PHISH!

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  thumbnail

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  full map + tutorial

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  trying to fish in deep sea

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  fishing minigame

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  selling your fish to angler

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  deciding on fish state (scam or not)

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  successfully classifying fish type

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  fish index

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  gear shop

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  fishing rod shop

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  auto catchers shop

Inspiration

Cybersecurity training for kids often feels like a lecture. We wanted to flip that: make scam detection feel like a game you want to play. So we built PHISH: a cozy Roblox fishing world where players catch suspicious messages instead of fish and learn to outsmart scams by doing, not memorizing.

What it does

Players run a fast, replayable loop:

1. Cast into the digital sea
2. Reel in a message-fish
3. Inspect sender, links, and language
4. Decide: Keep or Cut Bait
5. Earn coins/XP, unlock entries in the PhishDex, upgrade gear, repeat

Progression mechanics keep runs fresh:

• Buy better rods to unlock deeper, riskier zones with harder-to-spot scams
• Harder catches pay more coins and XP
• Level up to unlock cosmetics (like boat color/skin changes)
• Place tycoon-style auto-catchers in water for passive fish income
• Use one-time consumable boosts to improve catches and sell value

Why it is fun: short rounds, meaningful choices, progression, collection goals, and constant "aha" moments.

How we built it

• Engine: Roblox + Luau
• Architecture: server-authoritative validation for fairness and anti-cheat
• Workflow: Rojo + Git for fast team iteration under hackathon time pressure
• Systems: fishing loop, inspection UI, economy/progression, PhishDex collection, tutorial onboarding, and polished 3D/UI card rendering

Challenges we ran into

• Pivoting from a completely different game with only 10 hours left
• Balancing education vs. entertainment so it never felt preachy

Accomplishments that we're proud of

• Built a full playable progression loop with strong visual polish
• Made scam-spotting intuitive through repetition and feedback
• Delivered an experience that (hopefully) feels both fun and meaningful to younger players
• Added layered progression (rods, deeper zones, cosmetics, auto-catchers, boosts) without losing the core learning loop

What we learned

Players learn best when the lesson is embedded in the action. In our case, learning effectiveness grows with engagement:

$$ \text{Learning Retention} \propto \text{Playful Repetition} \times \text{Immediate Feedback} $$

What's next for PHISH!

• Add new zones and scam species (DMs, smishing, deepfakes)
• Expand co-op/social features and live events
• Pilot classroom/youth-program versions with measurable outcomes

Built With

• claude
• codex
• gemini
• luau
• replicate
• roblox-studio
• rojo