Any Professional Gamers Here?

Dj_Jestar · 22 Feb 2007 at 13:41

Actually you'll find the average "pro" gamer only plays in his or her spare time like many people do for free..

geforceuser · 22 Feb 2007 at 13:52

ok, but i mean people that don't have another job than gaming.

if the best gamer in the world gets 20000$ for one victory, than the average 'pro' probably gets ten or hundred times less. so with cleaning toilets in your spare time you can make a fortune then....

ChrisJSY · 22 Feb 2007 at 14:18

Never found the time having a job, i'd have to quit and concentrate on gaming. What'd pay for the bills and rent then eh?

Also jersey has no way of actually getting a foothold into the competitive world, i'd have to travel even for initial quallies.

That and i've never found a group of people serious and/or dedicated enough to try.

Ever feel you have potential but never had the chance to try, that's how i've felt. When playing on pubs/lans and the sort you just always seem to be top of the game, means something, that you're not just like the rest, but when you started playing the pro's and still manage to get somewhere but still in an uncompetitive environment and nobody to see.

Sucks

Playing games for a living over this I.T Job? Hell yeah.
High risks tho.

mehuk · 22 Feb 2007 at 14:41

This is all a bit OTT

They are hardly Pro, more like Self-Employed gamers

The best win money, the others dont - you may get a free PC or maybe a free mouse

If Pro-Gaming is going to be that huge, then 'players' should be on proper contracts, with guarentees etc (like 'normal' jobs have)

To say you are Pro because you went to France and got a free mousemat from Logitech is ridiculous. How many people make a honest living out of gaming? Bar the odd top player, who can honestly afford a mortgage etc etc (without help from their parents) just from sponsorship / prize money?

I think gaming needs someone to shake it hope, have a global federation (i.e FIFA) and then let the money flow from there.

Xinn · 22 Feb 2007 at 14:59

mehuk said:
If Pro-Gaming is going to be that huge, then 'players' should be on proper contracts, with guarentees etc (like 'normal' jobs have)

Most true Pro gamers are on contracts with their team. elemeNt was the first person to be bought out of his contract. Think he played for NoA at the time.

geforceuser · 22 Feb 2007 at 15:23

if he was the first, then i dont't think he's average.

Dj_Jestar · 22 Feb 2007 at 15:39

He wasn't first on contract, he was first to be bought out of one.

geforceuser · 22 Feb 2007 at 15:48

Dj_Jestar said:
he was first to be bought out of one.

then i don't think he's average.

so does anybody know how much an average gamer earns with his contract or if he doesn't have one with his prize money?

i still think that if the best people earn only a few hundred thousand and you assume a gaussian distribution then you end up with the toilet salary for the average gamer.

Xinn · 22 Feb 2007 at 16:02

They have a salary which isn't huge, most of the money comes from winnings.

Dj_Jestar · 22 Feb 2007 at 16:11

geforceuser said:
earn only a few hundred thousand

:lol:

Clutching at straws?

geforceuser · 22 Feb 2007 at 16:18

Dj_Jestar said:
:lol:

Clutching at straws?

well for being the best in the world this is not much.

the best tennis players earn a few millions per year. but the average player probably 10-100 times less. so if the best gamer earns a few hundred thousand a year and the average gamer 10-100 times less then there is not much left.

Dj_Jestar · 22 Feb 2007 at 16:22

geforceuser said:
well for being the best in the world this is not much.

the best tennis players earn a few millions per year. but the average player probably 10-100 times less. so if the best gamer earns a few hundred thousand a year and the average gamer 10-100 times less then there is not much left.

Korean gamers have earned absolute fortunes out of playig games like Starcraft. They have regular spots on TV shows (paid for) and have many, many endorsements. It's not just a few hundred thousand for the top.. more like a few dozen million.

Simmz · 22 Feb 2007 at 16:29

That's Korea for you though. Top gamers are treated like if not better than celebrities.

Dj_Jestar · 22 Feb 2007 at 16:30

Simmz said:
That's Korea for you though. Top gamers are treated like if not better than celebrities.

Whilst their footballers earn less than a company director would.

geforceuser · 22 Feb 2007 at 17:01

please fill the gaps:
hello my name is .......
i play .....
since .....
and earn .......
a year.

Simmz · 22 Feb 2007 at 17:16

geforceuser said:
please fill the gaps:
hello my name is .......
i play .....
since .....
and earn .......
a year.

For reference, don't play anymore.

Played starcraft, Counterstrike
Since..... god knows when a long time ago.
Earned £6000 for Starcraft with all expenses trip to Korea & Dallas. Counterstike a pair of sennheiser at WCG qualifiers with old school RATM lol.

Can't really say it was for a year though as the money was for 2 tournaments (both in the same month so could say for 1 months work) and gaming wasn't huge when I first started.

harris1986 · 23 Feb 2007 at 12:46

nice simmz, why did you stop playing?

Simmz · 23 Feb 2007 at 13:25

harris1986 said:
nice simmz, why did you stop playing?

Due to work commitments, I just didn't have enough time to put in and play at pro level anymore.

At the time I played, prize funds were not that high and sponsorship didn't really exist. It's a shame really, but if the right game ever came out in the future then who knows.

I know Starcraft is still played in some tournaments, but it's mainly Korea based players, so trying to find someone decent to play in the UK is virtually impossible.

If the game was just taking off now, then it would be a whole different story, who knows may even have sponsorship. The gaming scene has only just started to get big in various countries, yet it is still very minor in the UK. Korea it is huge, USA has just struck a massive TV deal which is going to make it boom. You have to remember that we are still miles behind in internet speed connections. Nearly every other country has speeds which exceed ours by quite a margin.

Lan cafes are also another thing. Go to Sweden, Finland, Germany, France etc and see the different in their internet cafes compared to ours. For starters the setups on the PC’s are fantastic, gamers actually go there and the atmosphere has more of a vibe.

I am hoping that this up coming Counterstrike tournament will get a lot of interest, and move the UK scene towards where it needs to get too.

Anyway, for the time being my mouse is getting dusty, but hopefully http://www.cspromod.com/ will take off and I shall return (although I never got hardly anywhere in the CS world) but there’s nothing more fun than playing in a lan tournament

R.O.S.S.I · 23 Feb 2007 at 14:31

harris1986 said:
yeah you should hammer your group rather you to us - we have virtuoso - skybomb - unlucky - insignia and headrush, so the only tough games are virt,sky and uL. i play for team intent formerly known as Limitation (some info about us above)

Imo Virt will probs be your hardest game. never seen unLucky play, but Dazza who plays for them i had been in a clan with for a long time, but due to inactivity we folded and he joined them, good player he is, sound lad, lanned with him twice. Skybomb are MEANT to be good but again never seen them play, and ive never heard of insignia lol.
Now then why couldnt i have joined a team for this tourney!!!
Never mind, will prob do IG with a mix team, or hope someones 5th drops out of scan tourney and will stand in.

Harris whats ** name on IRC? i presume ** channel is #intent.

harris1986 · 23 Feb 2007 at 14:39

haha kool i'm SleeK on irc mate, and i have just heard rumours that TSN central are commentating our game against virtuoso on sunday :eek:

so everyone tune in it's set to be a great game! you are right virt will be without a doubt our hardest game, they are the number 2 uk team behind dignitas! i'm confident against unLucky and again skybomb i'm a little bit unsure as i too have never seen nor heard of them playing! i think they are concerned about our game with them as they are already practing de_train which we are playing them on. yeah the virt guys are sound it tens to be the top level players are really sound, it's the little low skill players are the more abusive and immature