Designing a gamified experience that helps people invest with confidence
Organisation
Invstr
Role
Product Designer
Timeline
March - December 2019
Overview
Fantasy Finance is a gamified experience that helps users learn about investing. I led the redesign of the game to make it more engaging, improve retention and introduce new revenue streams without limiting play.
Working with product and research teams in London and developers in Istanbul, we reimagined the game from concept to launch. The result was a smarter, more rewarding experience that boosted retention and created new monetisation opportunities.
> 70% increase in retention after first download
> 15% of players converted to premium within two months
UX research
Gamification
Prototyping
UI Design
Design systems
User testing
The Challenge
Making learning about investing fun and profitable
User feedback and analytics revealed that gameplay was confusing and lacked clear goals. Players struggled to understand how trades worked, when markets were open and what their performance scores meant.
We aimed to simplify the experience while introducing premium features that added value rather than paywalls, keeping the game free, fair and fun while opening new revenue potential.
Previous app design
Discovery
Learning what players loved and what frustrated them
Through interviews, community feedback and app analytics, we identified confusion around the game setup, unclear scoring and the lack of clear objectives. Players also wanted a better understanding of real-world market behaviour, such as out of hours trading.
We also explored what users would pay for. Most wanted to keep the core game free but showed strong interest in premium educational content that could help them trade more confidently in real markets.
Whiteboard ideation in the London office
Working with the development team in Istanbul
Concept design
Turning a trading simulator into a learning experience
We introduced a new portfolio style setup inspired by fantasy sports, where players build a team of investments that perform over time. This gave users clear goals and mirrored real world investing behaviour.
The trade screen was streamlined with clearer market status indicators and a faster live price ticker. The new performance screen transformed raw data into a simple, rewarding summary that created a sense of achievement even when players lost.
Creating a moment of delight, win or lose
The redesigned performance score screen made data easier to read and turned every trade into a learning moment. Instead of showing dense charts, we focused on visual clarity and emotion, giving players feedback that felt satisfying regardless of outcome. This change kept users engaged, motivated and proud to share their results.
Previous trading performance
Sketching new component design for trade performance
New app features
Turning education into engagement
To enhance learning and drive revenue, we launched Invstr Academy, a ten module interactive course that teaches players how markets work. The first two modules were free, with the remaining lessons available through a premium subscription. This try before you buy model gave players value upfront and encouraged natural conversion.
Results
Driving engagement & revenue growth
The redesign improved retention by 70 percent and converted 15 percent of players to premium within two months. By aligning gameplay, education and monetisation, we created an experience that was both fun and financially sustainable, delivering clear value for users and the business.
> 70% increase in retention after first download
> 15% of players converted to premium within two months