20 Ways to Make Money Playing Videos Games

Ways to Make Money Playing Videos Games

AlexandriaFebruary 1, 2023

0 6 12 minutes read

20 Ways to Make Money Playing Videos Games

Ways to Make Money Playing Videos Games, video games your favourite activity? Are you fond of earning money?

Have you given the idea of making money off your gaming hobby any thought? In contrast to other side jobs and side hustles, it’s a fun way to make money in your spare time. It’s one of the newest ways to generate money online.

Play video games, share them on social media, and get money. Pretty amazing, no?

Contrary to what your 8th grade English teacher may have told you, playing video games can make you additional money. Simply being able to play mobile games allows many people to transform their passion for their favorite games into a part-time or even full-time income.

As the number of people playing games increases, so do the opportunities to make money playing games. Also, your love of video games can be turned into a successful side business with the help of blogs, YouTube channels, and tech assistance.

Why not advance your game if you already devote a lot of time to it? Try out a few of these suggestions to make additional money by just playing games you already enjoy.

Ways to Make Money Playing Videos Games

How To Make Money Playing Video Games

The gaming business has recently experienced an increase in new monetization alternatives. As a result, there are now a lot more ways than you might think to make money playing video games.

You may learn how to make money playing video games by using these 20 suggestions.

1. Video Game Coaching

If you have a strong understanding of and passion for a particular game, video game tutoring is a fantastic alternative.

Through tutorials, screen-sharing walkthroughs, and group lessons, you may train other gamers. Wouldn’t it be nice to be compensated for offering your advise, strategies, and tips?
You can establish your own pricing (usually $30/hour and above) and availability on websites like Gamer Sensei. However, not every coach that applies is hired. Although this maintains a high standard of quality on the platform, it can be discouraging if you’re just getting started.

Alternately, you might create some coaching gigs on Fiverr for your preferred games or look for local clients.

Put yourself in the position of your potential customers when creating your profile. Why ought they to employ you? What credentials do you have for video games?
Based on your prior experience, the level of competition, and the popularity of the game, your rates will change.
The majority of video game coaches bill by the hour, typically in the $20–200 range. With group classes, though, you may make even more money.

2. Video Game Testing

A “beta tester” is someone who enjoys checking out new video games. A quality assurance (QA) tester works with a product that already satisfies a predetermined standard of quality as intended by the video game creator. This is the most important distinction between QA testers and testers of video games.

A professional game tester, on the other hand, looks for ways to ‘break’ games, as well as reasons why consumers might or might not find them entertaining. The game designers can use this to better understand where their game needs work.

3. Group Video Game Classes for Kids

Significantly, outschool is one venue to sell those group classes. Academic and extracurricular classes are available on the K–12 online education platform.

In the realm of extracurriculars, video game classes are popular. Why? An encouraging, secure internet environment for children is adored by parents.
In this video, I got to know Devyn Ricks, a mother of 4, who claimed to make up to $4,000 per month playing video games on Outschool!

4. Professional Gaming

At professional gaming competitions supported by the Major League Gaming (MLG) circuit, the International Dota 2 championship, and Intel Extreme Masters, gamers compete from all over the world for millions of dollars. To stage and broadcast live professional gaming competitions across the country, MLG has constructed venues. Even scouting and online forums are employed to locate the top undiscovered players.

The best pro advice is to choose a game you’re already strong at and get to the top of it. After that, concentrate on developing a reputation as a talented team player. The esports arena can now be entered!

5. Video Game Reporting

Becoming a video game journalist is another option to earn money from your love of playing video games.

Reporting on video game news, future games, writing game reviews, and even reporting from e-sport competitions are all part of the job.

The two most typical ways to make money here are either as a freelancer or as a staff writer for a gaming publication. Your earning potential depends on your expertise, writing abilities, and portfolio, and it ranges from $26,000 to $100,000 per year.

6. Start a YouTube Channel

There is a lot of opportunity for gamers to make money from the development of content.

You may expand your channel on YouTube and make money off of your material. Although becoming a successful YouTuber requires a lot of labor, there is a lot of money to be made.

You are free to pursue your material in any direction once you have mastered the necessary steps to monetise your channel. YouTube is a great place to cover all of these topics, whether you want to make live streams, offer tutorials on gaming tips and methods, or analyze the gaming of others. We advise you to continue your game research on YouTube.

