Open Ledger, a company specializing in accounting software, has recently introduced a new product coinciding with tax day. The product, named PokéTax, is a game designed to make the task of filing taxes more enjoyable. Rather than filling out traditional tax forms, users engage with “Tax Trainers”—gym leaders who represent various sections of a tax form, such as income, deductions, and credits. These gym leaders pose questions to assist players in completing their tax forms.
Open Ledger’s co-founder, Pryce Adade-Yebesi, explained to TechCrunch that after players complete their session of PokéTax, they are directed to the IRS Direct File website to officially file their taxes. The game is an adaptation of the open-source Pokémon game, Pokémon Showdown, and Adade-Yebesi assured that it is a genuine product, not an April Fool’s prank.
Adade-Yebesi emphasized the seriousness of the game by stating, “This is real; it works. Tax fraud isn’t funny — and neither is the IRS.” Open Ledger was launched earlier this year by Adade-Yebesi and Ashtyn Bell, securing a $3 million investment round led by Kindred Ventures and Black Ventures. Initially created as a humorous concept, the open-source product has demonstrated its viability.
PokéTax includes an AI assistant that aids users in organizing their responses, and players can earn badges—discover new deductions—upon defeating the Tax Trainers. Although gamifying tax filing is uncommon, it is not unprecedented; in 2023, a dating-style game called Tax Heaven 3000 introduced a playful take on tax filing by having users engage with an avatar named Iris, who asked questions to help complete a tax form. However, that game was only applicable to the 2022 tax filing year.
Adade-Yebesi expressed a desire to make financial processes more engaging and less daunting, hoping to infuse the experience with an element of fun. The deadline for filing taxes is April 15.
