This is pretty much an Aquarium you can maintain for $5. Though it does a pretty good job at it as well.
-Do not expect anything more than owning an aquarium with fish.
You do as you would in real life. Feed the fish, tap on the glass and watch their reaction, listen to calm music from composers such as Beethoven and Bach, and do something else after about 10 to 15 minutes.
Alright, now that's aside, I can now continue forward with the review.
The amount of detail they put into this WiiWare title is pretty amazing. Regardless that it's pretty much a screensaver, with even a screensaver feature in the 'various options' menu(which I do not know what exactly it does yet...) there's still plenty more interactivity than you would have with your computer screensaver. The fish are very well detailed from one end to the other, on both sides. The sheer ability to customize your take is pretty amazing also, seeing how you have from over 30 items to choose from to stick in your tank. Though keep in mind that you can only have a certain amount of decorations inside the fish tank.
Rather than having a set number of items you can use, you are pitted to the decision of what item you will use, each having their own 'weight' that increases a bar by however big the game says that the item is. Unfortunately there isn't a novelty item, such as a treasure chest or underwater signs that say "No Fishin'" or whatever, so that takes out of the little practical sense that you'd have with a real fish tank. At least you are not paying for the items you use in this game.
The customization for the fish tank itself is rather nice. You have up to six different tanks that you can set up your fish and items in if you prefer different tastes, or if you are sharing the game with someone else. You can select a background from five different backgrounds, all dealing with an underwater scenery. You can even change the lining of the bottom of the fish tank with gravel, sand, or pebbles. Though the lighting is a fairly nice feature. You can set a light to shine in your tank, and if you are running the Aquarium with your Weather Channel, the light will be affected to being brighter or dimmer, depending on what the Weather channel has to say about that. There's enough touches in this game to make this look almost exactly like an aquarium.
You will occasionally obtain fish throughout the week as you continue playing it each day. Though you don't know which fish you'll get or when you'll get a new one, you probably won't worry so much about it, since unless there is a type of fish you are crazy about that's not already in the listed fourteen, it's not that important. There are twenty different varieties of fish in this game, ranging from saltwater fish to freshwater fish. Though I've yet to see it, I've heard that depending on what type of fish you got in the tank, putting a big fish with a little fish can result in real life consequences, as the big fish would probably just eat the little one. Tapping on the glass and feeding the fish is as high as you can possibly get with interactivity with this, though what else should you be able to do?
There are special dates that you can set in the game just as a special occasion or something. On those days, the fish in the tank will to a special dance for you to cheer you up. You can also zoom in on a particular fish and just... Watch them swim around. Though the nice thing with the zooming in feature is that you can also find information about a particular fish. This will also help determine how they react to other fish in the tank, and what they eat will eat. Interesting little feature, though nothing you wouldn't use in a game like 'Endless Ocean', regardless that 'Endless Ocean' is more of a game than 'My Aquarium'. Though another nice touch about this game as with time, your fish will grow bigger as you maintain them on a regular basis. They will eventually get big enough to mate. Yes, I said it. Mate. At some point and time, the game will let you know that a certain fish has bred successfully, though unfortunately you won't be able to see the eggs or baby fish in the game until they are probably big enough to maintain the look of the cataloged fish.
The music is fairly good, especially when it fits the environment. The list is entirely composed of classical scores, ranging from peaceful piano music to familiar tunes that sound like they came from a music box, though a little more on the cheerful side. It's better suited for an aquarium than listening to something like metal or rap. Also, it's a bit disappointing that there is no MP3 feature in this as was with 'Endless Ocean'. Sound effects may be at minimal, but the sound of the bubbles is an interesting touch, though it can get rather annoying. If you prefer not to listen to the music, the bubbles, or both, then you have the ability to silence them both, or each individually.
There are several other things I haven't mentioned yet, such as the ability to send or fish tank to other friends that you have registered to your Wii Address book and some other things I cannot possibly think of at the top of my head. Just know what you are getting. If you are looking for a game and are not interested in a simulator, then you might as well not look into this, as you would not like it. If you do not mind owning a simulator, then this is one of the finest examples of a simulator. For $5, what could go wrong?
~SomeOddGuy