Inspiration

A lot of people want to enter the stock market, but they feel held back, and it's not just because they don't have enough money to start. They lack the confidence, practical experience, or motivation to take that first step.

For beginners, the stock market can feel like a world where everyone else already knows the rules. They encounter complex financial terminology, hear stories of people losing their life savings, and become afraid of making the wrong decision. They're expected to make real financial decisions before they've had a chance to practice.

While financial education websites and stock market simulators already exist, beginners can still struggle to find an experience that feels accessible, engaging, and designed for someone starting from zero. Learning can feel overwhelming, and the fear of costly mistakes can prevent people from starting at all.

People shouldn't have to risk real money to gain the confidence and experience they need to understand investing.

What it does

That's why we created ReefStreet, a gamified stock market simulator that teaches investing through an interactive ocean economy.

Think of ReefStreet as a beginner-friendly world where financial literacy meets exploration. Instead of risking real money, users enter the market with 10,000 virtual Pearls, our in-game currency, and use them to trade shares of real-world companies with simulated prices.

But ReefStreet isn't just about buying and selling. Users experience a dynamic market, respond to unexpected events, and learn how their decisions affect their portfolios. They can even see how random market events in the game reflect situations that might affect investments in real life, helping them explore risk and uncertainty in a safe, simulated environment.

To help users develop independent judgment, ReefStreet uses familiar real-world company names alongside fictional market data. This allows beginners to focus on making investment decisions rather than predicting actual stock prices.

Our goal is simple: to make investing education accessible, engaging, safe, and—most importantly—fun for beginners.

By transforming financial concepts into an interactive experience, ReefStreet gives users a place to experiment, learn from mistakes, and build their understanding of investing before entering real financial markets.

How we built it

We built ReefStreet using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, with Node.js running the backend server. The game uses interactive visualizations, while the server manages player accounts, portfolios, and the shared simulated market. We developed the project in VS Code, managed the code with GitHub, and deployed it through Render.

Challenges we ran into

We had to improve it and add new features constantly. Brainstorming what features would be useful for users to consider our project an accurate simulation was the hardest part. We also ran into issues converting the code into a running project. We tried to run it on a hosting service, but it wasn't working like we wanted it to, so we had to keep trying different approaches. Making user accounts private and keeping each player's progress separate was also challenging.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We're proud of the animations and the feature that shows how in-game events correspond to real-world events affecting investments.

What we learned

We learned how to think as users so we can add useful features. We also learned how to connect systems like the portfolio, other game features, and the leaderboard together.

What's next for ReefStreet

We hope to integrate real-world data for the companies using APIs later. We also aim to add an intro/guide on how to play. Currently, players may need to learn on a different platform before practicing on ReefStreet. To further address this issue, we also want to add an FAQ button or an AI chat option at the bottom so players can both learn and practice on our platform. We also hope to improve our account system and add more reliable storage for player progress.