Fish Tales

Williams, 1992 — shot-by-shot rules and strategy guide.

Open Fish Tales in the Pinball Genie app →

Fish Tales has a reputation as an easy game and it is not entirely deserved. The ramps are friendly and the layout is open, but the two shots that decide your score — the Caster's Club and the captive ball — are both awkward, and everything worth having runs through one of them.

The left return lane is the most important lane on the machine

It always lights the Long Cast, the right looping shot, and its light never goes out. Your first Long Cast is worth a million and it climbs to five, but the points are not the reason to shoot it — every Long Cast lights the next unclaimed value on the captive ball, and that is where the game's best awards live. If one is about to time out, rolling the left return lane again refreshes the whole timer without dropping your current value. If Long Cast is dark, shooting the right loop anyway just turns it back on.

The captive ball sits inside an inclined boat, so a soft hit moves it without registering — only a hit hard enough to reach the top switch counts. The ladder runs Hold Bonus at one million, Video Mode at two, Rock the Boat at three, Light Extra Ball at five and Instant Multiball at ten. You can light every value before collecting any, but each hit takes only one award. Every registered hit also pays Grab Yer Gear — a million times the highest award still lit, or 500,000 when nothing is. Finish the ladder and the captive ball pays five million a hit, rising 500,000 to a ten-million ceiling.

Monster Fish, and playing the parity

Six lit ramp shots light the school of fish under the boat and turn the spinner into a hurry-up. The ramps themselves pay 500,000 rising to three million, so lighting a Monster Fish has already banked 10.5 million before you shoot the spinner. The hurry-up starts at twenty million and drops 100,000 every tenth of a second down to a five-million floor, then gives you five more seconds at that floor.

Always collect it, even at the floor. Miss it and the value sits where it stopped; take it at any price and the next is worth ten million more, up to a fifty-million ceiling. The habit that separates good scores from great ones is counting where you are in the school so the sixth ramp comes off the left flipper. Shooting the last fish from the right means the ball has to transfer across before you can reach the spinner, and every tenth of a second costs you 100,000.

The timed modes

• Stretch the Truth — completing a Stringer lights the spinner for ten to fifteen seconds. It scores one tale per Stringer you hold, each fish worth up to five million. Every L-I-E you spell darkens the lowest spinner value until only the 5x survives.
• Rock the Boat — twenty seconds from the captive ball, thirty from four tales. Every boat shot is ten million, and there are three: both ramps and the captive ball. Live on the ramps; backhanding one repeatedly grooves faster than alternating.
• Feeding Frenzy — four purple fish on a rolling fifteen-second clock, worth 5M, 5M, 5M and then 20M. Take the Long Cast and spinner fish first, and hold the ramp fish back to buy another fifteen seconds.
• Video Mode — twenty torpedoes, twenty seconds, boats at three distances. Shoot the far row: it pays 1.5 million each and the extra ball only appears on the back line. The flipper buttons fire torpedoes better than the rod button, and the game never says so.

The U-turn is a real shot

A ramp attempt that runs out of steam and comes back down the other side pays a million, counts as a boat shot for Rock the Boat, and collects both ramp fish at once during Feeding Frenzy, because only the boat ramp sensor is needed. Stop treating weak ramps as failures.

Multiball is two shots repeated

Caster's Club to light a jackpot, eject hole within fifteen seconds to score it. Jackpots run twenty, thirty and forty million, and the tackle box shows which is next. With all three balls alive the Caster's Club flashes for Doubles Jackpot — a second ball doubles the value and restarts the clock, but time out and both balls come flying back with nothing scored.

Take all three jackpots and the captive ball lights for a hundred million per hit, repeatedly, until multiball ends. You do not need all three in one multiball; the machine remembers where you are for the whole game. Better still, every completed sequence multiplies all the jackpots — including the captive ball — and the multiplier climbs as far as six.

Two habits worth building

First, do not waste an Instant Multiball. Cashing it during multiball throws it away, and with two balls locked you should always start regular multiball first, because Instant Multiball leaves you with no locks afterwards. Second, do not force the Stringer targets — they are frequent drain shots, and unless you are one fish from Feeding Frenzy the ball will find them on its own. Autocast, the ball save, is quick enough to return a ball before it has finished draining, and a death save on the one you lost leaves you with a small multiball.

