15+ Tips To Become a Pro Gamer

Want to be a professional gamer and venture competitive gaming in the eSports scene?

Being an eSports player and fancying a complete video game life is something that most young passionate gamers aspire to become.

And that is easily understandable.

Playing his favorite hobby entertaining thousands of game fans in big eSports arenas, alongside developing a professional career out of it, seems definitely attractive.

But, despite all the benefits, living as a pro gamer is not an easy career path at all.

Contrary to the classic gamer lifestyle, a professional eSports athlete aims to earn money from video games.

Gaming is then not only entertainment but also a daily activity to earn his living coming with strict daily routines and obligations, especially while being in an eSports team.

You have to be consistent every day to achieve your goals, whatever they are, to have a chance to join a league or get a good fan base.

But don't worry, despite all the incoming challenges you'll face, joining a team is a real-life accomplishment that you can reach too!

In this article, you will discover 15+ tips to help you become a pro gamer yourself, with what it daily implies.

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What is a Professional Gamer?

A professional gamer is an individual who earns his living with either game tournaments, sponsors, or donations.

The life of a pro gamer differs from the casual player who could make some bucks at the end of the day through gaming and donations.

In fact, an eSports professional gamer can earn way more money from playing competitive video games with tournaments prices and sponsors.

It's a full-time job, after all.

The professional gamer life is also full of self-discipline as everything should be done manually, at least initially.

It means content creation, edition, promotion, support, community management while still having the time to practice.

That's a lot of work and requires a lot of passion and good life habits for pursuing this activity healthy and without facing any unexpected challenges.

15+ Tips to Become a Pro Gamer and Join an ESports League

Here are some tips to become a healthy pro gamer with good life habits.

Be Passionate About Video Games

The professional gamer loves video games.

Whatever is his specialization.

That's why he's a pro and works with them.

Being passionate about these entertainments is mandatory to have a kind of success.

Because the gaming community is vast but highly demanding, probably one of the most exigent globally, the community also recognizes non-passionate enough professionals with ease.

Be devoted enough that your audience knows how much love you have for the video games industry.

But passion is also essential for yourself.

After all, you transform a fun hobby into ultra-competitive work, which can still be funny but have to be considered differently!

To ensure your emphasis is always at the top, you can:

• Follow the latest trends and game updates
• Share with gamer communities your progression
• Make a top-notch gamer setup with accessories for eSports games
• Wear nerdy clothes that every fan love

And you're ready to go!

Pick a Game With Competitive Opportunities

Even if becoming an eSports athlete is a dream for you, some games are more suitable than others in the international competitive scene.

There is a long list of games with eSports opportunities, but some are way more present among the top players with high earnings.

To pick the right game for competitions and tournaments, you should ensure that it check the following points:

• You enjoy playing this game, even if it's not about making money
• You can earn your living from it with high prize pools

So first, you should ensure to select a game that you love to play solo or with a team because it is your primary way to enjoy your activity daily.

By doing so, you're likely to be in a perfect mental state, which will enhance your skills faster and have a matching behavior with other members of your eSport team.

Secondly, your chosen game should also have a high prize pool to earn your living from it with tournaments and sponsors.

According to The Esports Observer's recent study, the following games have a massive prize pool making them top choices for a good competitive game.

Here are the top 10 most paying games in eSports:

• Counter-Strike: Global Offensive ($7.98 M)
• PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds ($7.80 M)
• Fortnite ($6.12 M)
• PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds Mobile ($5.97 M)
• Dota 2 ($5.42 M)
• Rainbow Six Siege ($3.63 M)
• Arena of Valor ($3.33 M)
• Rocket League ($3.01 M)
• Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War ($2.78 M)
• Valorant ($2.75 M)

But top games with high money involved also depend on whether you're playing on a PC, a game console, or even on mobile.

In fact, according to the Esports Earnings' top 500 console players data, competitive gamers on consoles play other games, less paid than PC or cross-platform ones, but still highly popular.

Here are the top 10 games by the number of appearances among the highest paying competitive games on console:

• Halo 5: Guardians (36)
• Call Of Duty: Black Ops 4 (34)
• Gears of War 4 (27)
• Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare (24)
• Call Of Duty: Black Ops 3 (24)
• FIFA 19 (22)
• Super Smash Bros. Melee (19)
• Halo 3 (18)
• Call Of Duty: Black Ops Cold war (16)
• FIFA 21 (16)

Another interesting point to consider, by adding all different versions from the top franchises, Call Of Duty (FPS) and FIFA (Football/Soccer) licenses are the most popular games on consoles in the eSports scene.

Consider Your Age

Age is also an essential factor in determining a player's abilities to compete in a league.

In fact, some patterns have already shown that age highly impacts the possibility of earning a high prize pool.

