__ __ __ ____ __ __ __ \ || | \ || | __| /\ | \ || || \ || ||\\|| ||__ / \ ||\\|| || \ || || \ | |__ |/____\ || \ | || \ -- -- -- __||_| |_ -- -- -- \ |___| \ \ ____ __ __ ___ __ __ __ __ __ \ / \ || || /\ | | || || || //\\ //\\ \ | /\ | || || / \ ||\\ || || || // \\ // \\ \ | \/ | ||_|| / __ \ || \\ || ||_|| // \\// \\ \ \___\\ \___/ _| |- -- -- -- \___/ - -- - "Let the Insanity begin." Insaniquarium Deluxe Faq/Walkthrough Version 1.0 By tiamat101 ©2004 ========== LEGAL JUNK ========== Well, I'm sure this isnt the first FAQ you've ever read, so you probably know all the boring copright stuff. But I gotta put it in here anyway. Ahem...this FAQ is copyright 2004 by Mitchell Bowes (tiamat101). It cannot be printed, posted, redistrubuted, downloaded, or anything else like that which would involve personal gain. You may print it out for PERSONAL USE ONLY, as in reading it to help you with the game. You MAY NOT post this FAQ on any website whatsoever. You MAY NOT link to it, except in forums to help others. Link to GameFAQS instead. You MAY NOT copy & paste anything here and claim it is your own. This is plaigiarism, and people who plaigarise are not only stealing, but they're just being a total loser. Dont do it. Please. ======== WHO AM I ======== Now that thats over with, let me introduce myself. My name's Mitchell Bowes, or tiamat101 on gamefaqs. I'm 14 and I live in Ontario. I've been a Gamefaqs member for a few years now, and i have much experience of the boards. I'm a Veteran (level 31). I play many different games and systems, so you may find me in other boards. This is my second written FAQ. Actually, my first one never got accepted for some reason, and i never gotaround to resubmitting it.If you want to contact me, read below. ======= CONTACT ======= Email: Solarflare66@hotmail.com Please note that my email has strict junk filtering. If you are going to email me about the faq, BE SURE TO PUT "INSANIQUARIUM FAQ" IN THE SUBJECT. Otherwise I'll think its junk. Also, PLEASE STOP EMAILING ME QUESTIONS! I've given up on answering them all as I usually get about 10 emails a day. If you have a question about Insaniquarium, It's probably more likely to get answered in the Insaniquarium message boards on Gamefaqs.com, or the official Insaniquarium forum at: http://p067.ezboard.com/bflyingbearentertainment ======= UPDATES ======= Version 1.4: A medium-sized update, with lots of new juicy info. NEW IN THIS UPDATE: Lots. Some reader submitted fish names, the fish stories, uncommons, and more. Version 1.3: A pretty big update. NEW IN THIS UPDATE: Added new info for pre-named pets, the Emporium, and the bonus pets, as well as some changes to the drop values. Version 1.2: January 19, 2005. I've been getting tons of emails, and I can't really respond to every single one, so dont be surprised if your email doesnt get responded to...I will however make sure to include you in the credits. NEW IN THIS UPDATE: Along with tons of small changes here and there I finally started on the VT section. Version 1.1: January 11, 2005. 3 months have passed...and I've gotten some good content. I myself have finally gotten the silver trophy and almost all the upgrades. NEW IN THIS UPDATE: Added the bonus pets, some new small secrets, added Unlockables to the secrets section. Version 1.0: October 11, 2004. The FAQ is born. Lacking in sections 4.0, 5.0, and 6.0. ================= TABLE OF CONTENTS ================= 0.0 Legal stuff and contact info (see above) 1.0 Introduction 1.1 The Story So Far 2.0 The lay of the game 2.1 Controls 2.2 How to Play 3.0 Creatures 3.1 Fish 3.2 Pets 3.3 Aliens & the Final Boss 3.4 The Fish Stories *4.0 General strategies and tips *5.0 Tank specific strategies and tips 5.1 Adventure mode tanks 5.2 Time Trial mode tanks 5.3 Challenge mode tanks *6.0 Virtual Tank 6.1 VT Differences 6.2 The Emporium 7.0 Cheats, Secrets & Unlockables 8.0 Credits * Section incomplete/not yet started ================ 1.0 Introduction ================ -------------------------------------------- These are terms that I will use in this FAQ VT : Virtual Tank mode BD : Backdrops Er...thats all you should worry about, really. --------------------------------------------- First off, what is Insaniquarium? It is a PC virtual action/arcade-adventure game created by Flying Bear Entertrainment and published by Popcap Games. I'm pretty sure it is only availible online. Its only $20, and although it is a little known game, it's awesome. If you want to buy it, check out www.popcap.com. So what do you do? Well, its a very strange mix. Feed fish! Fight Aliens! You'll have to work from rags to riches with your fish. In most tanks you'll start off with one or two fish and a bit of money. Feed your fish till they grow, and then they'll start giving back. Once fish have matured, they expel coins which you must catch to cash in. It sounds kind of boring so far, eh? Well, it is...for the first minute or so. Then things get interesting. You see, you're fish are a prime target for seafood loving aliens, who will warp into your tank and attempt to turn your tank into a fish buffet. Using your trusty laser gun, you're gonna teach these guys a lesson. As the game progresses, the aliens get tougher. But at the same time, you can relax with your fish in gorgeous graphics and catchy seaside music. Explore your tanks and meet new fish. At the end of every level, you'll get an egg. What's inside? Hatch it and find out! The eggs contain Pets inside. Pets are sea creatures that are dedicated to helping you out in your adventure, from money to aliens to fish. Then, take abreak from the adventure and check out the Virtual Tank, where you can raise fish just like you would in reality. Based on your computers clock, you'll have to feed them every day to keep them happy. What are we waiting for? -------------------- 1.1 The Story So Far -------------------- (The game doesnt give you a solid story, but it does give hints to the story here and there. This is my gathering of the story.) Aquarium owners are in distress. It seems that strange aliens from space have descended upon our planet and are attempting to eat us entirely out of seafood! And they're starting by devouring the contents of every fish tank on the planet! This wont do at all. You're going to have to get rid of these aliens once and for all. But they wont just come to you. Raise your own fish in your tank. That will attract the aliens. You're going to need some backup, so try to find the Pets. They'll help you out in your adventure. Once you've gotten rid of the main horde, you're going to have to take on the motherbrain of the aliens. Good luck, bub. Now grab you're trusty laser gun and get ready to kick some alien butt! ======================= 2.0 The Lay of the Game ======================= First off, before you go about saving the world, lets figure out how to play in the world of Insaniquarium. ------------ 2.1 Controls ------------ Drop Food : Left Click Tap Glass : Right Click (doesnt do anything exept in VT) Select/Grab : Left Click Change Presto: Right Click Cheats : The Keyboard...