Weird Catch

What it is

Weird Catch is one of our own arcade games, a fishing game played straight down. You lower a lantern hook into a tall blue lake, dodge the junk on the way down, and collect whatever brushes the line on the way up. Three dives make a run. Ten hooks on the line, a dock that charges for junk, and a logbook that keeps every species for good.

How to play

Press Start diving. The hook sinks slowly down the screen and the depth counter climbs. Drag anywhere on the water to move the hook sideways, or, the page says, use the arrow keys on a desktop. Going down, keep clear of the junk: clip a boot or a crate and the line snags and hauls you straight back up. Touch the bottom and the hook reels in on its own, and now everything you brush sticks to the line, up to ten things. A card at the surface prices the haul: a Grumpy guppy or a Sock eel adds points, a rusty can or an old boot takes twenty off, and a line with nothing but creatures earns a bonus.

What makes it different

The risk is greed, not death. Nothing in the lake can wipe out a run, the page says, so every decision is about slots: a can takes a hook a fish could have used. The valuable creatures live deep, so a clean descent pays twice. The creatures are invented, from the Grumpy guppy in the shallows down to stranger things, and the logbook counts how many of the eighteen you have landed.

Why it is on Bored

A run of three dives takes a few minutes and ends in a number, which is the right size for a break. Not knowing what is on the line is the old fishing-game hook, and the dock that charges for every boot is the twist.

Tips

• Steer around every can on the way down, a snag hauls you straight back up
• Ten hooks fill fast, so skip the junk on the way up and save slots for creatures
• A clean line is worth sixty on its own, so sometimes skip that last crate
• Open the Logbook between dives to see how many of the eighteen you have landed

FAQ