you around and accept some fish for food, if you offer it to them.
All other elements of a traditional RPG have been removed from River King. There are no turn-based battles, and the only battles available are with fish. Although the battles utilize the DS stylus, in general the fishing mechanics are poor and inaccurate. Your character does have a HP of sorts; basically he gets tired after fishing for too long. To regain your energy, you need to make the trek back to your house and take a nap or each some highly nutritious food.