(see 7.0) Fire Laser : Left click --------------- 2.2 How to Play --------------- Heres your "Playing the Game 101" for Insaniquarium. FEEDING FISH Simply click somewhere in the tank to drop food, and hungry fish will go for it. Food moves down until it hits the bottom of the tank or is eaten. If it reaches the bottom, it will dissapear. Food is not free (except in VT), so dont waste it. Each time you drop some food it'll cost ya $5. It's best to drop food above fish, near the top of the tank. Try to upgrade food quality and quantity as early as possible, it really helps. FIGHTING ALIENS For you're basic aliens (Slyvester and Balrog), all you have to do it shoot like mad till they're dead. Later aliens require more advanced strategies. However, even your first aliens will take a little more planning then you expected. If you're not careful, aliens will eat your fish quickly. You have to "steer" them with you laser to keep them away from your fish. Let me explain. If you want to move the alien away from your fish, you'll have to hit a certain part of them. To move them down, you have to hit their head. To move them up, shoot their feet/belly. As you play, you'll get to understand it better. VIRTUAL TANK See 6.0 More will be added to this section at a later date. ============= 3.0 Creatures ============= -------- 3.1 Fish -------- __________________________________ This is how the fish section is arranged: NAME: (The name of the fish) APPEARANCE: (What it looks like) COST: (How much it costs to buy) LEVEL: (Which levels it appears in) DIET: (What it eats) HUNGER: (How often it has to eat) DROPS: (What form of money it drops) OTHER: (Other notes about the fish) ___________________________________ NAME: Guppy APPEARANCE: Yellow with purple fins COST: $100 LEVEL: All DIET: Fish Food HUNGER: Average DROPS: (Medium: Silver Coin $15)(Large: Gold coin $35) OTHER: This is your bread-and-butter mainstream fish. It will be your backbone, and your main source of income during many of the tanks. NAME: King Fish Guppy APPEARANCE: A large, blue guppy with a gold crown COST: N/A LEVEL: All DIET: Fish Food HUNGER: Average DROPS: Diamond $200 OTHER: After about 8-10 mins. of feeding a large guppy with the lvl. 3 fish food (vitamins), it will turn into a King Fish Guppy. They are just like Guppys but they drop Diamonds. They are perhaps the best fish to have. They're easy to maintain and have cheap food, and give lots of cash. However, they're very hard to get. NAME: Carnivore APPEARANCE: Big black and red fish COST: $1000 LEVEL: Tank 1 and 4 DIET: Small Guppies HUNGER: Low DROPS: Diamond $200 OTHER: The second fish you will meet, carnivores dont eat Fish Food. They eat small guppies, which means feeding them is going to cost you $100 instead of $5. They do however drop about 2 diamonds for every guppy they eat, so theres plenty of profit. NAME: StarFish APPEARANCE: A Bright Yellow Translucent Guppy COST: N/A LEVEL: Tank 2 DIET: Fish Food HUNGER: Average DROPS: Stars $40 OTHER: The third of the guppy variations, this guppy can be obtained by feeding a large guppy (NOT small or medium) a star potion, which cost $250. The potion MUST be fed to a large guppy. It will kill a small or medium guppy. The stars these fish drop are more valuable than coins, but they have a better use: feeding starcatchers. NAME: StarCatcher APPEARANCE: An octopus-like creature with a big hole on its head COST: $750 LEVEL: Tank 2.2 till Tank 3 DIET: Stars HUNGER: Average-Low DROPS: Diamond $200 OTHER: DONT buy these unless you have a StarFish. It's best to have two StarFish for every StarCatcher you own, but its still possible to use a 1:1 ratio. NAME: Guppycruncher APPEARANCE: Grey crab-like creature with big red pincers on the top of its head COST: $750 LEVEL: Tank 3.2 till Tank 4 DIET: Small Guppies HUNGER: Low DROPS: Gold Beetles $150 OTHER: Guppycrunchers are harder to feed than carnivores. Like carnivores, they eat small guppies, however they are crawlers, so they are limited to the bottom of the tank. You'll have to lure small guppies towards the cruncher with food until they're close enough for the cruncher to grab. Luckily it can jump pretty high, and can grab any small guppies in the lower half of the tank. Nimbus tends to make it hard to use crunchers since he sends food back to the top of the tank, luring the guppies away from the cruncher. Guppycrunchers release Gold Beetles, which work their way to the top of the tank and can be used to feed Beetlemunchers. NAME: Beetlemunchers APPEARANCE: Kind of like a big blue tadpole with arms COST: $2000 LEVEL: Tank 3.3 DIET: Gold Beetles HUNGER: High DROPS: Pearl $500 OTHER: These guys love to eat every 15-20 seconds. They are very rewarding with pearls which they drop two of for every beetle they eat. They are also very expensive and will die quickly if you dont have a healthy Guppycruncher or two. NAME: Breeder APPEARANCE: Kind of like a fat, diagonal guppy that looks more feminine. COST: $200 LEVEL: Tank 4 DIET: Fish Food HUNGER: Average DROPS: None OTHER: These are basically Pregos. In tank 4 you wont be able to buy guppies. You must rely on these to produce guppies for you. They are very very helpful. With 3-4 mature Breeders in your tank, your guppy population will go from 0-20 in just a few minutes. Consider getting a few carnivores to keep your tank from overpopulating. NAME: Ultravore APPEARANCE: HUGE!!! As big as an alien! Red eyes, grey muscular body, massive teeth COST: $10,000!!! LEVEL: Tank 4 DIET: Carnivores (Thats right, they eat carnivores.) HUNGER: Low DROPS: Treasure Chest $2000 OTHER: If you manage to get one of these big boys, keep it alive at all costs. Despite their size, they can be killed by an alien just as easily as any other fish. And it really sucks when you spend $10,000 on one and it gets eaten. They drop two treasure chests for every carnivore they eat, meaning you get a profit of $3000 every time you feed it. They are at the top of the food chain so far, but there is a fish that eats ultravores, crazy as it may sound... