Foto Fish Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components
• Setup
• Goal of the Game
• Playing the Game
  • 1. Roll
  • 2. Shoot
  • 3. Tally
• End of the Game
• Difficulty Levels

Components

• 4 double-sided aquariums
• 4 fish, each divided into parts, in different colours: 12 large fish parts and 36 small fish parts
• 2 dice
• 8 cameras (4 large and 4 small)
• rulebook

Setup

Take the aquariums out of the box. Each aquarium has two sides: green (simpler, for beginners and young players) and blue (more difficult, for advanced players). The players decide together which side of the aquarium to use. Each player takes one aquarium and places it in front of them.

Now the players must make one more choice: playing with the small camera is simpler, while the large camera makes the game more difficult. Each player takes a camera of the size chosen by everyone and places it on their aquarium. Each player also chooses a head and a tail of a fish of one colour and places them above their aquarium. Return any extra heads and tails to the box.

Divide the remaining fish parts into two stacks by size and place them in the centre of the table together with the two dice.

Goal of the Game

The goal of the game is to be the first to assemble a fish longer than your aquarium.

Playing the Game

The oldest player rolls the dice and starts the first round.

Before each game, the setup is carried out. All players place their aquarium on the table in front of them and place their camera over any area of their aquarium of their choice.

The game is played over several rounds. Each round is divided into 3 phases:

1. Roll
2. Shoot
3. Tally

1. Roll

When everyone is ready, the first player rolls both dice.

2. Shoot

The players' task is to find, as quickly as possible, the fish in their aquarium that match the colours shown on the dice, and photograph them with their camera.

As soon as the first player has rolled the dice, all players simultaneously begin moving the camera frame across their aquarium to find fish of the required colour.

Players must observe the following rules:

• The camera must not be placed diagonally. Inside the camera frame there must be no more and no fewer than 4 cells.
• Inside the camera frame there must be only fish of the colours rolled on the dice. Other fish must not get into the frame.
• The photograph must show only water and fish. The edge of the aquarium and the surface of the table must not be visible in the frame.
• The camera must not be lifted above the aquarium or removed from it completely.

As soon as a player finds the required frame, they must say "Click!" and stop moving the camera frame. The other players continue searching until all players have said "Click!". Then the players check the photographs they have taken. If a player broke one or more shooting rules, they must continue searching for the required frame, and the other players may help them.

3. Tally

As soon as you are sure that all players have completed the task, you may begin the tally. The player who first took the required photograph receives the larger part of the fish and attaches it to their fish. All other players receive a small part of the fish and attach it to their fish. If two players said "Click!" first, both of them receive a large part of the fish.

The player who rolled the dice passes the dice to their neighbour on the left, who becomes the first player in the new round.

Example: Masha, Petya and Lena have taken the required photographs. Masha completed the task slightly faster than Petya and Lena, so she receives the larger part of the fish. Petya and Lena each receive a small part of the fish.

End of the Game

The game ends as soon as one of the players assembles a fish longer than their aquarium, or as soon as no large fish parts remain in the supply.

The players place their fish one under another and compare their lengths. The player with the longest fish becomes the winner. In case of a tie, the players with the longest fish share the victory.

Example: at the end of the game all three participants place their fish one under another. Masha's fish is slightly longer than Petya's fish. Masha takes first place, Petya second, and Lena third.

Difficulty Levels

The difficulty of the game can be changed depending on the age and skill of the players:

1. Playing with the green side of the aquarium is slightly simpler than with the blue side. By choosing the green side for young and inexperienced players and the blue side for adults, participants of all ages can play on equal terms with each other.
2. Compared with a camera with a square frame, a camera with a rectangular frame makes the game more difficult, since it can be positioned either horizontally or vertically. Inside the frame of the large camera there must always be exactly 6 cells of the aquarium.
3. If all participants play with the same side of the aquarium (blue or green), they must pass their aquarium to the neighbour on the left after each round.
4. Children who are already familiar with counting may, during the game, count the fins on their fish. In that case the winner is not the player with the longest fish, but the player whose fish has the most fins.