A Game for Would-Be Deal Makers

For young finance professionals, an investment banking deal usually conjures images of spreadsheets, weekend work and late-night emails from managers.

It does not usually inspire thoughts of a game.

But on Thursday, Ansarada, which provides virtual data rooms for merger and acquisition transactions, released the “M&A Game,” aimed at bringing some levity to the soul-crushing work of investment banking.

“Deal making is not that glamorous when you’re stuck at the end of the day,” said Sam Riley, the chief executive of Ansarada. “People should lighten up and have a bit of fun.” The game was created to appeal primarily to bankers, he said, giving them an outlet to express their competitive side in a risk-free setting.

But whether young bankers, who already spend countless hours working on M.&.A. deals, would want to invest time in negotiating fictitious deals remains to be seen.

Ten hours after the game’s release in Sydney, Australia, it had attracted about 1,000 users who had played the game over 3,300 times, Mr. Riley said in an email. More than 50 percent of games lasted less than two minutes, while 10 percent had sessions lasting nearly an hour. On average, users played the game for about 10 minutes.

The premise of the game, available free on iTunes, is that players make deals to build portfolios of companies. They select their industry, company name, personal skills (for example, charisma, deception, X-factor), and the chief executive’s appearance. Users then choose a team to help them negotiate offers with counterparties and decide whether to buy, merge or sell companies to grow their empire.

Mr. Riley said he and his team wanted to make a simple game that would allow bankers to unwind, and perhaps appeal to others outside the industry, but acknowledged that all of the clicking can make the game “a bit heavy at the start.”

For what it’s worth, DealBook’s own M.&.A. reporters were underwhelmed. One said he quickly became bored. All the swiping and tapping action (swipe left for a skinnier face, right for more arched eyebrows) brought back memories of the Sims game.

But the game is nevertheless attracting some attention on Twitter and on the online finance community website, Wall Street Oasis, which provided a link to download the game on Wednesday morning before it was officially released.

Some of the interest may be driven by the game’s promotional video, which shows a young banker enjoying an increasingly lavish lifestyle as he closes more deals. At the beginning of the video, the man, dressed in slacks and a button-down shirt, receives $20 million from an angel investor as he boards a bus to presumably go to work. After each deal, the man’s transportation improves â€" first a black Audi, then a silver Aston Martin, a yacht, a limo, and finally, a helicopter.

Though the game is eliciting a few groans â€" “This is one sick joke,” one Twitter user posted on Thursday morning â€" it is also receiving nods of approval.

“I’ve spent wayyyyy too much time today on this game,” one user, whose profile says he is an analyst in asset management, posted in a Wall Street Oasis forum dedicated to the game. “I’ll probably have to delete it soon, or this will become my full time job.”