How To Make Money Online Playing Games

Do you have a passion for gaming and would like to turn it into an income? That’s cool! but let me tell you, it isn’t easy and there are so many ways to do it and they all take a lot of time but if you really want to give it a go then here are some tips to do so!

As I said, it won’t be easy so be prepared!

Before I get into making money through gaming I would like to say that our research has been done by speaking to big YouTubers & Pro Gamers. I have also been in competitive gaming for Call Of Duty (some years back) so I know some of the ins & outs of getting started as a pro gamer. Sometimes you need to make a hard decision, shall you keep studying or drop out and become the pro gamer? This is your own decision to make, maybe this article will help you with it too.

Where can I start?

  • YouTube – Uploading Videos.
  • Twitch – Live Streaming Games.
  • Website – Blogging about gaming.
  • Game Testers – Test Brand New Games & Earn Money
  • Professional Gaming – Playing Games Full-time For An Organization

Does it require a lot of effort and time?

Yes, it does, it isn’t going to happen overnight and can take a really long time and requires a lot of effort you have to be consistent, do research and know where you want to go with it. If you love, for example, the Unicorn Priest, you are well familiar with complex video gaming and this helps.

It has taken some people years to even just get a little following and make very minimal amounts of money, I’m talking anything from $0.00 to as little as one dollar, sometimes depending on who you get sponsored by you can make more but don’t expect to see hundreds/thousands rolling in anytime soon.

You won’t be the PewDiePie or KSI of YouTube who is making millions anytime soon, you might not even reach the point of millions or even thousands, sometimes you might not even make a dollar it’s a long, hard process and takes trial and error and believe it or not you do need to have a good personality and be rather entertaining, make good quality content and that isn’t just on YouTube or Twitch.

What if I just make one piece of short content every other day or weekly?

Depending on what you do if you’re on YouTube, one video a week can work but when it comes to a website and Twitch then you really do have to be more consistent.

With Twitch, you can’t just stream once a week and hope to get a following and a website one piece of short content won’t work especially if you want it to rank on Google and have a chance of being seen.

How much can I actually make?

Being honest, that I can’t actually answer. It all depends on who monetizes your videos/streams, the rates they pay for views, etc and if you chose the website route, how much PPC (Pay Per Click), PPL (Pay Per Leads), if you do affiliate marketing or create/ship gaming products.

When it comes to game testing it just all depends on who hires you and the same with professional gaming it depends on sponsors etc and also if you actually win the tournaments you compete in.

Be aware, though, that gaming might take up too much of your time and that your school results may suffer. And if you don’t graduate from high school, your future might be at risk. If that’s the case, not all is lost since you still can earn your high school equivalency credential (GED) if you attend a good online GED prep course. But be wise and don’t let your gaming affect your high school results too much!

How exactly do I get started?

These will be the platforms to get started on:

  • YouTube
  • Twitch
  • Website
  • Game Testing
  • Professional Gaming

In this part, I will be discussing in-depth on how to get started on YouTube. I will talk you through everything from first creating your channel to actually making some money from your channel.

Decide whether creating gaming videos on YouTube is really for you, do you truly have a passion for gaming? or do you think that it would just be the easier option? because I can tell you right now, running a successful gaming YouTube channel is NOT easy.

Take PewDiePie, for example, he makes at least two videos a day, now I’m not saying you have to be as consistent as that but it is just an example and he is one of the biggest gaming YouTubers and one of the most known so he is my best example to use.

Creating a channel

The first and most obvious step is to create your channel when you are creating it think of a short/catchy name that will stick in people’s heads, you can of course just use your own name or even your nickname if you want to but keeping your nickname for later on is best as once you gain a following you can use it as your own personal branding. * Quick tip: You won’t be able to have your own custom URL until you reach 500 subscribers *

To do this, go to YouTube and click on sign in and create an account; you have to create a new Google account for this. For information on simulation games click here.

Have a plan

Think about which games you want to play and make commentaries on or talk over while playing, the best option, to begin with, would be to choose the game you are best at as in the start it won’t be hard for you to talk while playing it or to talk about the game and you will know a lot about the game already.

