If I had this when I was a kid, maybe I’d be looking down on the world from atop a plump nest-egg of spare change, living in the Bahamas bankrolling Mojitos on the interest.

Either way, this seems like a great way to inspire kids to feed their piggy banks.

What I’m not completely convinced of are the linkages between the gameplay and the real world message that we should be teaching kids about the power of savings and investment. This seems to sidestep the issue a little by giving them an immediate reward for putting their money away.

The trick will be whether the kids then see the benefit of those savings down the track, and can then substitute in their own motivation to bank money (as opposed to blow it on candy) sighting that long term benefit, as opposed to just putting pennies away for a new suit of virtual armor.

Another thing I found a while ago in a similar vein is Handipoints which rewards kids for completing household chores.