Insaniquarium
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Insaniquarium | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Developer(s) | Flying Bear Entertainment and PopCap Games |
| Designer(s) | George Fan |
| Release date(s) | 2003 |
| Genre(s) | Action-adventure and Virtual pets |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone (E) |
| Platform(s) | Windows |
| Media | 1 CDs |
| System requirements | 500MHz processor, 32 MB RAM, Sound Card, SVGA Graphics Card, DirectX 7 |
| Input | Mouse |
Insaniquarium is a computer game in which players strive to keep virtual fish alive, collect coins and other precious objects, and gather upgrades, all while defending their peaceful fishtank against vicious fish-eating aliens. Players gain helpful pets along the way that do various things, like attacking the alien threat, or helping keep their fish fed. If all of a player's fish die, the game is over.
Insaniquarium was created by Flying Bear Entertainment and PopCap Games. It was awarded "Innovation In Game Design" in the 2002 Independent Games Festival by the Game Developers Conference.
The first version of the game was Java-based and was available as a free online game. Shortly after, a PDA version was released. The latest version is the popular Insaniquarium Deluxe, for PC (released in September 2004).
The deluxe version of Insaniquarium costs approximately $20, and features enhanced graphics, new pets, new modes of gameplay, and a new type of currency called shells. Shells are collected as you continue to play, and can be used to buy various upgrades and bonus pets.
Contents |
[edit] Basic Gameplay
Insaniquarium can be played either in Adventure, Time Trial, Challenge, or Virtual Tank mode.
[edit] Adventure Mode
In adventure mode, the object is to advance through a series of four tanks, each with five levels, and then to beat the boss monster, Cyrax. Although the tanks get progressively harder and feature different monsters, the player starts tanks 1 to 3 with two small guppies and $200, and needs to obtain three egg shell pieces to finish the level. In tank 4, the player starts with a breeder.
Guppies start small, but as they are fed they can grow into medium and then large guppies. Medium guppies periodically drop silver coins worth $15, and large guppies drop gold coins worth $35. After a number of minutes, a large guppy can become a blue guppy (also known as a king guppy) and drop diamonds worth $200. During the game, players have at their disposal a number of upgrades, including food (both the quality and the number of food pellets that can be dropped at once), weapons (to repel aliens) as well as other features. The option to purchase egg shells often is not available until other upgrades or special fish are first purchased; the cost of egg shells rises as the player progresses through the different levels.
[edit] Special Fish
There are more fish involved in the game than just guppies. There are also:
- Carnivores: Piranha-ish fish that eat only baby guppies, but produce diamonds.
- StarFish: When a large guppy eats a star potion, it becomes a StarFish. They produce stars, worth $40.
- Starcatchers: Squid-like creature that roam the bottom of the tank and eat the stars produced by StarFish. Starcatchers produce a diamond for each star they eat.
- Guppycrunchers: Like carnivores, they eat only baby guppies. Like Starcatchers, they are confined to the bottom of the tank. They produce beetles worth $150.
- Beetlemuncher: As their name implies, these fish eat the beetles produced by the Guppycrunchers. They also produce pearls worth $500.
- Breeders: Instead of producing money, these fish produce baby guppies.
- Ultravores: The near-shark enormous fish that eats carnivores, in the same way that carnivores eat baby guppies. This fish produces treasure chests worth $2000.
After a player has beat the first four tanks, the new pet screen will come up as in previous levels. However, instead of a new pet made available, Cyrax appears on the screen. The final battle then begins with Cyrax warping into a guppie-less tank; unlike previous levels, however, all of the player's pets (except for Angie, Presto, Brinkely, Stanley, Walter and Nostradamus) are made available. Cyrax then warps in, and the player must attack him. The goal is to beat Cyrax, who attacks by producing miniature Sylvesters which are harmful to the pets. The player must kill the Sylvesters before they kill all the pets. Moreover, other aliens will periodically warp into the tank and begin to attack the pets. In this tank, Cyrax can take away the pets' special powers, but once Cyrax is defeated, the pets will regain their powers. The "cast" then rolls, followed by the real credits. Beating Cyrax in Adventure Mode unlocks Presto the Tadpole.
