Insaniquarium
Encyclopedia
Insaniquarium is a computer game created by Flying Bear Entertainment and PopCap Games
. The title is a portmanteau of the words insanity
and aquarium
.
Insaniquarium Deluxe features enhanced graphics, new pets, new modes of gameplay, and a new type of currency called "shells". Shells are collected as the game progresses, and they can be used to create a custom Insaniquarium screen saver, to buy bonus pets or to increase the number of pets allowed in each tank.
-based and available as a free online game
. During development a member of the team purchased a goldfish
and examined its movements and behaviour. Shortly after, a PDA
version was released. The latest version, Insaniquarium Deluxe, was released in September 2004
for PC
.
, but in the original Java
version there are four.
Insaniquarium can be played in Adventure, Time Trial
, Challenge Mode, or Virtual Tank.
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 the final boss in order to complete the game. 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 privliege 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). Each piece cost doubles the previous one, with the first shell starting at $100. 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 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.
There is also a sandbox mode, accessible when the silver/gold trophy is achieved. After getting either trophy, players must go to the title screen and enter the Konami Code
. It allows full access to unlimited amounts of fish, pets and aliens.
PopCap Games
PopCap Games is an American video game developer and publisher, based in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded in 2000 by John Vechey, Brian Fiete and Jason Kapalka, and currently employs about 400 people...
. The title is a portmanteau of the words insanity
Insanity
Insanity, craziness or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity may manifest as violations of societal norms, including becoming a danger to themselves and others, though not all such acts are considered insanity...
and aquarium
Aquarium
An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...
.
Insaniquarium Deluxe features enhanced graphics, new pets, new modes of gameplay, and a new type of currency called "shells". Shells are collected as the game progresses, and they can be used to create a custom Insaniquarium screen saver, to buy bonus pets or to increase the number of pets allowed in each tank.
Development
The first version of the game, developed by Flying Bear Entertainment, is JavaJava (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
-based and available as a free online game
Web application
A web application is an application that is accessed over a network such as the Internet or an intranet. The term may also mean a computer software application that is coded in a browser-supported language and reliant on a common web browser to render the application executable.Web applications are...
. During development a member of the team purchased a goldfish
Goldfish
The goldfish is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae of order Cypriniformes. It was one of the earliest fish to be domesticated, and is one of the most commonly kept aquarium fish....
and examined its movements and behaviour. Shortly after, a PDA
Personal digital assistant
A personal digital assistant , also known as a palmtop computer, or personal data assistant, is a mobile device that functions as a personal information manager. Current PDAs often have the ability to connect to the Internet...
version was released. The latest version, Insaniquarium Deluxe, was released in September 2004
2004 in video gaming
-Events:*January 20 — Wireds Vaporware Awards gives its first "Lifetime Achievement Award" to recurring winner Duke Nukem Forever.*March 4 — Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts 7th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts Peter Molyneux into the AIAS Hall of Fame*March 22-26 — Game...
for PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
.
Gameplay
Players must manage a tank of guppies and other aquatic creatures, each stage begins with two guppies in the tank or one breeder which creates guppies. 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. 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. The deluxe version of Insaniquarium contains eight different aliensExtraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
, but in the original Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
version there are four.
Insaniquarium can be played in Adventure, Time Trial
Time trial
In many racing sports an athlete will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. In cycling, for example, a time trial can be a single track cycling event, or an individual or team time trial on the road, and either or both of the latter may form components of...
, Challenge Mode, or Virtual Tank.
In adventure mode, a player advances through five tanks
Aquarium
An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...
. Tanks 1-4 have five levels but Tank 5 has only one level in which a player must beat the final boss in order to complete the game. 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 privliege 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). Each piece cost doubles the previous one, with the first shell starting at $100. 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
Seashell
A seashell or sea shell, also known simply as a shell, is a hard, protective outer layer created by an animal that lives in the sea. The shell is part of the body of the animal. Empty seashells are often found washed up on beaches by beachcombers...
.
Challenge mode is similar to Adventure mode, but the cost of each item on the board rises 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.
There is also a sandbox mode, accessible when the silver/gold trophy is achieved. After getting either trophy, players must go to the title screen and enter the Konami Code
Konami Code
The Konami Code, known in Japan as the , is a cheat code that appears in many Konami video games, although the code also appears in some non-Konami games...
. It allows full access to unlimited amounts of fish, pets and aliens.
Aliens
- Sylvester: The weakest alien. An eyeless dark blue alien with the least health and a tail. He eats fish but only eats one every couple of seconds. Debuts in Tank 1-2.
