Kong from Crazy Kong

Don’t be confused, or think I’m confused – I don’t mean the Kong from Donkey Kong, but the one from the very-close-to-but-not-a-copy arcade game Crazy Kong. See, in the Kwik Shop in Lindsborg, KS, in the mid-80s (yeah, I’m old, so what?) they had the Crazy, but not the Donkey. And that’s what I played and where I grew to have a strange kind of affection for the always angry and banging his feet around simian kidnapper. You might think I’d like Jumpman better, since he was my representation in the game, but nope, I liked the ape, even as he threw barrels at me. Partially this was due to Crazy Kong being slightly tighter in its gameplay, which meant that Jumpman always seemed to be letting me down. But really, a lot of it is just that I like apes. Fun fact: Crazy Kong was also called Monkey Donkey. Which is yet another reason why it’s better than Donkey Kong.

The Flying Ostrich from Joust

This may start to seem like I have an animal obsession, but c’mon, does anyone who was around for its heyday not love Joust? I mean, outside of bad people? You’re a knight on a flying ostrich, winging it from floating rock to floating rock while facing off against Bounder, Hunter, and Shadow Lord evil knights and wacky pterodactyls, with everything happening over a bubbling lake of lava. And when you defeat those evil knights they turn into eggs you can scoop up for points. The whole premise is genius. Genius. Why they don’t make games like this in the modern era (and I don’t mean imitations, but with the same twisted logic and imagination) is beyond me. Anyway, ever since I played the game way back when I’ve wanted a flying ostrich. And still do today.

Toad from Mario Kart

I played a lot of Mario Kart at one time, mostly on DS and Wii and mostly with my nephews who were too young to drive and still could defeat me soundly in Kart, which is the best driving game of all time (feel free to disagree — you’re wrong). You might guess that my continual losing in this way would be frustrating, but it wasn’t, for one reason only: Toad. As far as I can tell, Toad’s a diminutive nose-less being wearing a diaper, a vest lifted from the genie in Aladdin, some really cozy brown slippers, and of course a giant red and white mushroom headpiece that’s nearly as big as his body. Toad is perhaps the smile-iest video game character ever. Toad is always smiling, and his smile is contagious like a happy strain of bubonic plague. If you play as Toad, you realize that losing isn’t a big deal, and that what really matters is smiling. And mushrooms.

Dr. Strange from Marvel vs. Capcom

If you don’t know about Dr. Stephen Strange, he’s the sorcerer supreme of our dimension (and if anyone says different, that’s because they’ve been confused by poorly written and lame recent Marvel comics). You can learn more about his origin story, which is without a doubt the finest origin story ever, on a site run by an enigmatic genial guy named Neilalien, where you’ll also find out which Dr. Strange comics you should own. But mostly, know this: Dr. Strange is cool. From his wildly colorful threads (including his famous Cloak of Levitation, which inspired my own cloak wearing), to his always-on-target mustache, to his ability to make the most magical of hand gestures, to his effervescent attitude in the face of many-armed baddies from other planes that would make you and I faint instantly, the Doc operates on a plane of daily existence most of us can’t even dream about. That’s right – our dreams can’t even reach his level. Oh, and his manservant Wong also kicks ass while wearing pajamas, and his usual ladyfriend-from-another-dimension, Clea, is hot.

Cupid from Venice

Earlier, at the beginning of this post, I said I would leave off most PopCap characters. Here is where I break the rules. But it isn’t out of self-interest, instead, out of self-preservation. Cupid, the cupid from the awesomely Italian city-saving game Venice, seems all cuddly and helpful during the game. But if you look into his eyes, you’ll soon begin to understand that behind the little wings and smiles he’s a fierce, deadly, unearthly being. And I certainly didn’t want him after me. So, when he asked to be in this post, there was nothing I could do. Nothing. I mean, just look into his eyes:

Look into his eyes:

Look into his eyes!

And now play Venice – he wants you to.

