“You won’t gain anything from playing computer games”. We’ve all heard that line (or something to that effect) from our parents/guardians at least once in our life, worse maybe every waking day of your existence. At least that statement was true two or three decades ago, but these people on our list proved that money (not to mention fame) will follow if you just do what you love to do.
Editor’s Note: The total earnings of each of the pro gamers listed here does not include sponsorships and deals.
10. Xie Junhao aka Super ($458,940.79PHP 26,933,170INR 38,895,140EUR 437,049CNY 3,340,309) – A member of Vici Gaming since 2012, Super started his career at the age of 18 and has since earned close to half-a-million US dollars by consistently placing among the top 5 in almost every tournament that he joined.
9. Zeng Hongda aka Faith ($459,520.12PHP 26,967,168INR 38,944,238EUR 437,601CNY 3,344,525) – Unlike Super, Faith has already been in three different teams since he started back in 2011. A former member of Tyloo, the 22-year old DotA 2 pro is currently playing for LGD Gaming where he usually plays the role of support during tourneys.
8. Alexander Dashkevich aka XBOCT ($592,633.56PHP 34,778,997INR 50,225,576EUR 564,365CNY 4,313,365) – For almost two years, XBOCT and teammates over at Natus Vincere or Na’Vi were the epitome of what their team name stands for (Born to Win) as they constantly ranked either first or second on every major tournaments that they played since 2011 up until the mid-way point of 2014.
7. Danil Ishutin aka Dendi ($595,579.65PHP 34,951,890INR 50,475,256EUR 567,171CNY 4,334,807) – With nearly a decade of experience under his belt, Dendi is one of the main driving force behind Na’Vi’s incredible success which ultimately placed him and his teammates in the upper echelon of the who’s who in the DotA 2 community.
6. Clement Ivanov aka Puppey ($612,296.75PHP 35,932,941INR 51,892,027EUR 583,090CNY 4,456,479) – Before his departure from team Na’Vi in August of last year, Puppey took the role of the team’s captain after ArtStyle left to join DTS Gaming. He had a fruitful career as he and his squad rallied to win the $1,000,000PHP 58,685,500INR 84,749,800EUR 952,300CNY 7,278,300 grand prize in The International 2011 at GamesCom in Cologne, Germany.
The remaining professional players on our list belong to team Newbee, the organization that took the DotA 2 community by storm after walking away victorious in the prestigious TI 2014 and taking home the tournament’s grand prize which soared to a record-high $5,028,121PHP 295,077,795INR 426,132,249EUR 4,788,280CNY 36,596,173. This, obviously, catapulted the total earnings of each of the team members to the roof and has earned them the title of the 5 highest earning DotA 2 players in the world.
Here are the names of The International 2014 champions and their respective total earnings (in ascending order):
5. Zhang Ning aka xiao8 – $1,102,698.15PHP 64,712,392INR 93,453,448EUR 1,050,099CNY 8,025,768
4. Zhang Pan aka Mu – $1,179,959.08PHP 69,246,489INR 100,001,296EUR 1,123,675CNY 8,588,096
3. Wang Zhaohui aka SanSheng – $1,179,959.08PHP 69,246,489INR 100,001,296EUR 1,123,675CNY 8,588,096
2. Zhihao Chen aka Hao – $1,185,659.98PHP 69,581,049INR 100,484,446EUR 1,129,104CNY 8,629,589
1. Wang Jiao aka Banana – $1,185,934.87PHP 69,597,181INR 100,507,743EUR 1,129,366CNY 8,631,590
Needless to say, there’s money to be made in being a professional gamer. This is probably one of the reasons why a lot of players reacted the way they did when the news broke that one of the barangays in Cavite banned DotA from computer shops in their community.
Do these officials have the right reasons to believe that playing video games will just be a waste of time and money? They probably do. After all, they won’t be compelled to take matters in to their own hands if there’s no need to do so. However, this doesn’t take away the fact that DotA/DotA 2, or E-Sports in general, have evolved over the years that it’s no longer just a mean to while time away, but a lucrative industry and a platform for ordinary people to make a name for themselves.
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abuzalzal says:
Sheesh, those people better get a real job instead of resorting to playing games on tournaments to earn money. There’s no such thing as “forever” for everything, you know?
lol says:
..bitter much? probably coz you’ll never get the change to win the same kind of dough as they have?