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The voracious guppy, which is no longer a rumoured fish, has been moved to section 6.0 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -------- 3.2 Pets -------- _________________________________________ This is how the pets section is arranged: NAME: (the name of the pet) APPEARANCE: (what kind of animal it is) USE RATING: (How useful it is out of ten, ten being very useful) LEVEL: (Which level you get it in) USE & OTHER: (What it does to help you, and other notes) _________________________________________ NAME: Stinky APPEARANCE: A snail USE RATING: 8/10 LEVEL: 1.1 USE & OTHER: Grabs coins for you. The better coin collector in my opinion. Hes limited to the bottom of the tank, but i think he gets more coins than Clyde. NOTE: Yes, Stinky does get angry and turn red if he doesn't catch/is prevented from catching drops for an extended period of time. If it happens to you, nothings wrong or special, it just means you might not need him after all. NAME: Niko APPEARANCE: A blue oyster USE RATING: 6/10 LEVEL: 1.2 USE & OTHER: He creates a pearl ($250) every once in a while. Good for missions where you need money. NAME: Itchy APPEARANCE: A swordfish USE RATING: 6/10 LEVEL: 1.3 USE & OTHER: Helps attack aliens. Good for early in the game when you're just getting used to fighting. NAME: Prego APPEARANCE: A breeder with a bonnet and lipstick USE RATING: 8/10 LEVEL: 1.4 USE & OTHER: Gives birth to a baby guppy every now and then, helping to populate the tank. NAME: Zorf APPEARANCE: A funny looking seahorse USE RATING: 7/10 LEVEL: 1.5 USE & OTHER: Helps feed your fish. When a fish turns green, he'll spit out a few lvl. 2 pellets. NAME: Clyde APPEARANCE: Jellyfish USE RATING: 6/10 LEVEL: 2.1 USE & OTHER: Grabs coins for you. Unlike Stinky, he can go anywhere in the tank. It sounds better, but between the two, Stinky is better in my opinion. NAME: Vert APPEARANCE: Fish skeleton USE RATING: 4/10 LEVEL: 2.2 USE & OTHER: Drops gold coins like a large guppy, and doesnt need to be fed. Not very useful. NAME: Rufus APPEARANCE: Fiddler crab USE RATING: 8/10 LEVEL: 2.3 USE & OTHER: Attacks aliens. Does more damage than Itchy, but is limited to the bottom of the tank. NAME: Meryl APPEARANCE: Mermaid (the one you see at the main menu) USE RATING: 8/10 LEVEL: 2.4 USE & OTHER: Occasionally sings and makes all guppies drop 3-4 coins at once. If you have lots of fish, this can be REALLY useful. Recently i dicovered her true use: Time Trial. Take Meryl, Presto and Seymour into Time Trial. Turn Presto into Meryl. Now get lots and lots of fish. With two Meryls, you'll be showered with coins every 30 secs or so. Awesome. This will send your money through the roof. Try to get Stinky, Clyde, or Nimbus from the Buy Random Pet option to help you out majorly. NAME: Wadsworth APPEARANCE: Blue Whale USE RATING: 7/10 LEVEL: 2.5 USE & OTHER: Protects your small & Medium guppies. Good for people new to the game. NAME: Seymour APPEARANCE: Tortoise USE RATING: 9/10 LEVEL: 3.1 USE & OTHER: Makes all coins and diamonds move slower as long as he is in the tank, giving you more time to grab them. Suprisingly useful. NAME: Shrapnel APPEARANCE: Robot fish USE RATING: 5/10 LEVEL: 3.2 USE & OTHER: Drops bombs which you can click on for $150. Bombs can kill fish on contact. Shrapnel may look cool, but he doesnt really help out to much. Best used by transforming Presto into him at the beginning of a level for extra cash, than transforming to something more useful later. In tank 4 when you have tons of fish, Shrapnel just becomes a neusaince since he ends up killing fish before you can cash in the bomb. NAME: Gumbo APPEARANCE: Lantern fish USE RATING: 8/10 LEVEL: 3.3 USE & OTHER: When aliens appear, gumbo uses the lantern on his head to lure guppies away from aliens. Pretty useful, but watch out when you're against Psychosquid or Beletarus. He is AWESOME in Tank 1. Take him into tank 1 and you'll never lose a guppy. NAME: Blip APPEARANCE: Porpoise USE RATING: 9/10 LEVEL: 3.4 USE & OTHER: Blip provides you with a ton of really useful info. Shortly after the beginning of the level he'll open up all purchase options. When aliens come he'll display a crosshair showing where the alien will appear. He also shows a yellow arrow over hungry fish that arent green yet. Some people think he is the absolute best pet. I agree he's pretty useful, but I'd rather use him temporarily with Presto. Turn presto into Blip at the begining of the level to get all options, then change again. NAME: Rhubarb APPEARANCE: Hermit Crab USE RATING: 3/10 LEVEL: 3.5 USE & OTHER: Snaps his claws at fish, keeping them away from the bottom of the tank. I dont see how this can be very useful, except maybe if you also had rufus and you wanted to keep aliens away from the fish while they take damage from rufus. NAME: Nimbus APPEARANCE: Manta Ray (AKA Sting Ray) USE RATING: 8/10 LEVEL: 4.1 USE & OTHER: Catches food and coins at the bottom of the tank and send it back to the top. Good for giving you or your fish a second chance at catching coins or food. NAME: Amp APPEARANCE: A really cool looking Electric Eel. Looks like the Grim Reaper of the Seas. USE RATING: 7/10 if used properly LEVEL: 4.2 USE & OTHER: After a minute or so of charging, you can click on Amp to fry every fish in the tank and turn them into diamonds. It will kill all your guppies, but give you TONS of cash. MAKE SURE YOU PAIR AMP WITH ANGIE. Amp will kill your fish, and Angie will resurruct many of them, and you still get lots of diamonds. NAME: Gash APPEARANCE: Orange Shark. Shark, NOT Pirahna. I dont know why some people think hes a Pirahna. USE RATING: 7/10 LEVEL: 4.3 USE & OTHER: Does the most damage to aliens of any of the attacker pets, but will periodically eat one of your fish. He is very strong against aliens, but I dont like the fact that he eats your guppies. Why? Because he doesnt eat just small guppies. He eats ANY size guppy, even the King Fish Guppy. And also, he is NOT a pirahna. It clearly says Gash the Shark when you get him. NAME: Angie APPEARANCE: Angel fish with a halo. Oh brother ^_^. USE RATING: 9/10 LEVEL: 4.4 USE & OTHER: Revives dead fish. Very useful. Angie plays an important part in the storyline at the end of the game. NAME: Presto APPEARANCE: Tadpole, changes into other pets. USE RATING: 10/10 LEVEL: 4.5, after the final boss. USE & OTHER: The most useful pet, hands down. Take him EVERYWHERE. Use him ALWAYS. Why? Because Presto is all the other pets combined. By right clicking on him, you can transform him into another pet. And another. And another. Right clicking Presto brings up a menu around the edge of the screen where you can choose which pet you want to transform him into. You'll know that pet is Presto because it says Presto under him. He needs to spend about 15 secs after transforming to recharge. Using Presto you can effectively have two of the same pets in one tank, doubling the efficiency. -----SPOILERS BELOW!