King of the (virtual) world

Are you a gamer? Or, perhaps, are you a GAMER. The difference might not be obvious, until you read the story of Jorge Yao at the NY Times. It’s a crazy story about one man’s quest in the online game Clash Of Clans. It details what led him to the game, and continues with the story of he became an internet celebrity. The number one player in the world for six months, Jorge attracted 90,000 twitter followers, 30,000 facebook likes, and hundreds of thousands of views for youtube videos.

It’s a great article, chronicling what it took to remain on top for so long. A few quick details: $250 a week in in-game purchases. $3000 over the first three months of his run. That led to getting a sponsor to continue. Playing up to five accounts at a time, even in the shower. Eventually, it became too much, but the work paid off in the form of a job with a gaming company.