Once a fish reaches adulthood, you can see which two fish are its parents. You can also set the selling price for all fish of this particular type. Figure C shows this Species screen, which is also good for a nice close view of a particular fish.

FIGURE C


The Oriental Fire-Arrow and its parents. Roll over picture for a larger image.

The baby fish appear shortly after breeding. They start out as generic little silvery fish, but soon begin to look a bit like their adult selves. You can't check them out in the Species screen until they reach adulthood. Figure D shows a group of my fish and their brand new offspring.

FIGURE D


New babies all look the same. Roll over picture for a larger image.

Each tank holds a maximum of twenty fish. You start the game with one breeding tank and one sale tank. You can buy a second tank when you have the money, and I strongly recommend it. Even then, you'll find yourself restricted by available tank space. While I often find it frustrating to be limited to a maximum of sixty fish, it does add an additional degree of realism to the game.

All is not paradise in your fish tanks, sadly. Fish can get ich (white spots on the skin and pronounced like "sick") or fungus. There are medications available for these conditions, which often cost more than the fish is worth. You need to decide whether you are willing to throw away a fish or whether you should pay to treat its disease. I only treat a fish if its selling price is higher than the cost of the medication.

In Fish Tycoon, you don't get the improved water conditions or food as soon as you buy them. Instead, the game simulates a research cycle, and you eventually get a message that you've finished your research and have the better water or food available. I actually quite like this, even though it means I have to wait for my improvements, because it makes the game seem more realistic. Figure E shows the supply screen for Fish Tycoon.

FIGURE E


Clicking on any item in the supply screen gives a bit of detail about it. Roll over picture for a larger image.

I've completed my research into environment and food, but am still working on my advertising research.

There's a trophy case screen, which shows you all of the magic fish you've discovered, as well as the statistics on how long you've been playing, how many fish you've found, how many times you've fed them, and so on. I'd love to be able to click on a magic fish and re-read the announcement the game gives when you first find the magic fish--I have a tendency to click "OK" too quickly and then want to see the details again.

Grow, baby, grow!
Plant Tycoon was created before Fish Tycoon, and it shows. While still an excellent game, it has some rough spots that aren't present in Fish Tycoon.

To start with, it takes twice as long to grow a plant to "adulthood" as it does to get an adult fish. If you're the patient type, this may not be an issue. I find it aggravating.

Once the plants grow up, you pollinate them with the pollen from other plants (or from themselves). After a while, they produce seeds. You take the seeds off the plants and store them in your seed box (which can hold up to forty-two seeds). And you can grow fifteen plants at a time. Figure F shows a group of my plants, grown to adulthood and freshly pollinated.