----- Bonus Pets These are pets that can only be obtained by purchasing them between levels. They are not cheap, so you'll have to work hard to afford them. Bonus pets generally arent very useful (except for Walter. Walter is awesome), they're more of a collecters item. When you have all 4 bonus pets, though, you can finally purchase the increased pet limit (see section 7.0). EACH OF THESE PETS MUST BE PURCHASED IN THE ORDER THE APPEAR BELOW! NAME: Brinkley COST: 20,000 APPEARANCE: Elephant with a skorkel and scuba mask USE RATING: 5/10 USE & OTHER: Brinkley is the first bonus pet you'll encounter. He is an elephant...WTF is an elephant doing in a fish tank?!? Well, he is kind of useful. Brinkley is the only pet in Insaniquarium that eats fish food. He wont die if you dont feed him though, so dont worry. If you do feed him, he will spout stars out of his snorkel, the same stars that starfish drop. Brinkley has a cycle for what he drops. Thanks to Keasha Wybourne for the info I needed to create this list cycle. (the number on the left is how many times you must feed him, on the right is what you get from him) 3. Star 6. Star 9. Star 12. Diamond / Blue Shell 15. Star 18. Star 21. Star 24. Diamond / Blue Shell 27. Star 30. Star 33. Star 36. Pearl / Spiral Shell 39. Star 42. Star 45. Star 48. Diamond / Blue Shell 51. Star 54. Star 57. Star 60. Diamond / Blue Shell 63. Star 66. Star 69. Star 72. Pearl / Spiral Shell 75. Star 78. Star 81. Star 84. Diamond / Blue Shell 87. Star 90. Star 93. Star 96. Diamond / Blue Shell 99. Star 102. Star 105. Star 108. Treasure chest / Bag of Shells! After you finally get the treasure chest, this cycle repeats. NAME: Nostradamus COST: 25,000 APPEARANCE: A nose. With a moustache. And a fish tail. OMGWTFBBQ?!?!?!? USE RATING: 5/10 USE & OTHER: While I could bring up a good debate about whos strange idea it was to make a nose a pet, I'll get right to the details. Nostradamus doesn't seem to be all that useful at first glance, but since several people have emailed me telling me that he is useful in challenge tank, I have brought his use rating up from 3/10 to 5/10. He will swim through your tank, occasionally dripping snot. Gross. If a hungry fish sees the snot, it will eat it, and display the word YUK! beside the fish. Brinkley doesnt seem to mind eating the snot, however, and if Nostradamus and Brinkley are in the same tank then fish that eat the snot will turn into another nose, just like Nostradamus. The snot can also be clicked on for $1. Nostradamus also sneezes at aliens, which postpones their attack. NAME: Stanley COST: 30,000 APPEARANCE: A green sea serpent. When an alien appears he turns beige and grows spikes on his back and his horns grow longer. USE RATING: 7/10 USE & OTHER: Stanley is another pet that will attack aliens for you. But Stanleys method of attack is perhaps the funniest of them all. He will chuck a random sports ball (soccer, basketball, baseball, ect.) at the enemy, hitting for some good damage. I also noticed that he will chuck balls with lightning speeds at missiles from a Destructor and energy balls from a Ulysses in an attempt to save the fish the alien was targeting. NAME: Walter COST: 35,000 APPEARANCE: A short, stubby penguin with big eyes. USE RATING: 8/10 USE & OTHER: Walter is a unique pet. When clicked on, he opens his mouth and a spring loaded boxing glove pops out. Sounds strange, hmmm? If this boxing glove happens to punch a mature fish, that fish will drop its cash (or shells in VT). Also, if Walter punches one of your other pets, they will perform their ability. Please note that ONLY CERTAIN pets will perform their ability when punched by Walter. -----SPOILERS ABOVE!----- --------------------------- 3.3 Aliens & The Final Boss --------------------------- ____________________________________________ This is how the Alien section is arranged: NAME: (the name of the alien) APPEARANCE: (what it looks like) LEVEL: (which tank they appear in) DIFFICULTY: (how difficult they are to kill out of 10) STRATEGY: (what to do to kill them) ____________________________________________ NOTE: Tank 5 refers to the tank you face the Final Boss in. ALL of the aliens below appear in tank 5. NAME: Sylvester APPEARANCE: Black/Dark Blue with no eyes or feet LEVEL: Tank 1 & 5 DIFFICULTY: 3/10 STRATEGY: Simple. Just blast away. He only takes about 15 laser shots. If he eats one of your fish, he seems to be "full" and wont eat another one for a few seconds. NAME: Mini-Sylvester APPEARANCE: A miniature version of Sylvester. Like, Duh. Level: Tank 5 only Difficulty: 2/10 STRATEGY: There is no strategy to this. Mini-Sylvesters only appear during the final battle. They only take one laser shot to kill. NAME: Balrog APPEARANCE: A cross between a Lion and a fish LEVEL: Tank 1, 4 & 5 DIFFICULTY: 4/10 STRATEGY: Not much harder than Sylvester. Trap him in a corner and blast away. Like sylvester he gets "full" after eating a fish. NAME: Gus APPEARANCE: Looks like a REALLY fat Sea Monkey LEVEL: Tank 2 & 5 DIFFICULTY: 7/10 STRATEGY: Now things get interesting. Gus can be a real pain in the ass the first time you face him. He doesnt take any damage from your laser. He is a fat glutton though, and will stop at nothing for food. Drop a trail of food leading away from your fish, then just keep feeding ol' fatty til he explodes. He doesnt get "full" like Sylvester or Balrog, so watch out. When he appears in your tank, the cost of food temporarily becomes $0. NAME: Destructor APPEARANCE: 6 wheeled robot with rocket launcher LEVEL: Tank 2, 4 & 5 DIFFICULTY: 5/10 STRATEGY: Destructor is limited to the bottom of the tank, so he cant freely go anywhere. The good thing about Destructor is he cant kill fish by touching them, so keeping him away from your fish isnt that big a priority. Instead, he shoots rockets from afar to blow the heck out of your fish. When he shoots the rockets, gun them down before they reach your fish, then turn your attention back to him. NAME: PsychoSquid APPEARANCE: An insane red squid holding various weapons LEVEL: Tank 3, 4 & 5 DIFFICULTY: 8/10 STRATEGY: PsychoSquid is a tough cookie indeed. If you dont know how to properly defeat him, he'll go through your fish faster than you can say "Holy ****!". He doesnt get "full" like Sylvester or Balrog, and he is very fast. After about 20 laser shots, he will turn blue and stop attacking. At this point, STOP shooting or else he will actually regain health. NAME: Ulysses APPEARANCE: Cyclops Golem LEVEL: Tank 3, 4 & 5 DIFFICULTY: 7/10 STRATEGY: Ah, I love fighting this guy. He's quite fun to fight. Like Destructor, he is limited to the bottom of the tank and attacks fish with projectiles. But obviously hes much harder to defeat. Ulysses shoots blue energy balls instead of missiles. These balls can only harm the fish they've targeted. With Destructor, when you shot the rockets they just exploded and were no longer a problem. With Ulysses, its much harder. If you shoot the blue energy balls he launches, they turn green and fly in the opposite direction of the side you shot. When they are green they are a hazard to ANY fish they touch. The balls can go very fast, and can streak through your tank killing more fish than PsychoSquid. But, for those of you who have played The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, do you remember how to defeat Phantom Ganon? You had to deflect his energy attacks back at him. Same with Ulysses. Shoot the balls back towards him and they'll do massive damage. NAME: Beletarus APPEARANCE: A spine with a wierd skull on either end. Wierd. LEVEL: Tank 4 & 5 DIFFICULTY: 8/10 STRATEGY: When Beletarus appears, you'll have to shoot his head. You can only shoot one at a time, and once the first head is destroyed you can go for the second one. Be careful, the spine can kill fish too. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~FINAL BOSS SPOILERS BELOW!!!!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NAME: Cyrax, the Evil Alien Mastermind APPEARANCE: A brain-thing with tentacles and four red eyes LEVEL: Tank 5 DIFFICULTY: 10/10 STRATEGY: Here it is, the final boss of the game. Kill this guy and all the aliens should leave Earth. Cyrax is obviously the toughest alien you'll face in the game. When Tank 5 starts, all your pets will be in the tank (Or are all of them there? Look closely for the missing one. Remember in the Pets section, I said one of them played an important role in the storyline?). The idea is to defeat Cyrax before he and his minions devour all your pets. As long as you have at least one pet left when Cyrax dies, you win. Cyrax is a bit of a problem because he himself moves very fast. Also, he creates a mini-Sylvester every 3 seconds, which can be a pain. Not only that, but a random alien or two will occasionally warp into the tank! So you're going to have to be REALLY careful not to lose to many pets. Luckily for you, your laser seems to have become very powerful. It shoots red blasts that kill a Balrog in only 5 hits. Phew. Anyway, ONLY shoot Cyrax when there are no other aliens, or your pets will die fast. When Cyrax spawns a mini-Sylvester, kill it quickly. When aliens warp in, divert your attention to them. Keep pounding on Cyrax and he'll fall soon enough. With Cyrax's death you are awarded with Presto and 5000 shells. Each time you beat the game, the amount of shells you get by killing him increases by 5000, to a maximum of 25,000 shells. Pretty sweet. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~FINAL BOSS SPOILERS ABOVE!!!!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 3.4 The Fish Stories These stories are funny tidbits about charecters in the game that serve no real purpose, other than that they are funny to read. They can be obtained by beating all the challenge tanks (you have to beat each challenge tank EIGHT TIMES to get ALL the stories). THIS SECTION CONTAINS SPOILERS! Stinky Stinky knew from an early age the he was different from the other snails. He had the fever. The money fever. He was all about collecting money. But what does Stinky need with all that money? Stinky answers, "It impresses the ladies." Niko One question that always comes up when talking about Niko is: Why doesnt Niko open his mouth more often? There is a reason for this. Niko thinks that opening his mouth may allow demons to steal his soul. Therefore, he keeps mouth opening to a minimum. Itchy Itchy wasnt always the grizzled, alien-attacking warrior he is today. In fact, he use to be a watercoloring, vegan pacifist.... Until one day, an alien invaded Itchy's tank. Itchy tried to reason with the alien, but it wouldnt listen. The alien ate Itchy's friends and this is when Itchy swore a blood oath to kill all aliens! Prego Everyone knows Prego as the loving mother to a thousand guppies. But the question on everyone's mind is: Where did she get that exquisite scarf? Prego answers, "Oh, this thing? Son 183,241 gave it to me... no wait... it was son 183,240. I always get those two mixed up." Zorf Some people wonder, Why doesnt Zorf ever upgrade to level 3 food? The reason is that Zorf thinks that most foods are too rich in fat and artificial preservatives. The level 2 food, on the other hand, is raised one hundred percent organically and has no artificial flavors or additives. Clyde Clyde, much like Stinky, likes collecting money. Unlike Stinky, though, Clyde doesnt collect money for just any lady. He is actually saving up to finally get his mother the operations that she needs. So just remember that every dollar left over at the end of a level might go to Clyde's mother's operation fund. Vert Some people are afraid to use Vert because they think that he is an undead product of dark occult forces and therefore may turn against them at any time. This is simply not true. Obviously, a bad skeleton would not give you gold coins. He would drop rat poison. Rufus Rufus started his career as a dance instructor, teaching people how to do his patented pop and lock are routine. When his dance studio burned down in a freak acciedent, Rufus became a mercenary for hire, using his dance skills to amplify his already potent natural fighting ability. Meryl Meryl delights in thrilling audiences around the world with her virtuoso singing talent. She has never been able to measure up in the eyes of the carnivores or ultravores, though. These fish view her simply as another unoriginal corporate-sponsered pop star. To her critics, Meryl would like to point out that she has never sold out by making a music video. Wadsworth Wadsworth has made quite a comeback since his accident several years back. Hopelessly addicted to plankton and abandoned by all his friends, Wadsworth lost all muscle control one day and accidentally ate all of the fish in his mouth. Since finishing rehab four years ago, Wadsworth has re-entrenched himself in Insaniquarium players' hearts. Seymour After beating the hare a few years ago, Seymour retired and returned to his home in the aquarium. Sadly, nothing would ever top his winning that race. Seymour does not live in the present as we know it. Look into his eyes and you can see that his mind is stuck in a hazy past... reliving his last glorious moment. Shrapnel When talking about Shrapnel, the main question is usually: What are the market forces of supply and demand that result in Shrapnel's bombs being worth $150? Alan Fishpan, chairman of the Federal Shell Reserve answers: This is a response to the current low rate on 30 year motgages, combined with the strong performance of the Euro against the dollar. Gumbo Many critics of Gumbo say that he is a wolf in sheeps clothing... that he simply leads all of your guppies to one spot to make it easier for his alien friends to kill them all. Gumbo answers his critics by pointing out that the aliens have shown no mercy in Tank 5. "I am not nor have I ever been a member of the Alien party!" says Gumbo. Blip Blip wrestled for years with his psychic abilities. He was shunned as a child by the other fish who hated him for being able to tell when they were hungry. Then one day, Blip got a bad feeling about a certain area of the tank. He didnt tell anyone, though, because everyone was mean to him. After all the other fish were killed, Blip felt guilty and vowed to only use his powers for good. Rhubarb Rhubarb has often been accused of being the "worst pet ever". Rhubarb doesnt really care what his detractors think, though. He's not aiming to be a crowd pleaser. He's not trying to prove anything to anyone. He just