#respect
archie says:
Agree. And for a handful of earning pro-gamers, lots of them are broke. At bago manalo sa mga tournaments at makakuha ng sponsors, gagastos muna sila ng personal savings sa flights, etc. Iba pa rin ang totoong trabaho.
secret says:
agree. .kaya nga tinawag na game kasi past time lang. .napakababa ng success rate nito kung gagawin mong hanapbuhay kasi maraming magaling na player. .iba parin ung nagtapos ka ng pag aaral at may permanenteng trabaho. .
abuzalzal says:
@lol
I’d rather earn my money the hard way than earning it in an instant. Nothing beats the feeling of self-accomplishment when you know you get something the hard way.
wew says:
@Abuzalzal, what made you think that “playing computer games” is their only means of earning for a living? Or they play just to earn money? Do you know them personally? You never know, they play just because they want it, not because they need it. It’s just that they’re so lucky that they get paid for something they love to do.
“I’d rather earn my money the hard way than earning it in an instant.”-Who said it’s instant? Do you have a proof? Have you experienced being paid to play games to have that such claim? Sorry, but you really sound so “bitter”. Just leave them alone, they just do what they want and there’s nothing wrong with that.
nice says:
” There’s no such thing as “forever” for everything “.. same goes for regular work. what great analysis you have..
Vincent says:
It’s because Dota2 (and any other eSports like COD, LOL, CS:GO) are still considered “Games” by close minded people that it is still called games by others. If you put enough discipline and hard work it becomes a sport. Kung sasabihin mong laro lang naman dota2 and other people can play it leisurely, eh ano pinagkaiba niya sa Basketball? People play basketball for leisure. Pero pag binigyan mo ng discipline it becomes a sport. And which athletic sport began as a sport and not started it’s way from being a game? Open your mind.
abuabu says:
baket di mo sabihin yan kay kobe bryant,lebron james at kevin durant…wahahahha…pareho lang sila naglalaro pero kumikita…
Name: jacob says:
as abuabu said, that is no different from professional athletes. We have millions of basketball crazy filipinos. Every street corner is a basketball court. 99+% of these kids will never see a professional contract. Maybe some will be good enough to play in the UAAP or NCAA. But neither you nor I have the right to tell them to stop dreaming.
Working hard in a regular job/business is for people like you and me. People who do not have athletic talent or gaming talent. I’m sure you or you know people who play basketball every sunday in your local court. Why do you even bother to play? Because it’s fun. And that’s why people play games, it’s fun. It’s for relaxing. It’s a hobby. Whatever. Does the reason really matter? So if people want to make a career out of gaming, let them.
heyhey_vvv says:
@abuzalzal – PASSION, yan ang forever. Kung may passion ka sa ginagawa mo, trabaho man yan or “game”, lalabas at lalabas ‘yun kaya you’ll be rewarded. Mas dapat ngang mainggit ka sa kanila kasi hindi lahat ng tao nabibigyan ng pagkakataon gawin kung ano ang passion nila sa buhay. Hindi na lang 8-5pm ang klase ng trabaho ngayon. Information age na Boy, makakatulong ang konting open mindedness at si Google.
RaM says:
Para mo na ring sinabi na tumigil ng maglaro ng chess si Wesley So at tumigil na sa pag-bilyar si Efren “Bata” Reyes.
nami says:
I remember this quote that one of my favorite profs said. “Be in the top 5% in whatever you choose to do in your life. Even if it is being a janitor, be part of the top 5% janitors in the world”…
@albuzalzal you probably have never felt the real thrill of gaming if you don’t think playing a game gives you self-accomplishment, and if you think what they’re doing isn’t “hard”… what they’re doing is comparable to that
archie says:
Games are games, for fun lang yun at hindi accomplishment. Hindi financial saver ang games dahil mas maraming pro gamers na talunan kesa kumikita. Tama lang ang sinabi abuzalzal butthurt lang kayong sobrang adik sa dota.
Eddie says:
Ang daming bitter sa mundo. Ampalaya pa more. Kahit buong lifetime niyo kayo mag trabaho hindi nio kikitIn yung mga kinita nung nasa list. Mamatay na lang kayo sa inggit. Nag lalaro lang sila at nakaka pag travel. Weee
archie says:
Napakabobo mo naman kung iniisip mong naiinggit kami ni abuzalzal dahil sa criticism namin. Di porke mas may pera sila e mas accomplished na sila sa buhay. Bitchy sensitive piso net gamer ka lang na walang skill para mabuhay sa totoong mundo.