With nearly $512,193,121.38M cumulated by 23,726 pro gamers, 96.05% of these incomes were earned by eSports players aged between 16 and 29.

It means that if you're aspiring to become a professional but aren't in this age range or younger, earning your living with competitive games will be more challenging and maybe not worth the expected time dedication.

Making money with live streams or turning your aspiration to become an experienced professional eSports commentator could be way more enjoyable!

Watch Professional Gamers In Action

Watching other top players while gaming in competitive matches is a hobby for many gamers.

With massive streaming platforms like Youtube Gaming, Twitch, and Facebook Gaming, it's effortless to find game replays or commentated eSports game rounds in live streams.

They are a fantastic way to learn some new tricks.

You could even learn and apply yourself some pro gamer moves from these videos.

That's actually what most gamers do.

In fact, watching game streams are excellent ways to get some tips to improve your overall gameplay or get an external point of view on the way to play in-game.

According to SullyGnome data on the most-watched games on Twitch, some popular competitive games appeared in the top 100 and are frequently streamed by the gaming community.

So to enhance your own gamer skills, watching videos is an excellent way to learn advanced techniques and pro gamer moves.

Here are the current most-watched eSports games on Twitch:

• League of Legends
• Fortnite
• Call of Duty: Warzone
• Apex Legends
• Hearthstone
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege
• Overwatch
• Call of Duty: Vanguard
• Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

As you can see, many games genres played at an eSports level are represented in charts:

• Battle Royale
• FPS/TPS
• MOBA
• Fighting

It shows that streaming platforms are a huge potential place to learn new moves and tricks for any professional gamer wannabe interested in these games.

Get The Right Gaming Gears

Being an eSports player means improving your hardware setup frequently.

Esports tournaments require players to play at their best with top-of-line equipment.

Whether you are playing on the computer or the console, you should always stay up-to-date with the latest releases of manufacturers.

There are a lot of gears that you could use to help you improve your performances in-game and boost your skillset.

Some can also improve your gaming aim and accuracy, reduce your fatigue or even avoid unexpected pains in the long run.

At the minimum for your aspirations, you should ensure to have these gamer gears:

• a top-notch wireless gaming headset with a microphone to communicate with teammates and hear every sound, even footsteps
• a robust gaming headset holder to keep your space neat
• a mechanical keyboard with suitable switches
• a gaming mouse with DPIs that fits your gameplay
• a gamer mouse pad made for fast and significant mouse movement
• a controller with solid joysticks and a good grip

Added to a good gamer setup for competitive games, you'll be ready to face the opposition:

• top graphics card to play in ultra settings with high framerates
• a good motherboard with all required ports
• a gold alimentation
• 32GB RAM minimum
• a dedicated high-end SSD to install your games on it
• high refresh rate monitor with beautiful colors
• cooling system to avoid your components to overheat
• a strong Internet connexion to play without lags
• a gaming chair or an office chair with a solid back support

And if you want to enhance your gaming experience and feel like you're in a proper gaming zone, you could also make a gaming room on top of that!

Practice Your Skills With Consistency

The pro gamer needs to practice game skills consistently.

ESports players have to dedicate themself to playing video games every single day to master them with a strict schedule and for long game sessions duration.

Improving their performances fast mainly relies on many practice and adjustments.

That's the only way to reach the level they desire, even when they feel like they're stuck in the same spot.

In fact, according to Goldenglue's regimen infographic, a professional eSports player on League of Legends, a North American pro gamer, practices around 10 hours per day.

Among these practice hours, 50% of the time is dedicated to scrims time, while the 50% remaining is for solo queue and stream.

However, the training time differs from the region pro gamers come from.

According to Greg "IdrA" Fields, a former StarCraft II champion, the eSports player's training time in South Korea includes more playtime.

In Asia, more time is dedicated to practicing, with approximately 12h per day allowed to practice instead of 10h per day for North American eSports players.

So for those aiming to become professional eSports gamers, it's recommended to practice a minimum of 10 hours per day just for playing.

Play With High Ethics

Nowadays, ethical gaming is a norm in every competition and tournament.

Learning to play and progress with fair play is as important as enhancing your player skills.

There are no shortcuts in the eSports scene.

You have to go the hard way and earn your spot in an eSports team as for your place in a league.

There are absolutely no alternative tactics to get more chances to succeed.

Don't ever think you have an edge on all other players because you correctly set up your macros, as they are simply forbidden in most competitive games.

In fact, cheats, aimbots, or custom macros are simply banned in most tournaments with high prize pools.

But earning his spot on a team is not only about hard work.

Learning to respect other players is also a strong virtue that professional gamers have to add to their skill sets.

A pro gamer doesn't win all games but should act with virtue even in the defeat as a representative of an eSports team and know when congrats opponents.

Treating other people the way they want to be treated themselves is a top-notch pro gamer skill.