[edit] Time Trial Mode
Similar to Adventure mode, but the player is restricted to five minutes for the first tank and ten minutes for the other three tanks, and egg shells no longer count towards finishing a level, but rather add a random pet into the tank. Each shell costs double the previous one, with the first shell starting at $100. The goal of the Time Trial mode is simply to make as much money as possible. In the deluxe version, after time runs out, 5% of the player's monetary score is converted to shells and collected by the virtual tank.
[edit] Challenge Mode
Similar to Adventure mode, but the cost of each item on the board rises 1% for every five seconds of game time. Buying a shell piece resets the cost of all of the items except for other shell pieces; as such, shell pieces eventually cost $99,999 if the player waits enough time. Moreover, the difficulty and number of aliens allowed in the tank also rise as time progresses, behooving the player to finish as quickly as possible. Finally, 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 shell pieces.
[edit] Virtual Tank mode
The Virtual Tank mode enables the player to purchase and manage fish purchased from a Virtual Store. Many different types of fish are available, each with a special attribute. There are also rare pre-named fish available, and many possible upgrades for the tank.
[edit] Bonus Adventure Mode
This mode replaces Adventure mode after Cyrax is defeated in Adventure Mode. In Bonus Adventure mode, the player is taken to a shell collecting level after each level. In this mode, the fish cannot die of starvation (this is not true for Insaniquarium Deluxe. In Bonus Adventure Mode, the fish can die of starvation just as in regular Adventure mode).
[edit] Sandbox Mode
This mode is unlocked after the player has obtained the silver trophy. The code to access Sandbox Mode is Konami Code. If this is done right, it opens up a tank. Pressing keyboard keys will spawn fish, pets and aliens, with the exception of Cyrax.
[edit] Pets
There are 24 pets in the Deluxe version of Insaniquarium, four of which are bonus pets. In the original Java version of the game there were only 10 pets (they are listed first below), with a random regular pet being unlocked each time a level was completed. In the Deluxe version the pets are unlocked in the order given below. Brinkley, Nostradamus, Stanley, and Walter are bonus pets and can be obtained only after earning enough shells.
- Stinky the Snail - Collects coins at the bottom of the tank.
- Niko the Oyster - Produces pearls, which can be clicked on for $250.
- Itchy the Swordfish - Fights aliens.
- Prego the Momma Fish - Produces small guppies.
- Zorf the Seahorse - Produces free level-two fish food.
- Clyde the Jellyfish - Collects coins that are falling if he passes by them.
- Vert the Skelefish - Drops gold coins as though he were a large guppy.
- Rufus the Fiddler Crab - Fights aliens forced to the bottom of the tank.
- Meryl the Mermaid (appears in the main menu of the deluxe version) - Causes all guppies to drop three coins in unison.
- Wadsworth the Whale - Hides small and medium guppies during alien attacks.
- Seymour the Turtle - Slows down coins and fish food.
- Shrapnel the Robot Fish - Drops bombs worth $150, but these will kill fish on contact if not collected.
- Gumbo the Angler - Lures guppies far away from aliens. Aliens can still eat fish if they are let near Gumbo.
- Blip the Porpoise - Gives location of alien attacks, alien health, points out hungry fish with an arrow, and unlocks all items for purchase.
- Rhubarb the Hermit Crab - Pinches fish away from the bottom of the tank.
- Nimbus the Manta Ray - Bounces coins and fish food to the top of the tank.
- Amp the Electric Eel - Electrocutes all of the guppies in the tank, killing them and turning them into diamonds.
- Gash the Shark - Attacks aliens powerfully, but eats guppies, no matter the size.
- Angie the Angelfish - Revives dead fish as she passes by their corpses (ineffective once the corpse has disappeared).
