DON'T BE A PRO GAMER - IT'S HARD. REALLY HARD.

Gw nulis post ini pake bahasa Inggris karena.. gw lagi kepengen aja. Buat yang gak ngerti, bisa coba Google Translate atau tunggu versi bahasa Indonesianya nanti.

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If you are around 14 to 25 right now, and you are dreaming of becoming a professional gamer, you are born in the right era.

Few days ago I read Kotakgame's article that how timely it is to become what people would not imagine decades ago: making a career by playing games.

Yes, it's true. What a time to be alive, right?

The problem is, almost everybody wants to be a pro gamer.

That isn't a bad thing, though. I think almost every gamer had thought that if they are really, really good, they can make a living out of it. That kind of thought is the one that started the Esports industry.

But if you noticed enough, the best gamers are the ones that really beat themselves over and over again, the ones that sacrificed a part or even the most important thing of their life - such as family, social life, youth time, relationship, etc. The ones who never give up and willing to try unlimited times.

Luck plays a part as well. For instance if you are really, really good but you are in a team where the rest are not trying hard as you do, it would arguably be harder for people to notice your efforts. Or maybe you just can't have the chance to shine because of things like family restrictions, poor wealth condition, physical limitations and so on.

The combination of raw talent, discipline, dedication, networking and luck makes them on the top.

I want to break the path of a professional gamer down into stages:

Stage 1.
You like playing the game, and you feel you are really good at it. You keep playing and develop a deeper understanding of the game.

Stage 2.
You compare yourself with other people, count how much you win or lose against the others. If you collect more wins, you are relatively better than the majority of players.

Stage 3.
You compete with the ones like you, who are better than average. See if you can win against them. If you want to pass this stage you might have to win some local / mini tournaments.

Stage 4.
Some fellow gamers might notice you as one of the better players in the game, and you keep competing at higher levels. This include national-scale competitions worth millions of Rupiahs at stake.

Stage 5.
Proceeded to be one of Indonesia's best, now you are competing in international tournaments as a representative of your country. People in lower stages want to be like you.

Stage 6.
Regional's best. Getting recognition and appreciation from people outside your nation, or even the government and mass media. 

Stage 7.
World's best. The celebrity of Esports. Finally you can show to the world that you can live as a pro gamer. It's a dream come true.

Some people might be stuck at a particular stage.. Well that's life in a nutshell. Either you try harder, or calling it quits.

To be fair, that's just how the world works. People who are more successful in life is far far less than the rest of population. Success is relative, though. But the ones who can make it from the bottom to top is not as common as people walking on the street. Everything matters if you want to climb up your rep.

Here is one thought if you really want to be a pro gamer - pro, as in professional, making a living from playing games:

If you are aiming to be eventually paid, or endorsed by someone to play and compete in gaming, then it is not a privilege just because not everyone can earn it - it is a responsibility, a fruit of trust you have to grow and keep it away from rotting.

When people pay you, or endorse you with their brand because you're pretty good at gaming, they put trust in you.

They believe that their investment in you will be paid off later, based on your achievements and progress.

Do not ever think that if you are paid from playing games, you don't need to train anymore because you have achieved something.

Do think that if you are paid from playing games, you have to keep improving to prove that you are worth their investment.

If you want another insight, do read Bekti's journal about becoming a pro gamer. It's in Bahasa Indonesia so you don't need to Google Translate anymore (hooray).

So maybe after reading this, you will start to decide if you are brave enough to try competitive gaming or give up.

It's not a bad idea to just ignore everything I've written on this post and go YOLO - you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

But remember this: if you want to gain something, you have to lose something.

It's just like a physics theory of energy - you cannot create nor destroy it, but you can change or transfer it into another form.

As time goes on, you will learn things - maybe that everything cannot go according to plan even if it has been prepared properly, or that you realized it's not as easy as you've thought - it's completely normal. 

"The master has failed more times than the beginner has ever tried." - Stephen McCranie

Or maybe you decide not to be a pro gamer, but you still want to involve and contribute in developing the industry. Well the fact is, we really need more people like you here.

The state of Esports industry in Indonesia is relatively getting better in the past 10 years, but the growth is kind of slow compared to other countries.

I suspect it is because we have little innovation as people just want to imitate rather than research.

It might be because there are less human resources that work on another aspects of Esports such as production, journalism, or other applicable talents.

It might be because the majority of gamers want to be appreciated as the champion in front of the camera, rather than contributing behind it.

And I'm afraid, it might be because people still do not want to take Esports very seriously.

Esports is not just a competition. It's an entertainment industry.

It's not just about people playing games for money and fame, it's how we pack it into something that gives value, insight and entertainment to all people watching and following it.

I might talk about Esports 'behind the scene' sometime in the future, but I will stop for now.

Thank you for reading. I hope it brings an additional value for you :)