It won’t be long before parents in Bhutan also come to terms with their children playing games on mobile phones. What is considered a waste of time and money by many is already providing a living for some. A small group of youth who broke barriers to make a living by playing games will soon take part on an international level. They will compete in PUBG and Mobile Legend games with international gamers from across the world.
‘‘Initially, my parents were not supportive when I play PUBG. They thought it was a waste of time. But this changed when I started winning matches and was able to make money. They started supporting me then,” said Kuenlay Gyeltshen, who will soon participate in the World PUBG Championship Qualifiers.
Along with him, nine young gamers are preparing for the International Esports Federation’s 14th World Championship Qualifiers. It is scheduled to be held next Monday. If they get through, they will represent Bhutan in the World Championship which will be held in Bali, Indonesia in December later this year. However, they solicit support from the government to succeed.
‘‘For us, it is important to have good internet speed. If the government could help us with internet speed, then we will be able to compete with international people and not only compete we can also win,’’ said Sangay Yenten, the Team Captain.
‘‘Through my experience, I have learned that the Bhutanese society doesn’t understand how the game works, or how we can earn from games. We can earn through online streaming. Many of them earn about 50 to 70 thousand per month through Facebook streaming. And we can earn through sponsorship,’’ added Pema Jamtsho, also a gamer.
They say online games can support child’s learning and teach them key life skills if they know how to manage their time. They added gaming also helps them develop their creativity, nurture relationships with friends and improve critical thinking.
‘‘Because of poor time management, there is a lack of support and negative impacts on the gaming community in our country. If there is good time management we can do any activities,’’ said Tshering Tashi, a gamer of Omega Esports.
Bhutan Mobile Gaming Association, a non-profit organization is facilitating the entry for World Championship Qualifiers for the Bhutanese gamers. The Association was established in March last year and became a member of the International ESports Federation in May this year. About 128 countries are members of the federation.
The association in the country is challenged with a lack of human resources to organize tournaments.
‘‘We lack manpower. People do not want to work because they don’t earn anything by working with us. We have very less volunteers during our tournaments. We don’t get sponsors easily because business entities think that it has nothing to do with their businesses,’’ said Sherub Lhaden, the Managing Director of the Bhutan Mobile Gaming Association.
Despite these shortcomings, the young gamers are optimistic that they can leave a mark on the international platform. And then there is the prize money from 20,000 USD to 50,000 USD for the team which can drive them to win.
Karma Wangdi
Edited by Phub Gyem
