There are so many different ways to make money online, it seems that there is something for everyone. For those that love playing video games we have some tips on how to make money gaming. How much time do you spend playing video games? Can you imagine making money doing something you love?
In contrast to other side hustles and side jobs, it can be a lot of fun. Playing video games is a way to earn additional money, even if your 8th grade English instructor thinks it is not. Many people make a living playing video games like Grand Theft Auto, Pokémon, and mobile games like PUBG.
Why not take your gaming to the next level and earn money while having fun? Here are various ways to profit while gaming.
Become a Professional Gamer
To truly be a professional player, you must participate in gaming events. Like any other athlete, you’ll receive monetary prizes and endorsement deals. So as a non-participant, you may simply explore gaming competitions and this is one of the easiest and most fun ways to make money. Some players earn six-figure wages merely by playing games. Of course, you must be very skilled, and this is not a steady income!
Sign up at a site like WorldGaming.com to get started. But first, pick a game and practice your skills. You can choose from games like Forza 7, Super Smash Bros Ultimate, FIFA 20, and NHL 20. It’s not easy to make money playing competitions. Consider getting signed by a team for a more reliable option. The average professional gamer earns $1,000 to $5,000 per month. There are numerous such teams, like Evil Geniuses and Team Envy. While you can always contact the teams directly, most people prefer to be scouted. You can achieve this by mastering a popular tournament game and then streaming it on YouTube or Twitch.
Winning solo tournaments might also help you become recognized. Getting involved in the community is an excellent way to start in this environment. Learn the business, norms, and culture. With the right talents, anyone can become a professional gamer.
Sell Accounts or Digital Items
In some games, you can “flip” your account or in-game stuff to other players. For example, you can sell Steam Trading Cards earned by playing games to other gamers who want to collect them. While you won’t make a fortune, you might be able to afford your next game. Accounts may also be sold. For example, in Overwatch, Some players use a “smurf” account (a secondary account ranked far lower than the player’s true skill level). Because you need to reach a particular level to play Competitive matches, smurfing players could buy an account to save time.
A gamer may even pay you to rank up their account if you are better than them. You may even utilize sites like Fiverr to sell “game services” to interested parties. Maybe someone is lonely and wants to spend an hour with someone who will pay for the privilege. While less time consuming than most of the other options, this one isn’t perfect. Unless you already have extra accounts or uncommon things, it’s hardly worth the time that you have to invest to earn them. Selling your account or other stuff may be against the rules in some games. Before you try anything, be sure you’re not doing anything incorrect.
Find out what products from your favorite games sell for a good price. Sites like PlayerAuctions connects buyers and sellers of gaming items.
Get Paid to Test Games
Before a game is released, it goes through several stages. Near completion, developers need more eyes to playtest their games. As a playtester, you must check whatever the developer asks you to examine, including bugs and other difficulties. It’s not hard to become a tester nowadays, but it could be a boring task. To intentionally break games becomes tiresome, especially if you have to verify the same areas after each revision. Pay is low (on par with, or slightly better than, minimum wage), unless you work for a huge game production company.
Most game testing jobs are for mobile games. Look at PlaytestCloud, BetaFamily, and BetaTesting for on-demand playtesting. It’s harder to become an internal tester at a company. You’ll have to surf job sites, investigate firms, apply, and hope for the best.
Get Paid Directly to Play
Surprisingly, there are websites that pay you to play their games. The payment you will receive will be in the form of a voucher. This may include things like Inbox Dollars, Banatic, and Swagbucks, which let you transform your earnings into gift cards or prepaid cards. Most of these sites are searching for you to play their games for free, and they additionally want you to provide an in-depth assessment of the software. Some like InboxDollars really function as a marketing tool for market researchers, and as a result, InboxDollars receives a percentage of the advertising money paid by marketers.
Join Twitch
Amazon acquired the live-streaming site Twitch in early 2014.. Twitch ranked fourth in terms of traffic in 2014.Twitch’s “Partner Program” pays gamers $3 for every 1,000 ad views, and $5 per month for every subscriber. Moreover, Twitch ads, sponsorships, Amazon referral links and PayPal can all be added to this income. That’s why gamers use Twitch to stream video games more than YouTube. To keep followers focused on you and your channel, have a constant schedule; consider streaming with a friend so you have someone to talk to other than the game.
