Ever wondered how you could make a living off playing the games you love? Well I thought I would put together a list of ways you can make money through playing these games! I have tried pretty much all of these methods and they are very do-able for a good gamer!
1. YouTube
This is one potential way to make money, but it takes a long time to build up a decent following! It also requires a lot of work and a like-able personality. In order to make money through this method, you will need to constantly produce and promote youtube videos and build a big subscriber base(10k+). The next stage in this process would be to monetize your videos through either in video ads or through a youtube partnership. Although if your a gaming channel then you will most likely have to get a partnership with Machinima in order to become a youtube partner as they sort out any copyright issues etc.
Examples of YouTubers who make a LOT of money through gaming videos are:
WingsOfRedemption
TheSyndicateProject
WoodysGamerTag
So you should check out their channels and see what they are doing right and try to find out what they are doing which makes them successful and then try and take that forward to your own YouTube channel! Bear in mind though that if you choose to go down this route then you will have to keep putting in a lot of effort as subscribers love consistency! So keep at it!
2. Streaming your Videos
This is similar to making YouTube videos except you will be streaming your gameplay LIVE! You can use sites like twitch.tv to stream your gameplay to anyone and everyone as long as you have a decent internet connection. This also requires a bit of marketing knowledge as you do have to build a following of people who want to watch you live.
Certain gamers out there will regularly stream to 5000+ viewers and twitch.tv allows them to cue commercials every so often during the live stream. According to Starcraft gamer - Steven ‘Destiny’ Bonnell II – he makes about $2 per thousand views and if he shows 4 ads per hour to 5000 people then he will make $40 an hour! Which is a pretty decent rate for most people these days!
3. Compete Online
Competing online is one of the riskier ways to make money online, but as with all things, the more you risk, the bigger the return! These methods are only really advisable for gamers who are above average and confident in their abilities, as amateurs could really sink a lot of money into this easily.
Now there are quite a few options you can choose here, one is Virgingaming.com. This site basically lets you pick and choose who you want to play against for money, players can start by depositing $20 into their virgin-gaming accounts and then they can play all they want. You can start off playing free matches and when you think you are good enough, you can start playing for money! Now this is quite an exciting prospect for those who are really good at gaming. I mean depending on how much you want to bet per game, you could see triple figure earnings per hour! Not a bad way to utilize your gaming talent!
There are also other sites on which you can play for money such as MLG.com or major league gaming as it is known as. Now this is a very competitive bunch of people, although it you get a good team together then you can possibly earn quite a bit through tournaments as the rewards for some tournaments range into the $$$$ figures! But trying to win these tournaments can be next to impossible at times due to the incredible competition that is against you. Don’t expect newbs here, as it’s only the people who are really good that are willing to risk a lot of money in order to compete in these competitions.
If you are an incredible team then there are always bigger tournaments out there, I mean I have heard of some Starcraft gamers taking home close to $200,000 for winning a tournament and that is just crazy money. But we all dare to dream right?
4. Sell in-game goods/Characters
If you have ever played a large MMO like World of warcraft etc. then you will know about the amount of gold selling that goes on in these games! These guys do this against the games terms and conditions and will no-doubt be banned sooner or later. But there are other games out there which allow the real-life trading of in-game merchandise. This “virtual economy” has turned into a multi-billion dollar industry and will only grow in the near future as the popularity of online games grows and this can earn gamers thousands of dollars per year.
Take for example, Project Entropia, it’s in-game currency is known as PED and is redeemable at a rate of 10PED – $1 and this has caused some in-game items to go for a huge amount of money. One example of this is when a guy purchased a virtual space station for $100,000 with plans to use it as a virtual night club!
But Project Entropia is just one example of a game in which you can make money from, a quick search of google and you could find many more!
Subject: How to make money playing Video Games! 
Sat Sep 24, 2011 11:46 am