Eddie says:
O eto pa isang na overdose sa ampalaya. Hindi nila kelangan critisismo mo. Dahil kahit anong angulo tignan wala kayo sa accomplishment nila. Pwede na sila mag retire at mag enjoy sa buhay. Ikaw forever dukha. Hahah
archie says:
Hindi ako bitter at hindi ako dukha. Wala kang sense magcomment. Nasubukan ko na ang lahat ng sikat na console games mula nintendo hanggang playstation 4. Master league player din ako sa starcraft 2. Gamer ako pero di ako sira ulo na magiging progamer at mag uubos ng sariling pera kakahanap ng sponsor sa tournament. Yung passion at dedication na alibi ninyo ay normal lang ginagawa sa lahat ng bagay di lang sa sports. Tama si abuzalzal balat sibuyas lang kayo sa opinyon ng ibang tao mga iyakin.
Digest says:
Bitter ka lang Abuzalzal.
Ok, sa tamang pag earn kamo? Anong trabaho mo ngaun? Ilang taon ka na sa trabaho mo? Manager na o employee parin?
Lahat naman magaling sa kanya-kanyang larangan eh. Nagkataon lang, magaling sila sa paglalaro.
Vincent says:
If only ph can accept eSports as a legit sport and not a forced sport then things will be ok. Granted that they come from games meant for fun, there is still a competitive side to them that require teamwork, strategy, reflexes, training and experience, such as what Athletic sports require. Here though, there are no physical advantages like height, speed, weight, strength so all is balanced properly. Yes there may be no health benefits for playing a lot in front of a pc or tv, but it all hangs on to how athletes discipline themselves. Accept the fact that these are real competitive spectator sports and not some petty ass game forcing it’s way to publicity. Free your mind from hate. Try understanding how the game works and watch pro players do it 10 folds better than the regular player does.
paul says:
People asking pro-gamers to have a real job is like telling Manny Pacquiao, “Hey, you don’t really have a future in boxing. It’s better to have a real job. It’s better to finish school.”
Rob says:
Get a real job huh? Sabihin nyo rin yan sa mga boxers and basketball players na yun na ang kinabubuhay. Kita ng utak kasi eh. 2015 na ngayon tama na pagiging Old school
bulateking says:
@abuzalzal & @archie – go research before you speak. playing dota2 is a work. especially in china and korea. FYI sa inyo to.
edong says:
I’m a video gamer since childhood and I am proud of it. Always on top of my class from hs to college, married to a loving wife, my son’s in a private school and got a very decent high paying job. What more can I ask for, right?
Point is, its always about discipline and doing what you love to do. I agree with the posts of paul, rob and vincent. This is the modern age and video games has evolved bigger than what we think it is. So please, don’t judge the gamers.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/31/technology/esports-explosion-brings-opportunity-riches-for-video-gamers.html?_r=0
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3214002/
Its a huge industry and people benefits from it. Whether you’re the user or the game maker, we’re paying the experience of it. Its already a part of our culture and we must embrace it. “Dumaan din ako sa pustahan and tournaments for games like CS,starcraft,battle realms and red alert, and they are experiences I never want to forget.. it was fun!”
I’m still playing dota2 at least 10 games a week, work from 9-6, ironing clothes on weekends, washing the dishes every night, tutor my son, and running 5-21k’s and going to church on sundays.
Responsibility, discipline, time management, and understanding is the key. Works for me and I am happy.
This is my life and I share to inspire.
qazw says:
You don’t need to be a progamer just to earn money from gaming. You can be a games streamer and earn money from that. Just look up the most popular Youtube channel and it belongs to PewDiePie who’s a video game streamer. And he earned $4 million in 2013.
ingetero says:
kahit anong sabihin nyo, losers pa rin kayo sa tingin ng lahat ng ordinaryo, normal at nagtratrabahong tao. LOL.
qazw says:
Well I guess you’re right. A normal girl who loves playing video games, has a 8am-5pm day job that earns her 50k a month is still loser. LOL.
cocksickle says:
basta ako i love to play c*ck, mine or someones…that is all.
Lee says:
i play dota on weekends masaya kasi nakaka relax at nahahasa ang strategy skills ko, i work in the office mon-fri, i run on fun runs, i workout 4x a week.
sa totoo lang it’s just time management. just enjoy life and be happy.
Yuj says:
Walang basagan ng trip.
Kanya kanyang diskarte yan.
Tama yung sinabi about athletes. Di naman buong buhay maglalaro yan pero may yumayaman pa rin.
Dagdag mo pa yung mga artists like painters, musicians, actors, chefs, etc.
Kung may talent or passion ka for something then make something out of it.
Find your niche in this world.
Yan na kalakaran ngayon.
Kung sa tingin mo sa regular 9 to 5 ang niche mo then so be it.