| Insaniquarium | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Flying Bear Entertainment |
| Publisher(s) | PopCap Games |
| Designer(s) | George Fan[1] |
| Engine | PopCap Games Framework |
| Platform(s) | Java, Palm OS, Windows Mobile,[2]Windows |
| Release | Original: 31 August 2001 Version 2: May 2, 2002[1] Deluxe: September 1, 2004 |
| Genre(s) | Puzzle, virtual pets |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Insaniquarium™ Save fish in this wild action hit! Control and protect a colorful aquarium with fantastic fish and colorful sea creatures by keeping your friendly fish fed and happy and safe from alien. Insaniquarium is unlike any game you've played before! Feed your fish, keep them safe from aliens, and collect coins and jewels to advance to the next level. Watch your aquarium and wealth grow, and use your funds to buy more fish, unlock secret pets, and upgrade your tank. But watch out: seafood-loving aliens have their eyes on your school.
Insaniquarium is an insane fish and fish-tank simulator created by American studio Flying Bear Entertainment and published by PopCap Games.
Insaniquarium Deluxe features pets, various modes of gameplay, and a type of currency called 'shells'. Shells are collected as the game progresses, and they can be used to create a custom Insaniquariumscreen saver, to buy bonus pets or to increase the number of pets allowed in each tank.
Development[edit]
Flying Bear Entertainment first released Insaniquarium as a free, Java-based online game in August of 2001.[3] During development a member of the team purchased a goldfish and examined its movements and behaviour.[4] Development continued over the following year, with continual release of new content and features, culminating in PopCap Games' publication in July 2002 of the second online version.[5] In 2003, Astraware released a mobile adaptation for PDAs,[3] and in 2006 Glu Mobile released one for feature phones.[6]
The latest version, Insaniquarium Deluxe, was released on September 1, 2004 for PC.
Gameplay[edit]
Players must manage a tank of guppies and other aquatic creatures, and each stage begins with two guppies in the tank or one breeder which creates guppies.[7] Guppies and other fish drop money, which can be collected by the player and used to purchase fish food and upgrades, such as more aquatic creatures, more filling food, and powerful lasers to repel attackers.[8] Each creature must be kept alive by feeding, whether through fish food bought by the player or other species of fish in the tank. In addition to feeding fish, the player must protect the fish from aliens that periodically enter the tank and attempt to eat the fish. The aliens must be clicked on repeatedly with the mouse pointer in order to defeat them.[9] The deluxe version of Insaniquarium contains nine different aliens, but in the original Java version there are four.
Insaniquarium can be played in Adventure, Time Trial, Challenge Mode, or Virtual Tank. A secret sandbox mode can be accessed when the player wins a silver or a golden trophy, by entering the Konami Code at the main menu screen - it allows full access to unlimited amounts of fish, pets and aliens.
In adventure mode, a player advances through five tanks. Tanks 1-4 have five levels but Tank 5 has only one level in which a player must beat Cyrax, the final boss in order to complete the game. In each level the player must earn enough money to buy 3 egg pieces to advance to the next level. For the first time playing the game, at the end of each level of a tank, the player receives a new pet from the egg. Initially, up to 3 pets could be brought to the tank to help the player, though the player could buy the privilege to bring more pets each level later on with more shells.
Time Trial mode restricts the player to completing the first tank in five minutes and in ten minutes for the three subsequent tanks. Egg pieces no longer count towards finishing a level, but instead add a random pet into the tank (always starting with three pets or four if the player buys the four pet limit). Each piece cost doubles the previous one, with the first shell starting at $100, until the shell value is maxed out at $99999 starting from the eleventh shell. The goal of the Time Trial mode is to make as much money as possible; a 5% of the total money earned will be transformed into shells.
Challenge mode is similar to Adventure mode, but the cost of each item on the board rises by 1% for every five seconds of game time. Buying an egg piece resets the cost of all of the items except for the other egg pieces (the current price will freeze), and several seconds afterwards the costs will start to rise again. The difficulty and number of aliens allowed in the tank also rise as time progresses. Unlike in the adventure mode, after five minutes all purchase options are open so that there is no need to purchase specific upgrades or special fish to be able to buy other items or egg pieces.