YouTube contains a ton of relevant stuff if you’re looking for in-depth information on how to make money playing video games or how to improve your gaming habits. Whatever strategy you choose, you should start with YouTube.

These articles can assist you in beginning to develop a second source of income through the production of video content:

Making Money on YouTube
How to Increase Views on Your YouTube Channel and
Twitch Stream

Many professional gamers stream their online play to turn a profit. Twitch, an online streaming mecca, is the most popular streaming platform for gamers.

7. Make Money From Ads

When you become a streamer who is being paid by Twitch, you will receive payment in a variety of ways. Basically, you will get $5.00 for each subscriber who views your channel. Additionally, you will have the choice to generate ad money for your channel. This will make it possible for you to get paid for the advertisements on your page. You will be paid $3 for every 1,000 ad views.

Some of the most well-known streamers can increase their income by becoming Twitch Partners.

8. Stream on Twitch

One of the most widely used websites for gaming in the world today is Twitch. It is the preferred platform for video gamers looking to monetize their gameplay streams.

You’ll begin to receive subscription and donation income as your fan base expands. Top streamers earn six or even seven figures annually!

If you’re either incredibly strong at a certain game or highly fun to watch, Twitch will work best for you. Keep in mind that you are vying for your followers’ limited attention, so the content must be really compelling.

Similar to YouTube, you may monetize your audience as you gain their trust and develop a relationship with them through donations, merchandise, brand partnerships, and other methods.

9. Amazon Affiliate Links

Undoubtedly, users of Twitch can also make money by promoting their Amazon affiliate links. As a result, gamers can recommend goods and items sold on Amazon and earn money when customers use their links to buy goods from Amazon.

Players can use this passive revenue creation strategy to promote goods and services they value to anyone who visits their YouTube channel, and in certain situations, they can earn a sizable sum of money doing so.

10. Crypto Gaming

Obviously, video gamers now have access to a new source of income thanks to the growth of cryptocurrencies and NFTs.

In Axie Infinity, for instance, players raise, trade, and engage in combat with NFT pets known as Axies. Your characters gain value as they level up and can be purchased and sold as a result.

Axie Infinity Shards, the in-game currency, can then be purchased or traded on platforms like Coinbase. Crypto gaming is undoubtedly a field to explore.

11. PayPal Donations

Many professional gamers have discovered that they may make money by asking for and getting PayPal donations from sponsors or devoted followers.

Gamers have discovered that asking fans to give can encourage people to support them as they keep up their current level of play. People pay them when they ask for money so they may continue watching their preferred players compete.

Basically, making sure the player can afford to meet their fundamental necessities contributes to enabling this commitment. Okay, so perhaps not all of their requirements are truly “basic,” but you get the idea.

Because they want to figure out how the gamer does it, a lot of people will offer PayPal donations.

If you think of gaming as a performance art, contributing to a gamer’s PayPal account seems lot more reasonable; it’s better than paying your younger brother to play video games.

12. Create Video Game Guides

Years ago, a friend of mine was selling a Minecraft tutorial on Amazon and earning hundreds of dollars each month. Although he had self-published the book and had no readers, people looking for “Minecraft” on Amazon discovered it and purchased it.

Guides or lessons for video games can help other players get through challenging stages or enhance their skills. It’s an additional means of turning your expertise into money.

Once the instructions are finished, you can share them on social media, submit them to YouTube, or offer the entire collection as an online course.

13. Contact Potential Sponsors

Once you’ve gained a following (on YouTube, Twitch, or anywhere else), you’ll probably want to get in touch with sponsors to increase your income. This reminds me mostly a lot of how TV producers used to get sponsors for their shows.

Also, by making sure your channel conveys a particular style and attitude that can coincide with the objectives of your advertisers, you can increase your chances of impressing potential sponsors. The next step is to look for brands you enjoy and let them know you’re interested in working together. Also, think about if you would buy their stuff (because you will be marketing for that company)!

Lastly, the most important thing is to come across as someone who would be an excellent fit to sponsor their business.

14. Sell Merchandise

As a gamer, you are aware that your love of video games can contribute to your sense of self. Game-themed or game-inspired merchandise can be very popular for this reason.

Look at sites like Etsy and Redbubble to see what’s selling if you have any design talents. Although using licensed characters in your design may not be permitted, you might get inventive and market other things that gamers would enjoy.
You don’t need to manage shipping or keep any inventory because of print on demand technology. Just upload your designs, establish your pricing, and let the platforms handle the rest. Emphatically, another approach would be to work with well-known broadcasters to produce merchandise for their followers.