Join an Amateur Crew

Joining an amateur crew is a real good thing to do early on in your eSports journey, as you'll meet new teammates and learn to get used to some team gameplay requirements.

Most crews can be found online on communities, Discord channels, or even on streaming platforms like Youtube Gaming, Twitch, and Facebook Gaming.

Not to mention that progressing with a team also helps to level up your player skills faster, learn new pro gamer moves, and do funny activities with other people.

Stay in Control of Your Emotions

Professional eSports player knows to control their emotions whatever events happen in-game to stay focused on the objective.

Working on a positive mindset and being in good conditions to play video games helps a lot in their abilities to avoid losing their temper while gaming.

A professional eSports gamer can't act like an individual gamer in his gaming room with some upset reactions.

In fact, as representatives and members of an eSports team, pro gamers have to work and ensure that their public image remains intact constantly.

Self-moderation at any time is not optional but mandatory.

It means that losing your temper while playing competitive games will get you anywhere.

Same for saying things that you shouldn't, as it could just result in losing brands' faith and your sponsors or getting banned from tournaments.

Record All Your Game Sessions

Recording their game session with videos is an excellent way to watch replays while pro gamers aren't playing.

It provides them another perspective to watch from a viewer's point of view.

With these records, eSports players can analyze, either solo or with their team, to find and improve everything that could be tweaked a bit to perform better next time.

It is often the right moment to develop new strategies, study the opponent's movements and tactics, or even the battleground map.

To become a professional gamer, you will certainly have to dedicate some time to this exercise to improve your game knowledge.

Keep Track of Your Progression

Keeping track of progression is a habit for all pro gamers, as they constantly attempt to improve their game performances.

ESports players have to know what statistics are essential for their role to understand where they perform better or worse quickly.

At the very least, aspiring professional gamers should keep a log with the winning percentage per character or position and the average game duration time.

Knowing your skills and abilities statistics will allow you to precisely understand whom in-game characters you excel in for each possible position.

The favorite characters, close or ranged weapons, and positions aren't bound to the one with whom they are the most skilled for many players.

And as for classic sports, statistics is a massive part of estimating pro gamer performances and determining your main role or position.

So it's always wiser to pick and train characters, positions, or weapons that you master, even while it means playing your favorites as a secondary pick.

Choose a role that your own stats favor to increase your chances to compete in an eSports league.

Take Many Breaks so You can Rest

Training and improving game performances are essential for all eSports players.

However, pro gamers also know that it's impossible to maintain concentration without any time break.

Games can be really long, stress intensive, and even exceed 45 minutes just for one round.

That's why taking breaks is mandatory to keep your efficiency, put you back in a good mental state and reduce your eyes, neck, and back fatigue.

A good gamer habit should be to take a minimum of 10 minutes breaks between any competitive games with a long duration.

Get Used to a Good Posture

Keeping a good posture while you are playing video games at a high level is not easy and something that any pro gamer should learn.

There is little to no place for random things or luck in eSports.

The way you position your keyboard, mouse pad, and gaming mouse are all important aspects that directly influence your skills.

Then, your head, arms, and feet should be correctly positioned and your back straight.

Having a suitable gaming stance can significantly impact your overall game performance.

Sleep Properly and at the Right Time

Sleeping is important for everybody.

It helps the body to recover, grow, and function properly.

The same goes for pro gamers who need a lot of energy and reflexes to perform well in tournaments.

But not only must they sleep enough, but they should also do it at the right time.

For instance, going to bed too late is not advised as it can ruin your whole next day and make you feel tired when you have to practice or play an important match.

Stay Active and Exercise Regularly

Besides sleeping, pro gamers should also take care of their physical health by exercising regularly.

In fact, physical activities improve concentration and memory.

It helps them stay in shape, have more energy, and be less stressed.

That also boosts mood, creativity and makes people happier.

So, while pro gamers are willing to improve their gaming skills by playing many competitive games, they have to increase their physical activity in their progression efforts.

Some easy stretches for gamers can even help you reduce your neck, back, and eyes fatigue or even warm you up before any important game to maximize your winning chances.

Doing sports frequently is the best way to achieve a healthy progression, even in eSports.

Drink Plenty of Water and Eat Healthy Food

The more hydrated a professional gamer is, the better they will perform.

A professional always has a close water flask.

It is a must-have and a habit to add to your pro gamer lifestyle.

Mainly to avoid being thirsty while you can't focus on something else than playing.

Having a water flask just around you allows you to quickly drink between 2 game matches or when needed, which is handy and an essential habit for eSports tournaments.

Caffeine is another drink that can enhance eSports player performances.

A single cup of coffee in a day is everything they need to get a slight energy boost.

However, drinking too much caffeine can cause headaches and other side effects, so it should be taken meagerly.

Finally, some pro gamers are also getting used to making their morning smoothies or pure fruit juices before even going online.

