Pretty Fly for a Pink Guy

They say that the life of a Quiggle is the best one can have (I’m not quite sure who ‘they’ are, but it would be quite rude to disagree!). Peaceful ponds, soothing scenery, and all the time you could ever want to kick back and think of new alliterations. Now, imagine yourself as a Quiggle. What would be the most difficult part of the day?

Catching lunch, of course! However, with the help of this article, it is our hope that Quiggles will never go hungry! (DISCLAIMER: We sincerely apologize to the insect community.)

We realize that a majority of Neopians may have other morsels in mind when thinking of the phrase ’fast food,’ but before you let apathy get the better of you, let us show you why this information may be helpful to you, by introducing a game called Flycatcher!

Flycatcher is a game that allows you to keep the Quiggle population full and happy. If that is not enough incentive, it also allows you to earn a nice trophy if you take the time to practice and build up your skill-level. The overall purpose of Flycatcher is to catch the flies (we assume you knew this, but felt it was necessary to add) and bees, and avoid getting stung by, well, anything that decides to try and sting you.

So how do we start playing Flycatcher? Well, when you first load the game, most people jump right in and catch those flies. But hold on there, Slick! (We can call you Slick, right?) The first thing we suggest is listening to the music. Really listen to it. Are you listening? Good. If the music has not negatively affected you yet, the following information can be disregarded. If it has, we suggest you turn it off. It can get a bit repetitive and annoying if you play a few games. The sound effects can stay, but they likely won’t bother you, nor help you, so it is entirely up to your preference.

Now, let’s jump into the game. As the game starts in the beginning, you might want to try typing ”deliciousflies”. Reminding the Quiggle of how delicious the flies are allows him to gain another life. We aren’t quite sure why, but you should never question a good thing. You can remind him of this at any point, but since the first level is slow, and we wouldn’t want you to forget, we suggest you do it in the beginning. After that, it’s time to start playing! The controls are simple. The left and right arrow keys will move the Quiggle, you guessed it, left and right, and pressing the space bar will stick the Quiggle’s tongue out, allowing it to catch the flies, bees, and the occasional lily. The space bar can be held down to continue firing off your tongue in repetition, but we would suggest you refrain from doing that. The Quiggle cannot move while his tongue is extended, so it can sometimes be dangerous.

Catching the flies is not an extremely challenging matter, so before you go at it, take a chance to learn how scoring works so you can optimize the points you make each level. Flies will ultimately only have 3 values; 2 points, 5 points, and 10 points. To break it down further:

• If you eat a fly in the middle of a row, you will earn 2 points.
• If you eat a fly on its own or on the end of a row (that isn’t purple), you will earn 5 points.
• If you eat a purple fly, you will earn 10 points.

This means that, by far, purple flies are worth the most. The problem is that they are only found on one end of a row, and can be somewhat challenging to hit. Luckily, more will show up if you hit one, but unless you practice quite a bit, you shouldn’t worry about only hitting purple flies.

It is, however, a good idea to aim for flies on the end of any row. These will get you a great deal of points, and will help your score tremendously. Try not to worry if you hit the middle of a row, though. While shooting in the middle of a row only gains 2 points, it does have benefits. One of those benefits would be that it will split the row where the fly was caught. Having an extra row can be beneficial, as it allows for more 'end-shots' (AKA, shots at the end of a row).

So, to quickly summarize; Shoot for the ends of rows, taking preference over the purple flies when possible. Do not fret if you miss and hit the middle of the row, because such strikes can sometimes be beneficial to you. Now, let’s move on, Slick!

The next important aspect of the game would be... umm... would be... Oh, that’s right, the bees! (We apologize for that horrible pun.) The bees are, arguably, the hardest part of the game. They come down the screen every ten seconds during the game, giving you two options. Those options would be to avoid or to catch. You should always try to catch the bees if you can, because they are worth 20 points each. While that may not seem like much to some, they add up quickly. To give you an example, let us assume that five bees show up in any given level. That would be an extra 100 points, if you managed to catch them all. Since there are only ten levels, if you manage an extra 100 points per stage, that would increase your final score by 1,000 points! Needless to say, that’s a good thing. Catching bees can be a tricky matter, though, as they tend to jump around quite a bit. The best bit of advice is to take note of their movement patterns, and practice. Eventually, you’ll be a master at taming those bees (or eating them, whichever you prefer).

Last but not least, it is time to mention the lilies. There isn’t much to say about them, except that if they are fully eaten (which takes five licks), they will give you 1 extra point. It may not seem like much, but it can add up. They can also get in the way of your delicious flies, so if you cannot find an opening, the best thing to do is break through one of the lilies blocking your path.

Now that we understand the basic aspects of the game, all that’s left is putting it into practice. Your priority should be bees. If a bee is on the screen, you should focus on it, see if it is possible to catch, and go for it. While you are waiting for more to arrive, you should be snacking on flies. When there is only one fly left, however, you should use your time to eat lilies while waiting for more bees to show up. Eating the last fly will end the stage, and of course, we want to maximize the amount of bees we see, so it is never a good idea to end a stage prematurely. Additionally, eating lilies will help your score slightly. Yes, we know it is only 1 point, but it is better than sitting there and getting no points at all! Eventually, the remaining fly will close in on you. When it is hovering right above the Quiggle’s head, it should be eaten immediately, as that is the last line of defense! Repeat this process for every stage until you reach level 10, and try your best not to lose any lives in the process.

Now that we’re at level 10, it is time to mention a nifty strategy that will help in getting a high score. Play through the level, and once you’ve gotten all the flies, bees, and lilies you can, die on purpose. This will start the level over, but it will keep all of the points you have earned in that level. Repeating this strategy with all of your lives will increase your score drastically. Finally, when you are on your last life, beat the game. Finishing the game will give you an additional 100 points, which, again, is definitely helpful.

Take note of all the excess points you can achieve in the game, because they are the key to getting a high score, and potentially a trophy score!

Since Flycatcher is not an avatar game, it seems to be less popular than other games. This is good news for anyone trying for a trophy. It’s fairly easy to get a score high enough for a trophy at any time of the month! Don’t be frustrated if you don’t get the hang of it right away, practice is the key to success. It may take some work, but using the tips and strategies provided above, sooner or later you’ll beat the game with FLYING colors!