I must have missed the first Fishin' Fun Flash game, probably when I was playing Animal Crossing and doing some fishing of my own.

Fishin' Fun 2 is an action arcade game in which the player catches fish in a sequence, and against the clock, to gain points and move onto the next level.

At the start of each level, the sequence of fish you must catch appears in the top left corner of the game window. The object is to catch the same sequence of fish in that exact order. If you catch one out of sequence, you must start the sequence again.

Control is by moving the mouse only. Left and right moves the poll in the respective direction, while up and down raises or lowers the magnet bait. Touch the magnet to a fish to 'hook' it, and then slowly raise the fish into the boat.

Several things can thwart your successful catch. If you reel in a fish to quickly, or jerk the line suddenly, you are sure to lose the fish. This can be helpful to know if you inadvertently hook the wrong fish. Also, if another fish passes by and comes too close to the fish you are reeling in, your fish will get away. Also watch out for the nasty crab and swordfish, both of which will cut your line and lose your magnet. You get only three (3) magnets per game.

The gameplay is nicely balanced between the selective catching element and a timer that forces level completion. Although each successive level increases in difficulty, the curve is not a very steep one. The player is given ample time to complete each level's sequence, thereby capturing the essence of fishing with a laid-back charm reflected in the game.

Olli (nGFX) and the talented folks at Q-Affairs in Deutschland (that's Germany for you Americans) have created this gorgeous affair for German fashion and apparel company, Gardeur. This is no ordinary clothing company. Surf their site and not only will you find Flash games, you will also find permanently grease-resistant trousers with nanotechnology, and Gardeur denims with active anti-cellulite formula. I'm not kidding.

And this is no ordinary Flash game. The artwork is some of the most eye-catching and appealing graphics I've seen in a casual game. According to nGFX, some of the characters where rendered in Cinema4d with textures painted in photoshop; some were made in 3ds Max; while others were first rendered in 3D, printed out, traced, scanned and colorized (the Ball fish).

Everything about this game screams polish from the artwork to the interface, the sound design to the gameplay. Having never played the first Fishin' Fun, I have nothing to compare the sequel to. However, the second in the series stands on its own merits and offers boat loads of fun for everyone, and oceans of eye-candy to boot. Click.

Note: Firefox seems to have trouble with this game, as the animation becomes choppy when using the browser. Safari has no trouble with it, for those on Macs.

Update: It looks like Gardeur has either moved the game around again, or has taken the game offline. I'll try to track it down. In the meantime, I've removed it from the recommended section.