As your channel grows you can branch out to other games and decide what direction you want to go in, do you want to solely be a Call of Duty YouTuber? or a FIFA YouTuber? do you want to just play games in general, it’s all up to you but decide what would be best for you.

Also now is a good time to decide what kind of commentary style suits you, is it serious? is it a comedy style? is it informative or dramatic?

Maybe there is something else, choose whatever suits your personality or you might not even want to talk about the game you could talk about your life, tell stories, etc again, this is mostly personality based but you do have to be somewhat entertaining for people to watch you.

It really is easier to be yourself though instead of always trying to be upbeat, funny, sarcastic or straying away from your personality just for the sake of a video.

Brand yourself

Come up with a YouTube Logo that suits you and will be eye-catching for people that come to your YouTube channel, you don’t have to have something fancy or over the top just make it eye-catching.

Come up with a way to introduce your videos that is unique to you; for example, DashieGames introduces his videos by saying (and may I note, yelling lol) “What’s up, it’s Dashie and welcome to… *insert game name* “ and then afterward, he rambles on for a bit or on his camera does some sort of little dance or action.

Also, think of a way to end your videos, you could just simply say “that’s it for today”  and then say goodbye just make it unique to you. DO NOT copy other YouTubers.

Capture Devices

To record your gameplay you will need a capture device like Elgato, Aver Media, Black Magic: Intensity Shuttle, there are some cheaper ones available also but I really would suggest you invest in one of the more expensive capture cards like Elgato because not only can these record gameplay from consoles and work really well, they can also record from your PC so you don’t need to go invest in a screen capture for your PC.

I suggest using the Elgato HD60 which is an external capture device but if you would prefer one that you actually put inside your PC which helps with lag reduction when recording amongst other things then I definitely recommend the Elgato HD60 Pro even for beginners, installing it can be rather easy!

Microphone and PC

Once again, you don’t need some over-the-top professional piece of equipment here; for example, I use my Turtle Beach PX22 microphone.

I do however recommend a Blue Snowball microphone. The one I linked to is only $49 and many professional and successful gaming YouTubers use these microphones. For $89.99 you can get a package of a Blue Snowball microphone, full-size studio headphones and a pop filter for the microphone.

Against popular belief, you don’t need a crazy top-of-the-range computer to make videos on! It just needs to be good enough to run the software for your capture devices, editing software and if you plan to play PC games then those also.

Videos

Upload good content and regularly, in the beginning, uploading once a week will not get you anywhere you have to be consistent in uploading and have good quality content.

Uploading a 1min video of a sculpture on Minecraft won’t help anything, aim to have your videos between 5-10 mins long, you can have them longer if you verify your channel but to start with having an aim for 5-10 min videos.

Also, if uploading every day isn’t good for you then upload at least once every other day, the key really is consistency.

Decide whether you want to have uncut gameplays or if you would like to do cut videos (cut commentaries) or if you just want to do highlights. Honestly, this is just my personal opinion as I can only speak for myself but I prefer watching uncut gameplay as I like to see how the person actually progressed through the game and not just the good parts.

When you talk in your videos make sure to do so with a clear and confident voice, when it comes to watching videos if you speak nervously and very quietly then people will more than likely end up leaving your videos so remember to be confident, speak properly, and just have fun! *Quick tip: The most popular YouTubers make at least one video daily for their audience*

Editing software

Editing software is important for making your videos look good, the top ones on the market are Sony Vegas and After Effects but you don’t need big fancy editing software to edit there are some good cheap ones like Videopad Video Editor that is perfect for starting out.

I have personally made videos using this and I really like the software a lot, I can do a lot of basic editing but it also comes with a lot of advanced features, I will include an example of a video that yes, is unfinished but I have made on Videopad Video Editor just using basic features.

Be Patient

Becoming successful being a Gaming YouTuber isn’t going to happen overnight, it really can take a very long time but as long as you are consistent, upload good content and continue to try, you will start to gain a following and over time, that following will build up. Check out also the best video games for the iPad.

How The Money Is Made

Simply, money is made from YouTube videos by monetizing them, you have to meet criteria to do so but the basics of it, ads will be placed on your videos and, depending on the number of views your video gets, you will earn some money from it, so it’s best to build a bit of a following first before monetizing. You can also get sponsors who will send you products etc but that will also be after you get a following.