How To Make Money Playing Video Games

Gamers have spent an estimated $135 billion on games in 2018, according to Newzoo. But it isn't just the big-name gaming companies that are making tons of cash — the gamers are, too. Gaming enthusiasts have turned playing video games into a full-time job that can earn some of them millions of dollars before age 30. Watch the video above to see how gamers make money.

Generally speaking there are two big ways that gamers can make money: esports and live streaming.

In the former category, twenty-eight year old Ho Kun Xian started gaming as a young boy. He came from a poor family who managed to spare him $2 to spend on video arcades whenever he went. There he began to master the art of fighting games. Years later, he turned pro, earning thousands of dollars in prize money as a gamer.

Xian's story highlights the burgeoning esports industry, which is minting millionaires who play video games for a living by the age of 30.

Esports refers to competitive video gaming where teams or individuals play against each other in games such as EA's "FIFA" series or Valve Corporation's "Dota 2" for hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money, in front of millions of viewers watching online and in physical arenas. Market research firm Newzoo forecasts the esports economy will grow to $905.6 million this year and $1.4 billion by 2020.

While esports may be smaller than traditional sports leagues like soccer's Premier League in the U.K. or the NBA, it's growing rapidly with new jobs and careers being made.

"I think I never thought, 'I better do this,' because even when I was 18 years old, there was no such thing as a pro gaming career, so this career didn't exist," Xian told CNBC.

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How To Make Money Playing Video Games

[cafelampung]

Now I just need to show this video to my mother.

[abhinavraut]

The guy who made this video. Increase his pay!

[MinerHut]

Don’t forget how stressful pro gamers are

[pottingsoil]

The quality of CNBC's videos has skyrocketed.

[nachannachle]

A (recent) history of Teenage's dreams:
1970s: I want to be an accountant
1980s: I want to be an engineer
1990s: I want to be a businesswo/man
2000s: I want to be a Tech entrepreneur
2010s: I want to be a reality TV celebrity
2020s: I want to be an E-sport player

[kgb__]

All them gamers be showing this to they mommas...

[TheExecutiveProducer]

Its annoying how the media makes the only one good thing in gaming is making money

Not enjoyment

Not friends

Just money

[Rockstar-lrlg]

I showed this to my mother





I got disowned

[josephblake]

Well I earned $ 1250 through James, had doubts but glad I gave it a shot

[FP]

It always funny when the ‘adults’ like Kimmel and others trying to make sense of money in gaming when 99% of the time these gamers/streamers make better content than they do in their entire tv shows careers. Can’t wait for them to get old and just breed out.

[muditgambhir]

Could barely hear the music.
Why don't you make it even louder? 😒

[kpopperful]

It pays well if you’re good looking too.

[eastonj]

Glad to see esports is finally growing. I remember when gaming was perceived as bad, nowadays it can be a actual job.

[rogerstephenroth]

For a brutally competitive field if gamers are very good they turn pro and make fortunes from tournaments and livestream. It is not like every player in video games is good enough to turn pro, but if a person has talent today they can make a fortune and it is a very big business as well resulting in billions of dollars in revenue. E-sports is going to continue to grow as the 2020's approach and we could see a integration of VR, AR, MR technology and internet play a role in the evolution of video games and communication as well.

[angryroadster]

They're lucky making lots of cash. And we're here struggling making views with crappy desktop. Freaking we over here getting paid by the minimum wage . It's gonna take while to get a better Pc.

[MarcusOnPC]

If anyone tries to stream from scratch to make money, you'll be disappointed. You'll need a lot of time and investment to build a channel up

[xrayded]

This is true but remember it’s a grind it takes years and years to build a community also comes with the support of your loved ones it’s a struggle trust me!

[alexwholland]

CNBC 5 years late to the 'news'

[TanvirAlif]

I would either be a gamer or a car racer if I was in abroad. Being born in one of the poorest countries I couldn’t get to do any of these. Cars are super expensive and the availability of internet was very little. I do love playing and driving. It’s not like one of those things which you don’t like but have to do for living. With pings over 200ms gaming becomes a nightmare.

[dopaminejuice]

Ninja is making over $1million a month on Twitch.