Twitch’s Partner Program allows streamers to share advertising money with Twitch. To qualify as a Twitch partner, you have to have 500 average viewers or more. With the Affiliate Program that Twitch launched in 2017, smaller channels too can earn money via Twitch.
Video Game Inspired Merchandise
Getting paid to play could be one of the coolest ways to make money if you’re a creator and seller of game-inspired items. Type “Legend of Zelda” on Etsy, and you get over 16,000 hits for shirts, figurines, mugs, and other merchandise. If you utilize this option, you can create a business. With the right product and excellent marketing skills, you can earn more than $50,000 per year. To start, you must decide on a certain product to sell. That will then provide you a list of the required materials to complete those items.
Game Developer
If you are nervous about becoming a social media gaming superstar, consider becoming a game developer. This is the finest way to generate money in game industry, if you prefer coding over playing. Major gaming companies like Blizzard and Ubisoft hire game developers starting at $83,000. But you must be able to work under pressure. Game developers have a lot on their plates, so you should expect to work long hours and on public holidays and weekends especially if it is close to the game’s launch date.
If you don’t like working for others, you may always start your own business. Markus Persson, the creator of the renowned game “Minecraft,” is the most successful independent game developer. Markus founded “Mojang,” and Microsoft bought him out for $2.5 billion.
Create a Gaming Website
It’s never been easier to build a website, and gaming websites get some of the highest traffic. You can create a website for reviewing games and you will start getting a free review copies of games and other types of sponsorship if you have a large enough audience. We don’t recommend trying to become the next Polygon, Destructoid, or Games Radar because these sites have been operating for years and are controlled by large organizations with massive resources. We suggest you pick a smaller niche in which you are an expert. For example, you may focus on a specific game, console, or genre (platformers, FPS, RTS, RPG, etc.) and provide more in-depth content, which is not even found on the larger sites.
Building a new website takes work, but if gaming is your love, it shouldn’t be a burden. Take your time, share your enthusiasm, and the money will follow. I recommend Bluehost for an easy setup and very cheap.
Provide Customer Service for Other Gamers
This is not technically a method of making money while playing video games. However, the knowledge you earned while playing games will still be paid for! Companies such as Sutherland Global Services sometimes call for a gaming consultant – a player support job for gaming experts or technical support experts. Sutherland Global Services even provides some of the equipment you need, all you need to bring is your gaming experience and a few other abilities, such as social media and multi-tasks. These opportunities are often part time positions, but if you enjoy gaming they are worth your time. These positions would be paid for approximately $9 per hour.
Games Journalism
Are you interested in becoming a writer? Join an existing site or create your own to write about a specific game, genre, or industry. If you write for an existing site, you can get paid per article. If you create your own website, you may monetize it with adverts or Patreon subscriptions. Games journalism, like any journalism, is competitive. It’s a lucrative field!
If you write for an existing site, you’ll probably have to work for free to build a portfolio and show your skills. Starting your own site will take years to create an audience that can support you. Journalism is hard work. To receive news scoops before others, you’ll need to tap into a variety of sources around the clock. Reviewing and interviewing takes time. Writing every day might be mentally draining. Look for openings in mid-sized gaming establishments. Avoid huge game sites like IGN and startups with no readers. Prepare some writing samples. Send in your application (with writing samples) and wait. If you don’t have any samples, try writing for smaller sites.
We don’t recommend starting your own games journalism site until you’ve worked for a reputable site for several years. It’s hard enough to write every day. Adding a site to that? Such extra effort might quickly lead to burnout.
Conclusion
You now have a complete list of possibilities to go and see which are the greatest options for you. Try not to forget that when you play those great games, it will take some time and effort to make considerable money. Test various sources at the same time! For example, you can try both streaming and making gaming tutorials. Time to grab your controller and get your money playing your favorite video games on the way!
Try Inbox Dollars Try Etsy Try Swagbucks