How Fish Tales plays

Spin a bigger fishing yarn than the last guy on Williams' bass-boat table: keep the right-loop Long Cast lit, climb the captive-ball ladder, and stretch the truth for a fat bonus. The marquee payoff is a hundred-million Super Jackpot hammered over and over during multiball.

The loop

1. Roll the left return lane to light the right loop, then take the Long Cast for a value that climbs from a million toward five and lights the next captive-ball award.
2. Bang the captive ball hard enough to trip its top switch and cash the lit rung -- Hold Bonus, Video Mode, Rock the Boat, Extra Ball, then Instant Multiball.
3. Spell L-I-E across the top lanes to push the bonus multiplier and relight the Fish Finder at the eject hole.
4. Light three jackpots at the Caster's Club, then finish the ladder and pound the lit captive ball for the Super Jackpot.

Reading the lights

• Long Cast Loop (shot arrows) — lit: The right loop lights for a Long Cast whenever you roll the left return lane -- and that return-lane lamp itself never goes dark -- but the loop only holds its lit value for ten to fifteen seconds before it fades. · then: Take the loop before it times out for a value that grows from one million toward five and lights the next unclaimed award on the captive ball. Re-roll the left return lane as the timer runs low to refresh it and keep the value you already built.
• Captive Ball Ladder (ladder) — lit: Every Long Cast lights the lowest award not yet showing on the boat's captive ball, a lit rung waits until you cash it, and you may leave all five glowing before collecting any of them. · then: Strike it firmly, because only a blow that trips the top switch scores -- a soft shove shifts the ball for nothing -- and each solid hit banks a single award, so plan the order: Hold Bonus, Video Mode, Rock the Boat, Extra Ball, Instant Multiball. Finish the whole set and the captive ball itself is worth five million a hit, rising to a ten-million ceiling.
• L-I-E Top Lanes (lanes) — lit: A lit L, I, or E rollover at the top is a letter you still need, and a duplicate never has to be wasted because the trio can be shifted to meet the ball. · then: Complete L-I-E to step the end-of-ball bonus multiplier toward seven, after which each spelling is worth five million climbing to twenty, and to relight the eject-hole Fish Finder. Learn which lane your jets feed the ball into most and leave that one dark so the word closes fast. · control: Either flipper button: either flipper tap walks the lit top rollovers sideways, letting you drop the letter you are missing under whichever lane the ball is diving into (as the ball spills down out of the jet bumpers toward the lanes)
• Stringer Fish (status) — lit: Only one side target is live at a time, three hits on the lit one finishes its three-part fish and lights a Stringer under the boat, and a finished fish stays banked to pay 250K at the end of every remaining ball. · then: Each finished fish also lights the spinner briefly for Stretch the Truth, where every earlier Stringer pays a tale worth anywhere up to five million. Bank all four Stringers to start Feeding Frenzy -- four purple fish on a rolling clock worth up to thirty-five million for the set.
• Ramp School (shot arrows) — lit: Both ramps are lit at the start of the game, each lit ramp shot drops one fish into the six-fish school beneath the boat, and a spent ramp relights off the right ramp or the right return lane. · then: Fill the school of six to turn the spinner into a Monster Fish hurry-up that opens near twenty million and climbs ten million higher each time you cash one. Keep the last ramp on the left flipper so you can reach the spinner before the falling value bleeds away.
• Fish Finder Scoop (mode) — lit: The right return lane arms the eject-hole Fish Finder for a stretch of fifteen to twenty seconds, and the lane glows that way from the opening ball. · then: Reach the hole in time for a random gift -- Super Jets, Instant Multiball, one to five million, a spare captive-ball value, a bump to your bonus multiplier, or Light Extra Ball -- and the machine is generous enough that repeat trips eventually cough up the extra ball. Spelling L-I-E is the only way to relight it.
• Jackpot Shots (shot arrows) — lit: During multiball the Caster's Club lights for a jackpot while its drop target sits down; a target stuck standing makes jackpots nearly impossible and means the machine needs attention. · then: Light the jackpot at the Caster's Club, then collect it at the eject hole inside about fifteen seconds, working the three values up through twenty, thirty and forty million. Bank all three and the captive ball lights for the Super Jackpot.

