The market for the sale of items and ready-made characters from online games has a minimum of requirements for beginners and is not regulated by the state in any way. The owner of one of the gaming exchanges told Gazeta.Ru which games are better to start with, how much such “work” can bring in money every month, and whether new sanctions against Russia will interfere with earnings.
What is the Game Value Market?
RMT Market Real Money Trade], that is, the resale of items from online games for real money, developed in Russia from “browser” games, in which it was possible to buy items for money within the developer system, and computer clubs, in which players actively upgraded their characters for sales in the secondary market.
For real money in games, you can enhance your character: buy armor, weapons, elixirs, level up.
As Alexander Gubarev, the owner of the paygame.ru gaming exchange for services and items, told Gazeta.Ru, at the dawn of the Russian RMT market, some characters were valued at $150-200 thousand, and a good apartment in Moscow then cost $70-80 thousand.
“Game developers received a huge influx of money by selling ordinary “pixels” – items that they themselves invent, draw and sell themselves,” Gubarev said, speaking about the official market.
Players deliberately repeat the same actions. For example, they kill the same type of opponents to constantly gain experience (character leveling) or go through difficult story missions to get more valuable rewards, such as weapons, armor, etc.
The main goal of the “farmer” is to sell the received as expensive as possible. He can also receive in-game currency and use it to buy artifacts, characters, and rare items.
Potential buyers are looked for in game chats (like Discord), social networks (like VK) and on thematic forums. There are also specialized online platforms specifically for RMT.
It is even easier to find people on them who are ready to give rubles for a pumped character, a rare reward, gold or an account. Typically, such “marketplaces” take a commission for the operation, guaranteeing the security of transactions.
Mobile games are considered the best choice for initial earnings.
“These are Genshin Impact, Raid: Shadow Legends, Lineage M. There you can understand what games are, what you can earn money on, and get used to simple mechanics,” Gubarev explained.
However, if the gamer is already familiar with Lineage, WoW (World of Warcraft), ArcheAge, Perfect World, EVE, Path of Exile and other MMO [massively multiplayer online games. – approx. ed.], then it’s definitely worth returning to them first of all, the head of paygame.ru advised.
It is worth getting acquaintances in the game and gradually forming a team that will work together for a common goal – making money in online games.
According to Gubarev, it is gradually possible to go with this team of acquaintances to new games. One of these in 2021 was New World, where the main professional traders moved, the expert noted.
Tips before starting
Without experience in games, it will be quite difficult to start earning money, Gubarev is sure. There are two reasons, he says.
The first is the mode when a person becomes the master of his time, is not suitable for everyone and can relax at the very beginning.
“As soon as a person decides to go to the RMT market and trade, he gets on thin ice – games can be addictive, distract from the main goal – from earning, and completely destroy a person’s personal life.
And the second reason is a misunderstanding of how the game works. According to the expert, professional earnings on games are not only excellent knowledge of the game, but also discipline and flexible thinking, sharpened for earnings.
“You must not be a gambler, clearly understand that you came into the game to earn money, set goals for yourself and achieve them,” Gubarev added.
According to the expert, it will be difficult, and sometimes impossible, to combine work in the office and such earnings on games.
This is work with clients, communication, market intelligence, wrapped in a game process,” he stated.
How much can you earn?
In some regions, trading in games brings in two to three times the average salary.
“I have friends who earn from 300 to 400 thousand rubles. monthly. Of course, they have the infrastructure, team and regular customers for this,” the specialist noted.
There are two main types of traders: amateurs who do it for the soul, and professionals who have ready-made teams with expert players. Such teams “farm” [get game values] for 18-20 hours a day.
A novice player who wants to start making money needs to learn the game and the trading system, Gubarev explained. In some cases, gamers already in two months reach a profit that replaces the salary at their main job.
“But it’s still worth focusing on 20-30 thousand rubles. per month for amateur start. Time spent on familiarization – three hours a day will be enough when you move to the trading phase, these are the same 3-4 hours of effective time in the game, ”the expert said.
The time cost for such an amount is approximately six hours a day for a month.Among the professionals in RMT there are resellers who live on the difference between buying and selling.