With proper sleep, caffeine, and fruit juice, they can even play for hours without interruptions!

Schedule Your Tasks

Scheduling your tasks is a big part of your ability to stay focused on what you have to accomplish every day as an aspirant pro gamer.

The life of a pro gamer is based on a daily routine, so you should be well organized and not be too distracted by things or tasks that don't matter.

Mostly everything can be planned and integrated into your pro gamer schedule.

According to this infographic about the life of a league pro, a typical pro gamer's daily routine should include the following tasks:

• Scrims (6 hours)
• Solo queue/Stream (6 hours)
• Free time (1 hour)
• Practice outside of the game (1 hour)
• Eating (2 hours)
• Sleeping (8 hours)

As seen previously, a good part of your pro gamer routine should be dedicated to actual in-game practice.

However, a reasonable amount of time should also be dedicated to proper sleeping to stay healthy.

Top eSports players like Lee Sang-Hyeok in League of Legends, also known as Faker, sleep a minimum of 8h per day, despite all training time.

A bracing sleep is mandatory for a professional player.

It influences your reaction time for gaming directly, your concentration, or even reduces eye fatigue while gaming.

A non-negligible time is also allowed to eat and drink properly.

Playing at a competitive level is resource-heavy for anyone.

It's essential to get some energy by eating and drinking well enough not to be thirsty or hungry while you're into a ranked game or a tournament's round.

Of course, like classic sports, eSports athletes should opt for healthy food and not junk food.

As the last one will just decrease your overall gaming performances and, worst, could cost you crucial wins.

Being sleepy or yawning in a critical game round against top-notch eSports players means a quick defeat for you and an easy victory for your opponent.

Then there is some time dedicated to practicing outside the game.

Watching game replays to analyze your game performances or opponent's ones, analyzing their strategies, developing yours, or even working on your teammate's communication are tasks to do frequently.

Considering the amount of time to play with the other members of an eSports team, it's indispensable to know them correctly, even in real life.

Finally, there is some time for breaks, to take a short rest for your eyes, your neck, your back, and re-energize.

Remember that a pro gamer's daily routine also depends on individual abilities and stamina.

The important is to define a healthy one who fits yours.

For us, this routine miss time exclusively allowed for physical activities that also enhance game performances and focus abilities.

But that's our personal takes.

What is a Good Healthy Pro Gamer Daily Routine?

Our recommendation for a good and healthy professional gamer routine should include:

• A solid base for scrims and solo queue/stream time (10 hours)
• Sleeping time (8 hours)
• Dedicated workout/Yoga (1.5 hour)
• Time to practice outside/analyze the game (1 hour)
• Time with eSports teammates (1/2 hour)
• Eat time (2 hours)
• Free time (1 hour)

This pro gamer routine is based on our own version mixing both the American eSports players regimen with the Asian ones.

With a stronger focus on wellness and analyzing game replays, this routine should be healthy for any pro gamer wannabee.

How Much Money do Esports Players Make?

The average eSports player's earnings are $913,106.90 (total in career), according to the top 500 players' earnings ranking by eSport Earnings.

Can a Gamer Girl Become a Professional Esports Player?

Actually, yes, a gamer girl can become a professional eSports player.

In recent years, the world of competitive gaming has seen a surge in women participants.

While gamer girls still make up a minority of the eSports community, they are increasingly becoming involved in professional gaming leagues and tournaments.

For instance, Sasha "Scarlett" Hostyn, a professional eSports gamer girl in StarCraft II, already earned $425,939.85 from 237 tournaments.

Nowadays, many pro gamers have begun to recognize the skill and dedication of gamer girls, and many top teams now actively recruit esports girl players.

As the number of gamer girls continues to grow, we will likely see more and more women competing at the highest levels of professional gaming.

So if you're a gamer girl with aspirations of going pro, don't let anything stop you from chasing your dream.

How to Become a Sponsored Gamer?

There are a few things to do well to become a sponsored gamer:

• You need to be exceptionally good in your game. It means putting in the time to practice and hone your player skills.
• You must be active in the gaming community. It means participating in forums, social media, and live events.
• You need to create a brand for yourself. Be creative and stand out from the crowd.
• You need to be able to work with sponsors and promote their products or services.

If you can do all of these things, you'll be on your way to becoming a sponsored gamer.

Finally, don’t forget to have fun with it all!

Pick your favorite game and gamer accessories and start practicing to reach a competitive level.

Watch the pros play and learn from their strategies.

And when you finally feel confident in your skills, join a tournament and show the world what you can do.

That's how you can become a pro gamer.

Be sure to check out our Twitter for updates on new gaming gear we’re adding on the store lately, as well as song recommendations to put you in a good mental state (or just because).

Thanks for sticking with us until the end – now go make some noise in the gaming community!