- Presto the Tadpole - Transforms into any other unlocked pet.
[edit] Bonus Pets
- Brinkley the Scuba-Diving Elephant - Eats fish food, and gives items for every three food items he eats, the items becoming more and more valuable. This pet was first made available in the PDA version of the game.
- Nostradamus the Nosefish - Drops snot which gives the player $1. He occasionally delays alien attacks with a sneeze as well. If a guppy eats the snot they will turn into Nostradamus. Nostradamus is supposed to be the nose of Rutherford B. Hayes.
- Stanley the Startingly Small Sea Serpent - Throws balls at aliens, doing decent damage and destroying alien missile attacks.
- Walter the Penguin - Punches other pets, activating their powers. Can also be used to punch fish, making them drop money. Does not work with Angie, Walter, Itchy, Rufus, Prego. Makes Presto revert back to its original form.
[edit] Aliens
In addition to feeding fish, the player must protect the fish from aliens that occasionally enter the tank and attempt to eat the fish. The deluxe version of the Insaniquarium contains eight different aliens, but in the original Java version there are four alien types. The game will warn you, with a submarine alarm, that a certain type "alien signature" is detected, just before their invasion.
The aliens include:
- Sylvester, a blue eyeless alien
- Balrog, an alien that looks like a lion/fish hybrid
- Gus, a "baby-faced man-child" (or Glutton) "Type G" Alien
- Destructor, a 6-wheeled "Type D" robot-alien armed with a missile launcher
The deluxe version doubles the number of aliens to include:
- Ulysses, a cyclops "Type U" alien
- PsychoSquid, an octopus-like "Type P" alien
- Bilaterus, a 2-headed snake-like "Type II" alien
- Mini Sylvester, a small version of Sylvester
- Cyrax the Evil Alien Mastermind, the "Final Boss of Doom"
[edit] Game Modifications
Some, found on InsaniquariumGuide, fans have made mods, fangames, fishsongs, etc.
[edit] Insaniqualien or Insaniquarium Deluxe Revenge of the Fish version 1.0
Original=New
Guppy=Mini-Sylvester
Carnivore=Balrog
Statrcatcher=Destructor
Guppy Cruncher=Ulysses
Beetle Muncher=Gus
Breeder=Blue Cyrax
Ultravore=PsychoSquid
Sylvester=Large Carnivore
Balrog=Gash
Gus=Beetle Muncher
Destructor=Rhubarb
Missile=Guppy Cruncher
Ulysses=Star Catcher
PsychoSquid=Stanley
Bilaterus=Chain of Guppies, 1st one is blue and balloon-like, last one is a king
Mini-Sylvester=carnivore
Cyrax="Evil Bob"
There is a similar version where the original Sylvester is a Cyrax.
[edit] Cheats
With both a laptop and a mouse, it is possible to click both left buttons to shoot, feed, etc. faster.
TIME - Displays the time elapsed in the lower right corner of the tank. Typing the same will cancel the time display.
ZOMBIE - Normal fish look like dead ones. Typing the same will revert back to normal.
SPACE - Outer-space background. Typing the same will revert back to normal.
VOID - No background (solid white). Typing the same will revert back to normal.
SUPERMEGAULTRA - Prego will make different sound on giving birth. Typing the same will revert back to normal.
WELOVEBETATESTERS - Replaces the Breeder fish's "pop" with a disgusting birth noise.
PREGO - Goes back to the normal Prego sounds.
WAVY - Background will ripple and distort, making it appear more like it is being reflected through a water tank. Typing the same will revert back to normal.
GIVE - Allows the player to give shells to another user.
B - briefly adds a few bubbles to the tank.
[edit] Trivia
- On tank 4-4, the first time Destructor and Ulysses come in at the same time, it will say Fourteen Alien Signatures Detected and then Just Kidding Only Two!. Afterwards, it will say the standard Multiple Alien Signatures Detected.