- Balrog: A cross between a lionLionThe lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
and mermanMermanMermen are mythical male equivalents of mermaids – legendary creatures who have the form of a human from the waist up and are fish-like from the waist down.-Mythology:...
with a yellow-orange color and dreadlocks. Behaves the same as Sylvester but he has a little more health than him. Debuts in Tank 1-4. - Gus: A fat alien that is humanoid with a fish tail, is immune to blasters and must be fed pellets until he blows up. He can eat multiple fish at once. Debuts in Tank 2-3.
- Destructor: A ground assault robot that doesn't eat fish, but fires missles at its targets to kill fish. Missiles can be destroyed by the player's weapons. Debuts in Tank 2-4.
- Psychosquid: Despite the name "Psychosquid" he is a six armed octopusOctopusThe octopus is a cephalopod mollusc of the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms...
equipped with a fork, a meat cleaver and a flyswatter. He can eat multiple fish at once. He has a dormant mode where he turns sky blue and if shot, can regain health instead of lose it. Debuts in Tank 3-3. - Ulysses: A rock made cyclopsCyclopsA cyclops , in Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, was a member of a primordial race of giants, each with a single eye in the middle of his forehead...
or golemGolemIn Jewish folklore, a golem is an animated anthropomorphic being, created entirely from inanimate matter. The word was used to mean an amorphous, unformed material in Psalms and medieval writing....
that fires energy balls and does ground assaults like Destructor. Energy balls can't be destroyed, but can be deflected back at Ulysses, damaging him. The energy balls are more dangerous when deflected because they could kill any fish in their way. Debuts in Tank 3-4. - Bilaterus: A two-headed skeleton snake that must have both his skulls destroyed. He can eat multiple fish at once with either heads, and need to be destroyed by destroying one head first and then moving on to the other. Debuts in Tank 4-2.
- Dr. Cyrax: The commander of all aliens. He is the final boss which takes over a hundred clicks to destroy. He can't hurt anybody directly but he sends out mini-Sylvesters and other aliens which can.
Types of Fish
- Guppy: Just a regular fish in which the player has to feed it so it could grow and lay coins. If there are no more guppies or breeders left in the tank, it's game over.
- Breeder: A special type of guppy that instead of laying coins, it gives birth to baby guppies. They are only seen in Tank 4 when the player is unable to buy guppies.
- Star Guppy: When an adult guppy is fed a Star Potion, the guppy would now lay stars instead of coins. Only seen in Tank 2.
- Carnivore: A type of fish that eats baby guppies but lays diamonds instead of coins. Seen in Tanks 1 and 4.
- Starcatcher: A creature that needs to catch stars laid by the star guppy, and it returns diamonds. Only seen in Tank 2.
- Guppycruncher: Just like the carnivore, it eats baby guppies, but it only stays on the ground level but can jump. It releases beetles. Only seen in Tank 3.
- Beetlemuncher: They eat the beetles produced by the guppycrunchers, and lay pearls which are more valuable than diamonds. Only seen in Tank 3.
- Ultravore: They eat carnivores, and lay treasure chests which are far more valuable than diamonds. Only seen in Tank 4.
Pets
- Stinky: Stinky is a snailSnailSnail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...
who roams in the bottom of the tank, collecting coins. - Niko: Niko is an oysterOysterThe word oyster is used as a common name for a number of distinct groups of bivalve molluscs which live in marine or brackish habitats. The valves are highly calcified....
which every once in a while opens mouth and the player could collect the pearl in the mouth for money. - Itchy: Itchy is a swordfishSwordfishSwordfish , also known as broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory, predatory fish characterized by a long, flat bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordfish are elongated, round-bodied, and lose all teeth and scales by adulthood...
which helps the player fight aliens, though does insignificant amounts of damage. - Prego: Prego is a breeder who gives birth to guppies once in a while.
- Zorf: Zorf is a seahorseSeahorseSeahorses compose the fish genus Hippocampus within the family Syngnathidae, in order Syngnathiformes. Syngnathidae also includes the pipefishes. "Hippocampus" comes from the Ancient Greek hippos meaning "horse" and kampos meaning “sea monster”.There are nearly 50 species of seahorse...
which helps feed the player's fish. - Clyde: Clyde is a jellyfishJellyfishJellyfish are free-swimming members of the phylum Cnidaria. Medusa is another word for jellyfish, and refers to any free-swimming jellyfish stages in the phylum Cnidaria...
who helps the player collect coins but is not confined to the bottom like Stinky. - Vert: Vert is a skeletonSkeletonThe skeleton is the body part that forms the supporting structure of an organism. There are two different skeletal types: the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, and the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside the body.In a figurative sense, skeleton can...
