The Story of Wall Street Raider
Hacker News
February 10, 2026
AI-Generated Deep Dive Summary
Wall Street Raider, the most comprehensive financial simulation game ever created, has undergone a remarkable journey of creation, failure, and eventual revival. Born from the obsessive mind of Michael Jenkins, who first conceived the idea while studying at Harvard Law School in 1967, the game was decades in the making. Jenkins, a tax lawyer by trade, spent years filling notebooks with ideas for a board game that would simulate corporate takeovers, mergers, and financial transactions—something that didn’t yet exist in the analog era. Decades passed as he waited for the right tools to bring his vision to life.
In 1983, Jenkins finally obtained a Kaypro personal computer, a primitive but functional device that allowed him to begin coding in Basic. With no formal training and relying on a guide by Bill Gates himself, Jenkins crafted Wall Street Raider, a game so complex it was nearly impossible for others to understand or modify. Over the years, multiple attempts by companies like Commodore Computers, a Denver legal software firm, and even Steam, failed to revive or improve the game due to its intricate code and unique design. Jenkins, now in his 80s, had lost faith in the project after countless rejections and kept the source code hidden for decades.
Enter Ben Ward, a 29-year-old software developer from Ohio, who reached out to Jenkins in 2023 with an offer to take on the challenge. Despite Jenkins’ skepticism, Ward’s determination and fresh perspective eventually led to the game’s resurrection. By 2024, Ward announced on Reddit that he had successfully remade Wall Street Raider, breathing new life into a project that had been deemed unsalvageable. This story of persistence, collaboration, and the enduring power of creative obsession not only highlights the potential of niche tech projects but also underscores how decades-old innovations can find new relevance in the hands of passionate developers.
For readers interested in tech, this is a testament to the importance of perseverance and the unpredictable ways old ideas can be revitalized. Wall Street Raider’s journey—from its origins in the 1960s to its modern-day rebirth—shows how technology and creativity intersect to produce something truly unique. The game’s legacy lies not just in its financial simulation capabilities, but in the story of two developers bridging a 50-year gap and proving that even the most complex ideas can be brought back to life with dedication and innovation.
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Originally published on Hacker News on 2/10/2026