Neil Randall in 'Canadian Business': Turning Investing into a Video Game

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Director of The Games Institute, Neil Randall, has been featured in a recent article published by Canadian Business entitled "Should we really be turning investing into a video game?" by Bryan Borzykowski.

The article discusses the work being done by Fidelity Labs on a game that represents the stock market as an ever-changing city through the use of Oculus Rift technologies. The height of the buildings, traffic in the streets, and even weather conditions in StockCity all represent a different aspect of stock market activity.

Using gamification of the stock market in this way will eventually allow people to compare their portfolios with their peers, provide in-game rewards, and open up the possibility for real-world trading to be allowed within the game itself.

According to Neil Randall this type of game may allow people to better understand the investing world. Simulation games have been used as effective education tools as they allow individuals to "learn all sorts of things in a risk-free way".

The program being made by the individuals at Fidelity is not yet available to the general public, but examples such as this show the practical and educational implications of gamification.