who lays gold coins like an adult guppy but does not require to be fed. - Rufus: Rufus is a crabCrabTrue crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" , or where the reduced abdomen is entirely hidden under the thorax...
who helps do heavy damage against aliens, but is confined to the bottom of the tank. - Meryl: Meryl is a mermaidMermaidA mermaid is a mythological aquatic creature with a female human head, arms, and torso and the tail of a fish. A male version of a mermaid is known as a "merman" and in general both males and females are known as "merfolk"...
who sings once in a while to help fish lay coins faster. - Wadsworth: Wadsworth is a whaleWhaleWhale is the common name for various marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises, which belong to suborder Odontoceti . This suborder also includes the sperm whale, killer whale, pilot whale, and beluga...
whom if an alien arrives, he swallows the small and medium-sized guppies to protect them from aliens. - Seymour: Seymour is a turtleTurtleTurtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
who makes coins fall slower when he is present. - Sharpnel: Sharpnel is a robotRobotA robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
fish who lays bombs once in a while which could be sold for money, but the bombs would kill any fish on contact. - Gumbo: Gumbo is an anglerAnglerAngler may refer to:* A fisherman who uses the fishing technique of angling*Angler * The angler, Lophius piscatorius, a monkfish* More generally, any anglerfish in the order Lophiiformes* Angler , a Marvel Comics supervillain...
who helps lure all guppies away from aliens during an alien attack. Though the fish are still vulnerable to being eaten or killed. - Blip: Blip is a dolphinDolphinDolphins are marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost forty species of dolphin in 17 genera. They vary in size from and , up to and . They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelves, and are carnivores, mostly eating...
who opens up all the purchase options in the beginning of the game. He would also indicate that fish are hungry before they turn green, and he could locate the entry point and the hit points of aliens. - Rhubarb: Rhubarb is a hermit crabHermit crabHermit crabs are decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea. Most of the 1100 species possess an asymmetrical abdomen which is concealed in an empty gastropod shell that is carried around by the hermit crab.-Description:...
who prevents guppies from staying in the bottom of the tank. - Nimbus: Nimbus is a manta rayManta rayThe manta ray is the largest species of the rays. The largest known specimen was more than across, with a weight of about . It ranges throughout waters of the world, typically around coral reefs...
who throws food pellets and coins up the tank to give the player more chances to collect coins and for fish to get to the food pellets. - Amp: Amp is a electric eelElectric eelThe electric eel , is an electric fish, and the only species of the genus Electrophorus. It is capable of generating powerful electric shocks, of up to six hundred volts, which it uses for both hunting and self-defense. It is an apex predator in its South American range...
who takes a while to charge up. When Amp charges up, the player can click on her and she would electrocute the tank and kill all but one guppy and turns them into diamonds. - Gash: Gash is a sharkSharkSharks are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago....
who helps the player do heavy damage to aliens. However, he will eat one of the player’s guppies once in a while, regardless of guppy size. - Angie: Angie is an angelfishAngelfishAngelfish may refer to:*Several groups of fish:**Freshwater angelfish, tropical cichlids of the genus Pterophyllum**Marine angelfish of the family Pomacanthidae**Angel shark of the family Squatinidae...
who can help revive fish who have died from hunger or alien missiles, but not fish eaten by aliens. - Presto: Presto is a tadpoleTadpoleA tadpole or polliwog is the wholly aquatic larval stage in the life cycle of an amphibian, particularly that of a frog or toad.- Appellation :...
who can change into any other pet, but the change takes time. - Brinkley: Brinkley is an elephantElephantElephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
whom if you feed him enough times, he will spit out stars and other things which can be used for money. - Nostradamus: Nostradamus is a noseNoseAnatomically, a nose is a protuberance in vertebrates that houses the nostrils, or nares, which admit and expel air for respiration in conjunction with the mouth. Behind the nose are the olfactory mucosa and the sinuses. Behind the nasal cavity, air next passes through the pharynx, shared with the...
who sneezes when an alien approaches to postpone alien attacks. - Stanley: Stanley is a sea serpentSea serpentA sea serpent or sea dragon is a type of sea monster either wholly or partly serpentine.Sightings of sea serpents have been reported for hundreds of years, and continue to be claimed today. Cryptozoologist Bruce Champagne identified more than 1,200 purported sea serpent sightings...
who helps defeat aliens by throwing balls during alien attacks. - Walter: Walter is a penguinPenguinPenguins are a group of aquatic, flightless birds living almost exclusively in the southern hemisphere, especially in Antarctica. Highly adapted for life in the water, penguins have countershaded dark and white plumage, and their wings have become flippers...
whom if he punches a fish or a pet, makes them do their ability (e.g: laying coins).