Fortnite can make you RICH – here’s how much money pro players like Ninja actually earn
RECKON you could be a Fortnite pro? Well it turns out there's plenty of money to be made – if you've got the necessary gaming chops.
Esports professionals who choose Fortnite as their go-to game can earn hundreds of thousands of pounds in prize winnings alone.
Top of the list is American Turner Tenney who plays under the moniker "Tfue."
Tenney, who is known as the 'Best Fortnite Player in the World', has amassed an incredible $455,425 in prize winnings.
That's not bad considering Fortnite's multiplayer mode is only a year old.
Next up is Dennis Lepore, better known by his gamer tag "CLOAK", who has earned a whopping $408,650.
And in third place is former number one Timothy Miller, – a.k.a "Bizzle" – who has a tidy $392,275 fortune thanks to Fortnite.
Fourth on the list was Nate Hill, who missed out on the chance to increase his winnings of $325,825 after a technical glitch saw him eliminated in the live $2.6m Fall Skirmish grand finals.
It's worth noting that nine out of the top 10 Fortnite prize winners are American.
The only exception is Dmitri Van De Vrie, a Dutch native who ranks 7th on the list for his gaming escapades under the name "Mitr0".
We don't see a Brit on the list until "Tinny" in 60th place, with a respectable $53,450 in prize winnings.
Fortnite – how lucrative is it?
Fortnite isn't the top game for earnings. Here's how prize pay-outs stack up, according to EsportsEarnings...
- Dota 2 – $169,919,840
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive – $62,167,843
- League of Legends – $56,622,490
- StarCraft II – $27,674,383
- Heroes of the Storm – $14,633,269
- Hearthstone – $14,227,654
- Counter-Strike – $12,088,428
- Overwatch – $11,570,305
- Fortnite – $10,542,982
- SMITE – $8,550,112
Importantly, EsportsEarnings only tracks prize money from tournaments – and not other sources of income.
For instance, many professional gamers will have lucrative sponsorship deals and salaries, further topping up their coffers.
And famous video game live-streamers will make significant amounts of money from advertising and fan donations.
Fortnite streaming icon Ninja (real name Tyler Blevins) has only earned £122,628 from tournaments. He even hosted his own Ninja Vegas '18 tournament at the in Nevada, USA.
But the star is believed to have a net worth of around £4.5million thanks to Fortnite streaming.
What is Fortnite Battle Royale?
If you're new to the game, here's what you need to know
- Fortnite's Battle Royale is free-to-play
- It's available on the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, Mac, iPhone and most recently Nintendo Switch
- In the game, up to 100 players are dropped onto a fictional island
- Players are then forced to battle it out in a last-person-standing deathmatch
- To help, players can collect a range of weapons hidden all over the island
- You can also collect resources – like wood, bricks and metal – to build defensive structures
- The area you can play in on the island is constantly shrinking thanks to an encroaching storm
- This means players are forced together over time, until just one person survives
- The game also has a paid-for co-op story campaign
Fortnite isn't the only game you can get rich with, however.
The most lucrative video game is Dota 2, which has resulted in prizes worth nearly $170million being given out to players.
That's compared to Fortnite, which (so far) has generated just over $10.5million in total winnings.
Are you tempted to quit your job and become a Fortnite pro? Let us know in the comments!
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