Lane change: the flipper buttons move the lit lane. Tap either flipper button to walk the three lit top rollovers sideways as the ball tumbles out of the jets, sliding the letter you still need under the lane it is taking so no duplicate is collected. Closing L-I-E steps the bonus multiplier toward 7x -- then pays five million rising to twenty per spelling -- and relights the Fish Finder at the eject hole.

Start scoring

• Ball one — Light the Long Cast off the left return lane and start climbing the captive-ball ladder a rung at a time. Spell L-I-E early for a bonus multiplier that is worth far more than the bonus itself. — Long Cast, The Captive Ball Ladder, Spell L-I-E
• Building — Finish the side Stringers into Feeding Frenzy, light the six-ramp school for a Monster Fish hurry-up, and take Rock the Boat's ten-million boat shots on the safer ramps. Visit the Fish Finder whenever it is lit, because it eventually hands over the extra ball. — Catch The Stringers, Feeding Frenzy, Monster Fish, Rock the Boat, Fish Finder
• The big one — Finish the captive-ball ladder through Instant Multiball, bank all three Caster's Club jackpots, then hammer the lit captive ball for a hundred million a hit -- the Super Jackpot, which multiplies up to six times on later sequences. Keep hitting the captive ball after the ladder is done and both outlanes light the special for the rest of the game. — Super Jackpot, Multiball Jackpots, Light The Special

The Rod Button on Fish Tales

On top of the fishing-rod handle where the plunger would normally be.

Fish Tales trades the spring plunger for a little fishing rod, and the button on top of the handle is what launches the ball. It keeps a job after that too: it is the fire control in video mode, which is the only place it matters once a ball is in play.

• Starting any ball: One press sends the ball. Nothing to pull back and no plunge strength to judge, so there is no skill in it.
• Torpedo video mode: Each press fires a torpedo at the passing boats. Twenty torpedoes, twenty seconds.
• You want the extra ball in video mode: Ignore the rod and fire with the flipper buttons instead. They aim better and the game never tells you they work.
• A skeleton fish drifts past the background: Hammer the button about ten times for a joke award worth 10 points and a very good animation.

Goals in Fish Tales

Every goal below is tracked step-by-step, with shot paths drawn on the playfield map, inside the app.

• Long Cast combo · Medium

  The right loop, relit every time you roll the left return lane — that lane's lamp never goes out, but the Long Cast itself only stays lit for ten to fifteen seconds. Your first one pays a million and it climbs to five, and every Long Cast lights the next unclaimed value on the captive ball. This is the engine that drives everything else.

  Reward: 1M rising to 5M, plus one captive ball value

• The Captive Ball Ladder progression · Medium

  Five awards stacked on the captive ball, lit from below by Long Casts. You can light every one before collecting any of them, but a hit only ever takes one award, so plan the order.

  Reward: Hold Bonus 1M, Video Mode 2M, Rock the Boat 3M, Light Extra Ball 5M, Instant Multiball 10M

• Spell L-I-E multiplier · Easy

  Three top lanes that push the bonus multiplier to seven. Past 7x each completed LIE is worth 5M, then 10M, 15M and 20M from then on. Spelling it also relights the Fish Finder.

  Reward: Bonus multiplier to 7x, then 5M-20M per LIE

• Catch The Stringers progression · Medium

  Two side targets, each with a three-part fish in front of it. Three hits completes a fish and lights one of four Stringers under the boat. Four Stringers starts Feeding Frenzy, and each fish is worth 250K at the end of every ball for the rest of the game.

  Reward: 250K per fish at end of ball; four Stringers starts Feeding Frenzy

• Stretch the Truth mode · Medium

  Every completed Stringer lights the spinner briefly. Getting it scores one tale for each Stringer you already have, with each fish worth anywhere from nothing to five million. Four tales starts a thirty-second Rock the Boat.

  Reward: 0-5M per fish, and Rock the Boat at four tales

• Rock the Boat mode · Medium

  Twenty seconds from the captive ball award, thirty from four tales, and every boat shot pays ten million. Three shots qualify — both ramps and the captive ball — and a U-turn counts as well.