Are there any inside jokes or catchphrases that they would like to see on a shirt? Ask them if they’d be willing to split profits with you by reaching out to them with your design examples.

15. Compete in Tournaments

Winning video game tournaments for competitive games like Call of Duty, League of Legends, Fortnite, etc. can earn you some substantial cash, albeit it’s not a reliable source of income (unless you’re exceptionally excellent).

Timothy Miller (aka “Bizzle”), one of the best esports players in the world, receives about $322k in cash awards from Fortnite competitions each year.

This is arguably the simplest method for earning money from video games. Even yet, unless you excel at the game and constantly succeed, it doesn’t pay well.

16. Become a Game Developer

Making your own games is another method to make money as a gamer. The average compensation for game developers at well-known companies like Ubisoft or EA is $83,000. However, working for a major gaming company is a tough career that frequently requires overtime and holidays.

As an alternative, you can work alone as a game developer and profit from in-game sales. For instance, Markus Persson alone was responsible for creating Minecraft through his business, Mojang. He paid a staggering $2.5 billion to Microsoft to purchase Mojang.

17. Teach Video Game Design

You could teach people if you have some experience with the creation of video games. Teaching fundamental coding terms and concepts as well as methods for designing video games can be lucrative for instructors.

Consider checking out Outschool if you enjoy dealing with children. Here, you’ll establish a captivating course for aspiring game developers and designers.

You may make a pre-recorded lesson for Udemy or Skillshare if your subject is more appropriate for adults. You will receive a tiny royalty for each student that enrolls, with top instructors earning hundreds of dollars a month.

18. Work in Customer Service for a Game Company

Gamers require customer assistance just like any other organization. A fantastic approach to earn money in the video game industry is to work as a customer care representative for a gaming firm. Customer support representatives typically make $13.64 per hour, while some can make up to $20.

Some businesses, like Blizzard, even employ in-game administrators who take part in the game and provide support through the in-game chat feature.

One of the finest methods to begin this career route is to secure an internship. Your customer service abilities will be more important to your employment than your gaming abilities. You must be a people person with exceptional communication abilities.

19. Become an E-Sports Star

The term “eSports” refers to a type of competition where you can win prizes by participating in video games.

In a multiplayer competition, professional athletes typically face off against one another either individually or as a team. The way streaming has evolved over the past ten or so years has a significant impact on the growth of esports.
More game producers have launched competitions to promote their games and raise money for such tournaments as more gamers demand competitions involving their favorite games.

First-person shooters, multiplayer online combat arenas, battle royale, fighting, real-time strategy, and sports games are frequently used in competitions.

Normally, there are several e-sport franchises to pick from if you thrive in competition and need to push the limits in a specific game or format. These games include Street Fighter, Dota, Counter-Strike, League of Legends, Valorant, Overwatch, Super Smash Bros., and Dota 2.

Huge competitions with large prize pools, such as the League of Legends World Championship and Intel Extreme Masters, draw large audiences.

20. Sell retro games and gaming equipment

You might have a lot of outdated video gaming systems or games lying around your home or taking up room in a closet, depending on how long you’ve been a gamer. If so, you can get rid of some items and earn some extra money by selling your vintage games and equipment.

Also, selling your secondhand games on Decluttr or eBay is a terrific way to get started. You can also sell consoles and other gaming accessories on eBay. Additionally, you can organize a yard sale, advertise your goods on websites like Facebook Marketplace, or speak with nearby retailers.
Moreover, the age, condition, and level of demand for the games will all affect how much money you may make from them.

Final Thoughts on Playing Video Games for Money

You can make money off of your passion for video games. There are chances to get compensated:

playing
coaching
evaluating
streaming
testing
developing lessons and other things

The best choice for you will rely on your particular skills, interests, and objectives. The days of your parents telling you that playing video games is a waste of time are over, though, that much is certain

Frequently asked questions

Conclusion

Identify which choices are best for you now that you have a comprehensive list of options.
Keep in mind that it will take time and work to earn sizable amounts of money while enjoying your favorite video games.
Think about utilizing many tactics concurrently. You may, for instance, consider streaming and creating video game tutorials. Take out your controller and begin your quest to earn money by playing your preferred video game.