Professional Gaming is Now Possible
Pro Gaming is a real job now. Gamers are practicing for hours on end to make it in the profession. Parents are pulling their hair out trying to get their kids to turn the game off and help out around the house. Telling their kids that playing video games isn’t going to pay the bills when they get older, is a thing of the past. Professional Gamers are getting endorsements, being recorded, and have a fan base. And they make money. Playing video games really will pay the bills now. But where do they play?
Home, Work, and Play
Starting out, a Pro Gamer may play in their parent’s basement, or their own bedroom. They will log hours on end of going over the same levels as fast as they can until they’ve mastered it. They will play against each other, and develop incredible reflexes. (careermatch.com) Eventually, they may be noticed by a professional sponsorship and things begin to change.
They won’t be living at home with mom and dad anymore, but they will continue to work, or as more people think of it, play from what becomes their team home. They will live with their new team, and they will practice hours on end with this team. They will have videos that they watch of opponents and learn the techniques of those opponents. Sounds like professional sports, right? That’s because it is very much just like it. (abc.net.au)
In years past, when someone was creating a team, they would live in their own home but build the relationship with their teammates via Skype. From there, they’d play for hours together and get to know each other. In recent years, sponsors realized it would be better for these teammates to live together and get to know each other on a different level. (512tech.com) Sponsors have found that by living together and playing together, the relationship of the teammates has improved both in and outside the game.
The teammates don’t just live under the same roof together. They do everything together to build their relationships. The teammates share responsibilities around the home, such as cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, etc. Going to the gym becomes a group activity. When it comes time to play the game, they do it together.
Competitions happen outside the team home. After hours of practicing each day, for days and months on end, the team will travel to wherever the gaming tournament is. The team house and travel for the competitions are all expenses paid by their sponsorship. Living at home and playing video games professionally is no longer a pipe dream. It truly can happen, with massive amount of hours invested.
This may all sound like a dream come true, however for anyone that has played a casual game at home, they know that there almost always comes a time when the game frustrates them, they get fed up with trying to get past that one boss that seems impossible, or they just simply get bored with the game. They shut the game off. They either go find something else to do, or they put a different game in and start playing that. That is not possible with professional gamers. They have contracts, and they have people counting on them including their teammates and fans. Although they may make hundreds of thousands of dollars, and have endorsements from big name companies, they do not make the rules. They do not get to simply shut off the game and walk away when the game doesn’t go their way.
End Game
Living the life of a Pro Gamer sounds glamorous. Typically, they live with their teammates who are also sponsored by the same people and share household duties. Friendship and relationships are built and a new lifestyle is created. They live where they work, and their work is all games. They get to travel to tournaments and competitions on someone else’s dollar and again play the entire time. As fun as it all sounds, these individuals also have to abide by the contract that they have signed. They do not get to shut the game off when they feel like it. They spend hours upon hours playing and practicing the same maps of the same game until they have become as fast as they can. They build reflexes and hone skills so that when it comes to tournament time, they will be able to give their opponents a run for their money. When they are not playing the game, they are studying the game and studying their opponents, observing and memorizing techniques.
Sources:
https://www.careermatch.com/job-prep/career-insights/profiles/professional-gamer/
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-23/inside-a-professional-video-gaming-share-house/9062518
https://www.512tech.com/technology/one-austin-house-five-esports-stars-training-for-glory/uXLjuevAKYSM8qiD9EKm0I/
Image Credits:
SAINT PETERSBURG, RUSSIA – OCTOBER 29 2017: EPICENTER Counter Strike: Global Offensive cyber sport event. Team Virtus. Cybersport, esports. [ID 104244807 © Roman Kosolapov | Dreamstime.com]
Gamer or streamer in earphones with microphone sits at home in dark room and plays with friends on networks in video games. [ID 114673205 © Vasiliy Budarin | Dreamstime.com]
MOSCOW, RUSSIA – OCTOBER 27 2018: EPICENTER Counter Strike: Global Offensive esports event. Team Avangar players [ID 130527257 © Roman Kosolapov | Dreamstime.com]