Accountants Get Hip Online

I’m all for online role playing games that give people a chance to virtually experience the product — racing games for automotive clients, for example — but a game that lets you virtually experience life as an accountant? Yes, that’s what theTurnaroundGame.com — the latest from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and agency Wunderman New York — does. To be fair, the game tries to make accounting glamourous by setting it in a record company — BigNoizz. The idea is that players experience the joy and fun of being a CPA at a troubled entertainment company.

From the press release:

“We want to reach out to younger audiences and give them a sense of what being a CPA is all about,” said Barry Melancon, AICPA President and CEO. “Since students are so interested in games and music, we believe a vehicle like The Turnaround Game clearly demonstrates the challenges and rewards that CPAs face every day.”

The most desperate sentence in the press release? “Indeed, Melancon noted that a number of today’s music stars are also successful business professionals who rely on the talents and expertise of their CPAs.” So, if I’m understanding this right… if I study to be a CPA I will get to hang out with the likes of 50 Cent and the Pussycat Dolls?