The virtual tank mode is where a player can use shells earned during the Adventure/Time Trial/Challenge modes to buy virtual fish in the tank. These fish also get hungry but they never die, and instead, they have mood levels in which they get depressed when neglected. All fish in virtual tanks lay shells instead of coins.
Reception[edit]
Insaniquarium has received generally positive reviews from critics. IGN gave heavy praise to Insaniquarium for being a puzzle game that uses resource management and gave it a score of 8.3/10[10]
References[edit]
- ^ ab'Insaniquarium Readme: Credits'. Archived from the original on 2011-06-12.
- ^'Insaniquarium'. PC Magazine. 2004-04-06. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
- ^ ab'Flying Bear Entertainment'. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
- ^McConnaughy, Tim. 'IGF:Insaniquarium'. GameSpy. Archived from the original on 2009-05-12. Retrieved 2008-04-04.
- ^Sikora, Drew. 'Interview with Flying Bear Entertainment'. GameDev.net. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
- ^GamesIndustry International (13 April 2006). 'Glu Announces the Launch of Insaniquarium Deluxe for Mobile Phones, PopCap's Addictive Aquarium-themed Hit'. gamesindustry.biz. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ^Rupert, Samantha (2006-05-30). 'Insaniquarium Deluxe Review (PC)'. gamedaily.com. Retrieved 2008-04-14.
- ^Bibby, Jay (2004-06-04). 'Insaniquarium'. Jay Is Games. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
- ^Palley, Steve (2005-08-26). 'PC Insaniquarium Deluxe Review'. GameSpot. Archived from the original on 2008-12-06. Retrieved 2008-04-04.
- ^'Insaniquarium'. Imagine Games Network. 2006-03-09. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
External links[edit]
Create Your Own Virtual Fish Tank
People who have always wanted their own fish tank but don’t want the hassle of actually having to buy food for their fish or the commitment of keeping it clean are sure to love Insanitarium. Take care of a collection of fish, decorate your tank and collect enough coins to buy pieces of egg to advance to the next level.
As the name suggests, Insaniquarium offers plenty of crazy touches to help keep things interesting. Fish poop out coins from time to time that you use to upgrade your tank and add fish to your collection. Just when you think things might be getting a bit dull a weird alien shows up and adds its own brand of mayhem to the mix. Watch out for the carnivorous fish, who show up when you least expect it and feast on your poor guppies.
Insaniquarium follows the premise of a typical puzzle game but with an innovative twist. Players try to make their tank as big and vibrant as possible to get bonuses and advance through the game. While the first few levels start at a fairly leisurely pace, it doesn’t take long for things to get frantic and you embark on a mad balancing act to make sure your fish are feed and in good spirits, otherwise they will expire before your very eyes.
The pace of the game increases at just the right rate to get players addicted. At first, you mainly concentrate on feeding your fish and collecting coins. Once players have mastered this simple task, it is time to take things up a notch. After learning how to buy items and upgrade your tank, a hungry snail makes your tank his home and it is your job to keep an eye on the snail and collect coins before it can devour them.
The more things you have to control, the faster your fish will die and the game forces players to accept the fishy circle of life and bid their new pets farewell before quickly purchasing replacements. Just when things seem to be going swimmingly, a spaceman enters the scene and you have to work frantically to blast him back to his home planet before he takes over your beloved tank.
There are two modes for gamers to choose from and Adventure mode features a total of fifteen levels to master in three different tanks. The objective of Time Trial mode is to simply pick up as many coins as possible in the time provided, which can be a welcome break from all the aquatic craziness.
The controls are very easy to master and for the most part players move their cursers around the screen and click on the objects they want to collect or manipulate. Handy tips and hints pop up from time to time to make sure you have got the hang of things and don’t miss out on the various elements that the game offers.
This is the perfect game for younger players. The cool and colourful fish really grab the attention and you will want to keep on playing to get the next fish and other objects to complete your collection. The game may not be quite as gripping for older players, but the game is very addictive and there are lots of interesting elements to get you hooked and keep you playing.
Insaniquarium Download Full Game
Pros
- A colourful world to build and explore
- Lots of interesting tools
- Plenty to keep you occupied
- The bonuses keep on coming
- Easy to use controls
Cons
Insaniquarium 2
- The aliens are not very exciting
- Older players may get bored after a while