New from Halfbrick Studios, creator of Fruit Ninja and Jetpack Joyride, comes Fish Out of Water!, an arcade game that's one part fish tossing, and, well, another part fish tossing, too! Pick up a scaly friend and give 'em a throw, sending each one across the ocean to see how far you can go. Get an impressive distance score and skip off the surface of the water as many times as you can and you might just impress the crabby judges at the end. Seriously, the judges are crabs.

Swimming near the shore are your collection of fish (and a couple of mammals). Tap and drag one out of the water, then swipe your finger across the screen to throw. While airborne you can unleash a temporary boost to move a little faster, but inevitably you'll come back down to the sea, skipping across the surface before ending your run. Each fish behaves differently in the air and on the water, so depending on your current mission (and weather conditions) you'll need to pick the right fish for the job. After three throws you'll be scored by a panel of distinguished crab judges, each with his or her own criteria. Skippy Steve, for example, is most impressed by a high number of skips.

Fish Out of Water! utilizes a very simple leveling and power-up system that's focused on completing simple missions and gathering and combining gems to create charms. It's as simple as tapping two different crystals and checking out the results, and the power-ups do basic things like add to your score or influence how a judge will rank you. Not much to it, but it adds a little incentive to keep throwing fish until the wee hours of the morning.

Unfortunately, Fish Out of Water! doesn't impress nearly as much as Halfbrick's previous offerings. The graphics are cute and the gameplay is easy to pick up, but it's missing that hook that grabs you and keeps you coming back for more. Still, it's an entertaining game worth its weight in replay value, especially when you're determined to impress that crabby crab of a judge Harwood. Grrr.