wishes those darn fish would stay off the ground! Nimbus Some people want to know: What's Nimbus' record for bouncing a coin up and down? Nimbus answers: "One thousand seven hundred and twenty-four times." Way to go, Nimbus! Amp Rumors have been circulating for years now that some companies have developed a way to make Amp turn water into diamons. Conspiracy theorists believe that it is simple the interests of the greedy diamond lobby that have prevented this research from becoming available to the general public. Amp is closed-mouthed on the subject. Gash Gash used to be one of Itchy the Swordfish's best friends until Itchy left him for dead in a violent alien attack. Now, years later, Gash roams the tank trying to settle the score with the aliens and perhaps one day... with Itchy as well! Angie To most fans, Angie can do no wrong. But to a few there will always be the question: Why did she save this fish but not that one? How does she make her fateful decision? Angie responds that she tries to save all fish but for some, it was simply their time to go. "After all, if the entire tank were saved then the frame rate would go down." Presto Presto is not actually a real pet. He was made up for the game. Brinkley Brinkley was a perfoming elephant for many years before escaping his cruel circus masters. Unfortunately, Brinkley could not escape his own voracious appetite. An appetite for... food! Nostradamus Asked by skeptics whether he really is the nose of President Rutherford B. Hayes, Nostradamus replies: "Yes and no. I was President Hayes' second nose. His first nose was blown off in the Civil War." Stanley Stanley's seeming unlimited supply of balls are the scourge of alien missile shooters everywhere. Some players wonder why he bothers throwing balls directly at aliens, though. Stanley answers: "I like balls." Walter Walter masks his tremendous insecurities with sheer bravado and scrappiness. On the outside, this happy-go-lucky penguin seems to have not a care in the world. On the inside, he has a great big boxing glove which he uses to punch people. Sylvester Sylvester used to run a popular sushi bar in downtown San Francisco, but when he discovered a mysterious wormhole that led directly to the insaniquarium, Sylvester sold the restaurant to pursue his lifelong dream: EATING ALL YOUR FISH! Balrog Many people want to know: How does Balrog manage to keed his hair so thick and luxurious? Balrog answers: First of all, to keep the shine in my hair, I try to avoid using heated styling tools. I also like to use a wide-toothed comb while in the shower so that I can distribute my conditioner EVENLY. Finally, when sleeping, I put my hair in a scrunchie to prevent breakage. Gus Many people wonder. What is Gus laughing about? Just what is so funny about killing innocent fishies? He's actually not laughting about fish. It turns out that Gus heard the following joke in 1984 and is still laughing about it: What did the daddy buffalo say to his kid before leaving the house? Bison! Destructor Destructor was created many years ago by a brillian scientist to be a toy for his favorite nephew. The nephew, unfortunately, was sadistic little boy who like to torture his per fish. This is where Destructo learned his destructive behavior. The scientist now readily admits, "Maybe it was a bad idea giving Destructor those missiles." Ulysses One big "How Come" with Ulysses is, How come Ulysses doesnt just fire already-deflected missiles? Wouldnt this kill more fish and get the job done fasters? The reason he cant do this is complicated, but is essentially boils down to a strict code of honor and fairness among cyclopses that precludes such unsportsmanlike behavior... and also, he's dumb. Psychosquid Psychosquid's nickname was given to him by his ex-girlfriend. He could not comprehend why their relationship was over. He kept calling her as if nothing had happended. He would wait outside her door and ask what she had been up to. This is when she started calling him Psychosquid to her friends. Bilaterus Hardcore Bilaterus fans often argue over which head is superior. Juky K from Minnesota writes in: Obviously the pointy head is the brains of the operation. The round head is just and overrated Christmas ornament." Bob J from Alabama counters: "No way. Roundy is the MAN! Pointy is just along for the ride." Whoa, easy there you two. This is one controversy that wont be settled today! Minisylvester Minisylvester was created by Cyrax to be a sort-of "Yes-Man" of "Toady". Originally he sought to make a Minicyrax , but this plan was disastrous as the Minicyraxes conspired to do away with their creator. Cyrax found the Minisylvesters to be much more malleable to his will... or at least that's what they have led him to believe... Cyrax After losing the lengendary Battle of Tank 5, Cyrax moved on and eventually became host of his own late night variety show. Some people call it a cerebral high-brow interview program, while critics have deemed it a lowest-common-denominator sleaze-fest. There is certainly no end of controversy to his show, and Cyrax wouldnt have it any other way. ============================== 4.0 General Strategies and Tips =============================== ~Practice ~Have Fun ~Feed your fish before they turn green, just to be safe. ~Carefully select your pets based on what you're getting yourself into. ~Spend alot of time in VT. There you'll get to understand your fishes likes and needs for the main game. ~This game is still shrouded in mystery. I'm not the grand master of knoledge here, so try to solve some of the games mysteries. ~Once you have Presto, take him everywhere. Use him always. He is without a doubt the most useful pet. ~When you get an alien warning, try to herd your fish to one corner with food. ~Upgrade your food as early as possible. ~In the shell catching bonus game, try to get strings of shells instead of just clicking randomly. ~Put Stinky, Zorf and Prego in your VT and leave it on for awhile to get lots of shells, so long as you have fish, of course. ~Time Trial can really help you build your money making skills. ~The screensaver will be you primary source of shells once you get lots of VT fish. ===================================== 5.0 Tank Specific Strategies and Tips ===================================== ~Under construction! Sorry, please wait for next update!