- 3RD-STRIKE.COM - A La Une - 20/Jul 02:51

Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping – Review

Cozy sim titles, as well as idle titles, have always attracted huge crowds. It’s always nice to be able to zone out with something comforting while also not having to invest that much effort into the experience, while still making progress. It’s the ideal thing to do between bigger games or just at the end of a stressful day. In comes Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping, which promises the best of both worlds. While some aspects could be fleshed out more, we enjoyed our time managing our different fish tanks. Story There is absolutely no story to be found in Tiny Aquarium. The game just presents you with your first fish tank, an egg, a growth potion, and then you’re left to your own devices. There are some tasks to complete and some daily quests, but that’s about it. It’s up to you to create multiple appealing fish tanks, and just zone out and relax. Graphics Tiny Aquarium’s visuals might not blow anyone away, but the cute low-poly graphics pack a lot of charm. There is a lot of fish variety, and there are also quite a few decorative options. It’s a lot of fun seeing your fish tanks gain more personality, and as you have multiple ones you can unlock, you can easily create a few different themed ones. The in-game shop offers daily decorations you can purchase. Perhaps a few more interesting backdrops and different fishing ponds would have been nice to complement the items you can put in the tanks. The current soil types, lamp shades, and background colors feel a bit basic. Nonetheless, we found the overall atmosphere to be very cozy. The game also offers a screensaver and a tiny mode. The screensaver mode speaks for itself, as it just removes the UI and shows you your selected aquarium. The moment you interact with the game again, it will revert to the normal experience. The tiny mode allows you to minimize the selected fish tank so you can view a tiny aquarium on your screen while doing other tasks or even while watching other media. It’s a fun touch, but again, you can’t really interact with anything when it’s in tiny mode either. Sound The sound design proved to be a bit on the basic side. The background music was pleasant but also a bit dull and repetitive. We assume a lot of players will just play their own tunes when playing Tiny Aquarium. The SFX are serviceable, but nothing to write home about. Gameplay Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping is a relaxing idle sim in which you fill fish tanks with the fish you catch and hatch, decorate said tanks, and even do some fishing on the side. You can chat with other people while fishing, and you can even visit other players’ aquariums. The more fish you have, and the higher their rarity, the more passive income you will get. It’s a simple concept, but it is well executed. Some key elements of the experience are keeping your fish tanks clean and feeding your fish. The cleaning process involves wiping a sponge over the glass, and feeding can be done using your standard fish food or by purchasing better food from the shop. The tanks and fish require regular attention, so this is a game you’ll have to boot up from time to time to check on your fish. If you wait too long, things can go wrong, and maybe you’ll end up losing some of your favorite fish in the end. Luckily, if you know you won’t be playing for a while, you can choose to freeze your tanks. You will not get any progress, but you won’t lose your precious pixelated companions. The aforementioned tools can be upgraded to make upkeep easier, but you’ll need to go up in star ranks to do so. You’ll gain more stars when you hatch new fish, when completing daily quests, or even when cleaning and feeding. The social aspect comes into play with the actual fishing and visiting other players’ aquariums. While the latter is basically anonymous, you can do fishing in public. While you’re in a lobby, you can chat with other people. It’s nice to have someone to talk to while you’re fishing. The fishing itself is done via a small mini-game, which you have to complete to catch a fish or find new decorations or junk. You can sadly not sell fish while you’re actively fishing, and you’ll either have to discard your catch if you don’t want it, or you’ll have to go back to your aquarium to actually sell fish. This is a bit annoying, as when your tank is full, you’ll have to leave the lobby or even close your own lobby, kicking out all other players. Conclusion Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping is a fun and cozy idle fishing game that still offers quite a few active elements as well. While you’ll have seen a lot of what the game has to offer after a few sessions, it’s a fun grind to unlock new decorations, to collect new fish, and of course, to interact with other players. The low-poly visuals look great, and the general atmosphere is very pleasant. If you’re looking for a simple yet satisfying idle title, this one might be worth looking into.