Online gaming is one of the fastest-growing industries around, and so as you would expect this throws up a wealth of opportunities for enterprising individuals to earn cash while the boom is building momentum.

Earning Opportunities in the Online Gaming Industry

If you are eager to become one of the latest to profit from online gaming, this brief overview of the main options for going about this could point you down the right path.

Playing

There are a few ways to play online games such as online solitaire or get your deposit £10 play with 50 bonus free spins and generate cash, some of which are more viable than others in terms of creating an actual career.

If you happen to be especially skilled, you could get involved in the burgeoning esports scene, and potentially go pro once you have proven yourself worthy in any number of competitive titles, from CS: GO and Fortnite to Starcraft and beyond.

Then there is the online gambling ecosystem, where everything from poker to slots can be played for real money to give you the chance to win big. Of course, you will need to learn important lessons before going this route, such as what does a high variance mean in slots, and as with e-sports, there is no guarantee of success.

Alternatively, plenty of people make a living by streaming games live to audiences via services like Twitch. While the big stars make millions, there is also a whole legion of personalities with smaller audiences that nevertheless provide them with enough earning potential to avoid the 9 to 5.

Testing

Another of the more accessible aspects of the online gaming industry which might present an appealing career path is that of becoming a QA tester.

Those charged with quality assurance in this sector will of course spend a lot of their time playing different games and looking for problems that need to be weeded out before they are released to the general public.

If you start at the bottom and work your way up, you could eventually lead entire teams of testers, and work on major projects with a solid salary and benefits to support you. The other benefit of earning in this way is that you do not need any technical skills per se; all you need is a love of gaming and a willingness to learn.

Developing

A bevy of brilliant entrepreneurs have got their start in the online gaming industry by developing games from the ground up, and this is definitely an avenue that is still worth exploring, in spite of the market seeming somewhat saturated at the moment.

If you have the programming experience and a killer idea, then you can technically build an online game on your own, although in reality, it will be easier and quicker to work with others on the project, even if the scale is relatively small.

Teaming up with established publishers can also help you get your game onto as many platforms as possible, and it is worth noting that many of the biggest online franchises in existence today actually began life as player-made mods for other titles.

So even if you are just tinkering in your spare time, this should not be considered wasted effort, as it could one day lead to a major payday, if you play your cards right.

Reviewing

Playing and making online games is not the only way to earn from interactive entertainment; you can also make money by writing about them.

There are a whole host of publications dedicated specifically to gaming, and if you have ever dreamed of working remotely and submitting articles reviewing the latest titles or providing your opinion on the state of the industry, then this is entirely possible in the modern era.

There are also writing opportunities within the industry itself. For example, you could work in marketing for online gaming companies, handling everything from copywriting for their websites to publishing posts on their social media accounts, so a wide range of skill sets are encompassed.

Selling

The final aspect of online gaming which could be a way to earn money is partly related to playing games but is more to do with your business skills. This is because a number of titles have integrated marketplaces where players can buy and sell digital items for use in the game.

Games like Eve Online and Second Life have their own economies, and some people make a living by trading intangible goods.

This could be a fun way to build your own abilities as an entrepreneur, without the overheads involved in setting up a real-world business. Or of course, it could just be a diverting way to pass the time that just happens to earn cash on the side.