~ ================ 6.0 Virtual Tank ================ Finally after many updates, I have started this section. The main thing that I want to complete here is what everybody wants most, a chart showing all the info on the fish you can get in the store. What I really need from anybody that wants to contribute to this FAQ is stuff to go in this chart! Consider this before you email me! =IDEAS FOR FISH NAMES= This is a much requested feature: a list of ideas to name your fish. SUBMIT YOUR FISH NAMES TO SEE THEM IN HERE!!! -My Fish- GRUPP (guppy) SNATCH (carnvore) CRUNCH (guppycruncher) RIG (guppy) RIPPER (carnivore) INDIGLO (purple guppy) ORCROT (starcatcher) SANTA (the santa fish, duh) SHARKBAIT (breeder) SHARKBAIT JR. (breeders offspring) TINY TIM (ultravore) CAMOFISH (rainbow carnivore) REAPER (sylvester) COOKIE (cookie) SNAX (beetlemuncher) -Other Names & Reader Submitted names- ACE ARROWHEAD TERRASLASH CHOMPER TOOTHY CARNIE SLAYER PHISHY MR. MCDUDE SPEEDY GRUB SLOP LARD SLURP STANK KAIN RASTA LEAKY STINK VIOLET SEAWEED ------------------ 6.1 VT differences ------------------ (under construction...) -VT is a virtual simulation of real pets in your home. You have to feed them every day. -Each fish is very important in VT. They have names, likes and dislikes, personality, and needs. -VT uses shells instead of $ -VT is probably the part of Insaniquarium that you'll end up playing most. -VT can be passive: even when you're not on your computer, you'll be making shells as long as that screensaver is running! ---------------- 6.2 The Emporium ---------------- -Store Slots The store has 8 slots. They appear as shown below. When you buy something from a slot it will then say SOLD OUT and you will have to wait till tommorow to buy something else from that slot. -------------------------------------------------------- SLOT 1 | | | SLOT 4 SLOT 5 SLOT 6 SLOT 7 | SLOT 2 | | | MERYL | (The Storekeeper) SLOT 3 | SLOT 8 [Back] [Your Shells] --------------------------------------------------------- -SLOT 1- Always contains a regular guppy. (25 shells) -SLOT 2- Always contains a regular carnivore. (100 shells) -SLOT 3- Contains, in order, the following: (Bubbulator, Alien Attractor, Food Upgrade, Cookie) After you've bought Cookie, SLOT 3 will always contain either an uncommon fish or a rare fish, and occasionally a common fish. -SLOT 4- Always contains a specially coloured guppy (500 shells) -SLOT 5- Always contains a specially coloured carnivore (1000 shells) -SLOT 6- Always contains an Uncommon fish (guppycruncher, beetlemuncher, ultravore, ect.) -SLOT 7- Always contains a Rare fish (backwards, musical, invisible, Pre-Named, ect.) -SLOT 8- Contains a backdrop (15000 shells). Once you have all backdrops, it contains a random fish (usually rare or uncommon, occasionally common). ----------- 6.3 VT Fish ----------- ===UNCOMMON TYPES=== TYPE: Singing POSSIBILITIES: Guppy, Beetlemuncher, Guppycruncher or Carnivore (others?) Singing fish will, after every three feedings, sing a song and display little black eighth-notes floating up from it. TYPE: Speedy POSSIBILITIES: Guppy or Carnivore (others?) Speedy fish, just as one would think, move around the tank very fast. TYPE: Voracious POSSIBILITIES: Guppy, Ultravore or Carnivore (others?) These types of fish love to eat. They eat very often, and when they are hungry and the food they eat is somewhere in the tank, they will make a loud noise that sounds kinda like a t-rex or something, and swim towards the food with their mouth wide open. They will swallow their food whole and make a loud biting sound. TYPE: Rainbow POSSIBILITIES: Guppy or Carnivore (others?) These fish are really cool. They are constantly changing colors! It's like having a fireworks display packed into one small marine creature. TYPE: Invisible POSSIBILITIES: Guppy, starcatcher or Carnivore (others?) Invisible fish aren't actually invisible, they are 'translucent'. For those of you who don't know what that means, it means that you can see the fish but you can also see through it. TYPE: Exotic POSSIBILITIES: Guppy, Carnivore, Ultravore, Guppycruncher, Beetlemuncher These fish have special diets, be it chicken, ice cream, or pizza. A reader told me that regular breeders, when hungry, will go after ice cream as well. TYPE: EXTREMELY RARE POSSIBILITIES: Only one I've seen so far is a Carnivore. These fish are extremely rare (like, DUH). Technically they don't belong in the RARES section below, because they are a type, not a specific fish. Meryl's description of extremely rare fish in the emporium is "This fish is extremely rare. We hardly ever get them in stock." I don't know much about them, but my extremely rare fish is a carnivore with black top white bottom, eats other carnivores, and sings. Please! If you see a fish in the Emporium with the description I mentioned above, buy it and tell me about it! ===RARES=== NAME: Slyvester APPEARANCE: Mini-sylvester (young) sylvester (mature COST: 15,000 DIET: Ultravores HUNGER: Medium DROPS: Bags of Shells (20 shells) OTHER: Not much to say...looks cool? NAME: Belatarus head APPEARANCE: Can be either one of the two Beletarus heads. COST: 10,000 DIET: Guppies HUNGER: Low DROPS: Yellow Shell (2 shells) OTHER: Just got it, doesnt seem worth the shells. Might drop more when it grows up. (others coming soon) ===PRE-NAMED FISH=== NAME: Cookie APPEARANCE: A Beetlemuncher COST: 50,000 DIET: Regular Fish Food HUNGER: Low DROPS: None (Spawns special food instead of shells) OTHER: Cookie is the most useful pre-named fish of them all. He (she?) will occasionally flash and cause an item from the Special Food menu to drop into the tank. Cookie will feed just about any fish that requires food from the Special Food menu. NAME: Rocky (AKA the voracious guppy) APPEARANCE: Blue with white fins COST: 50,000 DIET: Ultravores HUNGER: Low DROPS: Bag of shells (20 shells) OTHER: I've heard he occasionally dissapears from your tank for short periods of time. Nobody knows why. NAME: Kilgore APPEARANCE: Ultravore COST: 50,000 DIET: Carnivore HUNGER: Medium DROPS: Bags of Shells (20 shells) OTHER: Likes to intimidate others by playing the music of Wagner. I've heard from some that fish will get depressed when Kilgore is in the tank. Makes voracious sounds when it eats. NAME: Johnny V. APPEARANCE: Rainbow Carnivore COST: 50,000 DIET: Pizza HUNGER: Low DROPS: Blue Shells (5 shells) OTHER: Apparently swears he'll never eat pizza again. NAME: Ludwig APPEARANCE: Black & Blue Carnivore COST: 50,000 DIET: Small Guppies HUNGER: Low DROPS: Blue Shells (5 shells) OTHER: Ludwig sings fish songs by Beethoven (because the composers full name is Ludwig Van Beethoven. Cool thing I noticed.) (More to come! Keep sending in info on pre-named fish everybody!) ================================= 7.0 Cheats, Secrets & Unlockables ================================= --------------- 7.1 CHEAT CODES --------------- Actually, they arent really "cheats". These codes arent exactly all that helpful. They are simply codes that do stuff to the game. Nontheless, they can be fun to use. You dont have to press enter or ctrl+c or anything like that. Just type in these codes as written. NOTE: TO DE-ACTIVATE CODES YOU MUST ENTER THEM IN AGAIN!!! STOP EMAILING ME ABOUT HOW TO REVERSE THE CODES!!!!!!!!!! B -Bubbles. Just press or hold the B button to make bubbles appear in your tank. If you have the bubbulator, pressing this activates it. 
PREGO             -Switch between the two sounds prego makes when she gives
birth.