You can call it jumping on the bandwagon if you like, because that’s pretty much what we’ve done here, but we have now launched a channel on Twitch TV, which has become the de facto Internet standard for livestreaming in the gaming world. We’re thrilled to join Twitch, and are working now on programming ideas (so please let us know what you’d like to see!). In the meantime, as pretty much just a “test,” I recorded myself playing the first few levels of Insaniquarium, with commentary, just to make sure it all works, and to experiment with the idea of doing video versions of my periodic “From the PopCap Vault” blog pieces, in which I go through our back catalog to talk about old games. Dumb idea? Fun idea? Get a real job? Let me know what you think. Oh, and buy Insaniquarium! One of our best games ever!

Watch live video from PopCap on Twitch

Zombie from Plants vs. Zombies

Zombie already say Zombie not make resolutions but Zombie editor getting all fussy so Zombie going to make exception just this one time. ‘K, you know how Plants vs. Zombies 2 is coming out in 2013? You know that right? How does you not know that. Oh, wait. Now you know that. Okay, anyways, where was Zombie… Oh, right. In 2013 Plants vs. Zombies 2 is coming out and Zombie resolve to win this time. You has been warned.

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Lex from Bookworm

I will endeavor to further assay lexicological phenomena in my continual undertaking to expand my already Brobdingnagian personal word-hoard. In this, I am resolute.

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The Frog from Zuma

My resolution is to keep my cool when in Hot Frog mode. Seriously, no more panicking and wasting those shots when I could be clearing the curve for major points!

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Tula from Peggle

I will give more blooming flowers and magical flowering rainbows of budding extremeness to the world. And get more shimmer lip gloss. And some really good eye drops. And eat a few bear claws now and again.

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Buckethead Gnome from Hammer Heads

I resolve to get out of my hole with my bucket intact, and to remember not to remove my bucket so often (as it leads to headaches). Also, I plan to begin and chair the “Jeff Green for Gnome President” committee, as he really seems to want to take the battle for gnome rights to the people of the world.

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Walter the Penguin from Insaniquarium

2013 is the year I will overcome my pugilistic nature.*

*Totally not. But I was asked to like, set a better example and stuff. Come on, I’m a penguin! I have wings but can’t fly, and everyone thinks I’m sooo cute and cuddly. Plus, my name is Walter, and every time I’m introduced to someone new, their eyes light up, and they yell, “Waaalllt!” and then look at me eagerly for approval. Yeah, I’ve seen Lost, the kid had the same name, I get it. Tell me you wouldn’t wanna punch someone from time to time. Except, um, don’t.  Because it’s only funny when penguins do it. And kangaroos. And Malcolm Reynolds.

Yes, after a long and grueling campaign season, it is finally down to this. Three candidates, one office — and your vote. Because we know that you’re busy and may not have followed the campaign until now, or, like us, even been aware that it existed, we have asked the candidates to make one final statement before you cast your vote today. And no, we don’t know what they’re running for either. Just vote anyway and don’t ask so many questions.

The candidates’ official statements:

Stinky — Insaniquarium

To say that I was humbled by this nomination would be only slightly inaccurate, because the truth is, you don’t get any humbler than being a snail. In Charlotte’s Web, humble was defined as “low to the ground,” and, well… hello! I am stunned, truly, to learn that I am a candidate for this highest of honors.

I don’t have any campaign promises for you, but that’s all right, because you know what I’m about. I’m here to help — tend your gardens, grow your piggy banks in your absence, clean up after your pets and plants. It’s my pleasure to do it; every snail needs purpose, and my role in life has been endlessly rewarding. I would do it all without receiving anything in return, and yet you’ve been kind enough to give me chocolate! The food of kings… and of much larger mollusks.

It’s anybody’s guess whether slow and steady will win this race, but I’m happy just to be considered. If you need me, I’ll be picking up shiny objects or napping behind flowerpots. There’s work to be done, and I’m the snail to do it. I’ll just leave you with my motto:

Ask not what your fish tank can do for you, but what you can do for your fish tank!

Gondola — Venice

Gliding shoreline or sailing on the sea: we all are truth and self-evidence. I have wandered far, I have seen much. My knowledge is vast, yet my celebrity is small. I ask for your vote not for my own gain, but for yours.

Time and again, as the grand city of Venice plunged underwater, I rose up and carried it. When times are bleak and waves of fear wash over our great lands, I am buoyant. I will carry you to safety.

