Earn Money With Gaming | Top 3 Ways

It is undoubtedly possible to earn money by playing video games in today’s environment. But the truth is that doing so is difficult.

Many people who take this path will give up within a few years (or months) since the labour part takes away the fun of playing video games. People end up loathing what they once enjoyed instead of turning it into a career. And it’s risky because of the crowded market. There are hundreds of others who tried and failed for every success tale.

Earning your primary income through gaming is not something we would advocate unless you are young, unmarried, and prepared to dedicate several years knowing that it could all be for nothing. But it’s not impossible!

Here are the top 3 ways you can start making money by playing video games.

1. Get Paid to Stream Live

Anyone can broadcast their games in real-time for everybody to see. Aim for a wide audience (which you can monetize with adverts) or a dedicated audience (to monetize with donations and subscriptions). Twitch is the most popular streaming site, however, YouTube is an alternative.

Why Is It Difficult to Make Money Streaming Games?

Building a live broadcast audience takes time. You might not receive more than 10 concurrent viewers for several months, and you might not have more than 100 viewers at once for years. The reality is that most streamers never get to that position, and earning a living by streaming video games requires thousands of regular viewers.

The streaming market is overcrowded. Why should someone watch you when there are so many other popular streams to watch? That is the difficult part. Set yourself distinct by having your own sense of humour or personality, being a world-class gamer, or playing games that no one else is.

What software should I use?

You’ll need an application on your computer to receive, integrate, and broadcast the video and audio components of your stream. All of the streamers I spoke with utilise Open Broadcaster Software (OBS), which is difficult but free and full of features. There’s a nice instructional here, and there’s much more on YouTube. XSplit Gamecaster and Nvidia ShadowPlay are two alternatives, while Twitch has its own version, Twitch Studio, which is now in beta testing.

How can I grow my audience?

So you’re liking what you’re doing and have a few views, but you want more. You can begin by promoting your stream on social media, inviting friends to watch, and going to forums and Reddit posts dedicated to the games you stream and providing a link. Simply be courteous and avoid spamming people.

Consistency is another important factor. “Having a plan and adhering to it goes a long way,” Freeman adds. “If people enjoy watching you, they’ll want to come back, so put that in your channel’s About section.” Sharing your schedule across several platforms can also help you.

Create a Twitter thread for your schedule and respond to it when you go live. Make a Discord server for your community to post to. These are also good places to provide information if you need to cancel or reschedule a stream, which will surely happen. Streamers, too, require sick days!”

Using the chat window to interact with your viewers is also crucial. According to statistics, interactive features like alerts and channel points help your channel gain more views and followers. “Remember that Twitch is designed to be a participatory experience rather than a passive one.

Your audience should be involved in your programming in some way, whether they utilise chat to communicate with you or with other viewers, channel points to ask a question, or bits or subs to get a shoutout. A “You have to be there” experience is what we’re going for.

2. Create Video Game Guides and Tutorials

Many newbies to certain games, particularly multiplayer player-versus-player (PvP) titles, like reading manuals. As a result, there is a market for making money by delivering useful information that these people desire to learn.

For game instructions, you have numerous options, including developing a website for written guides, uploading video guides to YouTube, and publishing guides as ebooks. The first two are frequently monetized by advertisements and/or donations, whereas the ebook method generates cash through sales.

Why Is It Difficult to Make Money through Gaming Guides?

A guide can be written by anyone. To make any money, you must produce instructions for popular games—but the more popular the game, the more competition you will face. To set your guides distinct, you’ll need to provide more information than others, which involves putting in a lot of work and positioning yourself as an expert.

You’ll also need excellent writing skills. Guides must be thick and comprehensive while also engaging and understandable. Formatting abilities are essential whether you’re writing for the web or publishing ebooks.

How To Start

Find a popular game, discover what problems players are having, understand the ins and outs of that problem, and then teach others how to overcome it.

Look for gold guides, levelling guides, and raid guides in massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs). Go for build guidelines and mechanics guides for PvP games like Overwatch or Valorant. And, for single-player games, you’ll generally have the most success with topic-specific tips, such as winning a specific Achievement/Trophy. Guides for getting started are popular, but they face stiff competition.

3. Winning Gaming Tournaments and Getting Sponsorships

Tournaments are common in PvP titles such as fighting games. Of course, the higher the prize pool, the more popular the game. If you’re good enough to join an esports group, you could be able to make a living off of victories and sponsorships. Most competitive gamers also use live streaming (#1) to increase their revenue.

Why is it difficult to make money from video game tournaments?

Not everyone is cut out to win. You can be a world-class player and still be eliminated early in a tournament, leaving with no winnings. Even if you win money, it may not be enough to pay the cost of hotels and flights. If you aren’t consistently at the top, don’t expect to live off your winnings.

Furthermore, the esports sector is still in its infancy. Even if you win a place on a prestigious team, your “compensation” may be less than the minimum payment. Con artists and crooks prey on gullible players in the sector. There have occasionally been reports of players who did not receive the promised compensation.

How To Start

Find a popular PvP game with a lot of tournaments and a lot of interest from esports organisations. Practice, practise, and practise some more. As you improve, network with other professional gamers to get your name out there. Consider starting small with local competitions for popular titles such as Super Smash Bros. or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.

To be absolutely honest, you’ll probably have greater luck (and make more money) pursuing a career as a non-competitive streamer. People will still like watching you even if you aren’t the best.

Playing Video Games for Money Is Still Work

Games are enjoyable because they allow us to escape reality. When gaming becomes your profession, that part of escapism vanishes—and with it, the fun. Do you enjoy playing games? Consider it carefully before turning it into a possible career. You may come to regret following these methods of earning money from video games.

If you still want to go for it, the options outlined here are the finest ways to make a living in the gaming industry right now. Other occupations in the video game industry exist, but they do not require as much actual game playing as the ones listed above.

Of course, you may always create your own game and earn money through sales, in-app purchases, or advertisements. However, games take a long time to produce and demand a completely new set of talents.

By reading this post, we do not advise you to change careers or pursue a career in gaming; it is only meant for informational purposes.

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