  Reward: 10M per boat shot

• Feeding Frenzy mode · Hard

  Four purple fish and a rolling fifteen-second clock. Each fish you catch buys another fifteen seconds for the next, and the fourth is worth twenty million on its own — thirty-five million if you clear the set.

  Reward: 5M, 5M, 5M then 20M — 35M for all four

• Monster Fish mode · Hard

  Six lit ramp shots light the school of fish under the boat and turn the spinner into a hurry-up. It starts at twenty million falling fast to a five million floor, and every one you land pushes the next ten million higher — up to fifty.

  Reward: Up to 20M the first time, growing to a 50M ceiling

• Play The Parity strategy · Hard

  The best-scoring habit on this machine. Count where you are in the school of six and make sure the last ramp comes off the left flipper, filling the gaps with shots from the opposite side.

  Reward: Faster Monster Fish collections at higher value

• Fish Finder mode · Easy

  The right return lane lights the eject hole for fifteen to twenty seconds and pays a random award. The machine is unusually fair about it — keep hitting it and it will eventually hand you the extra ball no matter how well you are doing.

  Reward: Random award including Instant Multiball, Super Jets or 1-5M

• Video Mode mode · Medium

  The second captive ball award. Twenty torpedoes, twenty seconds, and boats crossing at three distances. Always shoot the far row: it pays best and the extra ball only ever comes out on the back line.

  Reward: 500K to 1.5M per ship, 10M at 15-19 hits, 20M for a perfect 20

• Multiball Jackpots multiball · Hard

  Everything in multiball is the same two-shot pattern: Caster's Club to light, eject hole inside fifteen seconds to score. Jackpots run twenty, thirty then forty million, and the tackle box shows which one you are on.

  Reward: 20M, 30M, 40M

• Doubles Jackpot multiball · Hard

  With three balls in play the Caster's Club flashes for a doubled jackpot. Feeding it a second ball doubles the value and restarts the fifteen seconds — but if the clock runs out both balls come back at you and you start over.

  Reward: Double the current jackpot

• Super Jackpot wizard · Hard

  Take all three jackpots and the captive ball lights for a hundred million a hit, over and over, until multiball ends. Then it gets better: every completed sequence multiplies all the jackpots, and it climbs as far as six times.

  Reward: 100M per captive ball hit, multiplied up to 6x on later sequences

• Fast Cast combo · Hard

  Hit the Caster's Club immediately after a Long Cast or a ball launch and you score a Fast Cast. It starts at two million and grows a million each time, up to a ten million cap.

  Reward: 2M rising to 10M

• Double Cross combo · Medium

  In multiball, get a ball up each ramp before the first one reaches its return lane and the machine pays five million for the pair. Easy to stumble into and easy to repeat once you know it exists.

  Reward: 5M

• The U-Turn combo · Easy

  A ramp shot that runs out of steam and comes back down the other side is worth a million, and the machine treats it as a real shot. It counts for Rock the Boat, and it collects both boat fish at once during Feeding Frenzy.

  Reward: 1M, and it counts as a boat shot

• Autocast strategy · Easy

  The ball save, and it is quick — the machine will feed you the next ball before the one you lost has finished draining. It is also briefly active on a ball fed from the reel in a multiplayer game even when the light is off.

  Reward: Ball returned, and a mini-multiball on a death save

• The Extra Ball strategy · Hard

  Two routes to light it — the Fish Finder or the fourth captive ball award — and then the hardest part starts, because the target itself sits in the shadow of the boat.

  Reward: Extra ball

• Light The Special secret · Hard

  Finish the whole captive ball ladder through Instant Multiball, then keep hitting the captive ball — usually four more times. Both outlanes light for special and stay lit the rest of the game. The catch is that it has to happen on that same ball.

  Reward: Special on both outlanes for the rest of the game

• Build The Bonus strategy · Medium

  Bonus caps at three million for a ball, but a 7x multiplier turns that into twenty-one million, and fish and tales are added on top of the multiplied figure rather than inside it.

  Reward: Up to 21M plus 250K per fish and 500K per tale

• What Not To Do In Multiball strategy · Medium

  Two habits cost more points on this machine than any missed shot: wasting an Instant Multiball, and forgetting that everything else keeps running while the balls are out.

  Reward: Cleaner multiballs and better ramp value