You have come today to make a choice. Do not take it lightly. Do not waiver like a ship lost at sea. Vote for Gondola and all your dreams come true. Shout out to Bowling Green and my peeps Freddie and Frieda. Go Falcons!

Stumpy — Hammer Heads

Friends, you will read a lot about the hardships and humble beginnings of my fellow candidates here on Election Day. And let me be the first to say that they are both fine leaders, as well as personal friends of mine. And in any other year might make fine choices. But this year, today, it is about finding the candidate who truly understands you, who’s experienced the kind of hard knocks in life that you, the people, face day after day. And I ask you, has anyone experienced harder knocks in life than the gnome standing before you today? For I am not talking about metaphorical knocks, my friends. My entire professional career has been devoted to one task and one task only: Getting knocked on the head with a hammer. When not getting knocked on the head, I sit in a hole underground, waiting only to emerge, simply to be hit again. This, my friends, is the meaning of sacrifice. I do this not because I enjoy it — though make no mistake, I do love my work and give thanks every day for the opportunity I’ve been given — but because the people demand it. The people need it. And should I win this election, I promise to give the same kind of devotion that I give to getting hit on the head with a hammer.

You have three great choices before you today. I only ask you to vote with your head. And remember that I have given you mine.

Insaniquarium
If it’s remembered for nothing else, Insaniquarium (how great a name is that?), first made in 2002, will be known as the game that dared ask the question: What would happen if aliens invaded your fish tank? It may also be the game that, in retrospect, paved the way for Plants vs. Zombies, as this was the game designed by George Fan (then of Flying Bear Entertainment) before he went on to make PvZ.

As in PvZ, Insaniquarium starts off deceptively easy. It’s just a couple of fish in a bowl, and all you have to do is feed them. It seems so easy at first that it hardly feels like a game. But things ramp up soon enough, as, um, aliens begin to periodically burst through some kind of extra-dimensional portal into your fish tank and proceed to eat your fish. Based on decades of science fiction, you might think that aliens might aim a little higher, in terms of galactic conquest, than eating a bunch of guppies, but, no matter. These are apparently tiny aliens without much ambition. All you know is, if you don’t want to see the Game Over screen, you need to kill the aliens and protect the fish. Once your last fish has been eaten, you’re done.

Insaniquarium starts easily enough. But just you wait.

So here’s where the game gets interesting: As you keep the fish alive, they begin to drop coins. You need to collect the coins to buy fish food and a host of upgrades, including weapons, other creatures, and various other power-ups to stave off the aliens, as well as to purchase the three egg pieces you need to complete the level. Beating a level unlocks yet another new aquatic creature with all new powers (just like the plants in PvZ) which you can then use in subsequent levels. And, again as in PvZ, you’re only allowed to bring in a certain number of creatures each level, so you must pick and choose wisely before starting a level. By the time you get to the game’s final levels, what at first felt like a rather mellow little aquarium simulation has now become a full-on, frantic, super-challenging game of time and resource management, in which you are constantly trying to balance the feeding of fish, collecting of coins, and killing of aliens, with a million things happening all at once on screen. It is gloriously frenetic.

It doesn't take long in each level before things start getting crazy.

What’s most interesting about Insaniquarium, looking back on it nine years later, and in light of current game design, including our own, is how much it forces players to experiment and discover on their own, rather than having everything spelled out. New upgrades will appear in a level with zero explanation of what they do or why you should use them — it’s up to you to buy them and figure it out. Nor does the game explicitly spell out how to kill each new alien type as it appears. In those “old days,” even casual games demanded a bit more “work” and thinking by the player, but the satisfaction of figuring it out, of course, only adds to the sense of reward when you beat it.

As in Plants vs. Zombies, you earn new, cooler items as you go along. But you can only bring a few into each level, so choosing which to take is key to the game's strategy.

If you’re a Plants vs. Zombies fan and have been anxiously awaiting whatever comes next from us for that franchise, give Insaniquarium a shot. We actually still sell the game for PC (not Mac, sadly!), and you can play for free on the Web, too!

And if you’re an old fan of this game and want to chat about it with us, or ask us questions, or even learn about the game’s fun Easter Eggs, come join us in the discussion on the game over at our new PopCap Forums right here!