WELOVEBETATESTERS -Switch between the two sounds breeders make when they give
birth.

ZOMBIES           -Makes all fish look like they're dead.

WAVY              -Makes the tank look more wavy and watery.

TIME              -Displays time on the tank.

SUPERMEGAULTRA    -ROFLMFAO!!!! Oh man, I love this one. It changes Prego and
Breeders
birth sound into a long, wet, nasty, 10-second-long fart.
Hehe.

VOID              -Turns backround into a blank, white screen. Looks like your
fish are                                            pictures on blank paper.

SPACE             -Changes backround to moving outer space, so your fish look
like they're going through a worm hole or something.

Theres probably more, look out in future updates...
-----------
7.2 SECRETS
-----------

THE SANTA GUPPY: In Virtual Aquarium, buy a regular guppy and name it santa. It
will
be white with red fins, plays christmas songs when it eats, grows uber-fast,
and drops
bags of shells.

MENU MERYL: Clicking on Meryl at the main menu will cause her to flick her
tail. Just
a small, useless secret.

SANDBOX MODE: After obtaining the silver trophy, enter the following code at
the main
menu, using the arrow keys and letters (make sure caps lock is off):

UP, UP, DOWN, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT, RIGHT, B, A


MORE COMING SOON
---------------
7.3 UNLOCKABLES
---------------

FOUR PET LIMIT IN ADVENTURE: After purchasing walter, this becomes available in
mid-level
for 40,000 shells. It allows you to take 4 pets with you in each level, and in
VT.

ELEVEN PET LIMIT IN VT: Its actually only called the seven pet upgrade, but
since you
already have the four pet upgrade, they combine for a total of 11. Only applies
to VT.

THE SILVER TROPHY: After purchasing all the bonus pets and the final mid-level
upgrade
(7 pet limit), you receive the spiffy silver trophy, and you may now go into
sandbox mode.

THE GOLD TROPHY: To obtain the Gold Trophy, you must unlock all 33 stories by
playing
each Challenge Tank 8 times, then a tank of your choice one last time.

===========
8.0 Credits
===========
Submit stuff for the FAQ and your name may wind up in here!
~~~
You -For reading this FAQ

Jesada Bunnorat -For info on Rocky, the pet stories, and
other
small details

Keasha Wybourne -For lots of info on Brinkley &
Nostradamus

rick vossen -For info on Kilgore

Huishi -also for info on Kilgore

-corrected me on the value of beetlemuncher pearls and
other good info

Flying Bear & Popcap -For making this game, although I'm getting tired of
waiting
for a game update
~~~

FIN INSANITY