Imagine being in an alternate universe, where your mom tells you, “Kaka-computer mo ’yan, yumaman ka tuloy!”

Hard to imagine, I know. No mother in their right mind would want their child to spend all their time playing video games. But the part about becoming rich through streaming and gaming isn’t as far-fetched as it sounds.

In the global streaming scene, we’ve seen millionaires crop up from among the most popular streamers. Online personalities like Pokimane and Disguised Toast have started forming their own companies and side projects, thanks to the fruits of their streaming careers.

While it’s hard to say whether the Philippines has produced individuals as financially successful as Pokimane and Toast, there is a crop that proves it is possible to thrive as a streamer. These are people who have turned their passion – gaming – into entertainment for anyone who stumbles upon their content, and their source of livelihood.

One such individual is Twitch Streamer Noctile, who has almost 26,000 followers on the platform. He sits among the top streamers in the Philippines and is most known for playing first-person shooters, specifically Riot Games’ Valorant.

In 2018, Noctile was in Abu Dhabi as an overseas Filipino worker. Almost every day after work, he would log in to his computer and start playing games with friends back in the Philippines. His friends, including streamer RamenStyle as well as actor Paulo Avelino, would eventually convince him to go live on Twitch and share his games with watchers on the platform.

Not long after, he decided to come home. Streaming then turned into a feasible opportunity for him as he realized he was earning enough money through subs and sponsorships to make ends meet. His streaming career would soon blossom into other forms of content, appearances, and even being signed up as a talent for the international gaming organization Talon ESports. All this was happening as he continued to grow and nurture his own chat and community.

In this episode of Teach Me, Senpai, host Julian Cirineo sits with Noctile to find out what that journey has been like for him. They talk about the games Noctile plays, how he manages to play and entertain at the same time, the investments he has made in his career, and his relationship with his chatters and moderators.

The episode goes live on Sunday, September 10, at 7 pm. Bookmark this page so you don’t miss it! – Rappler.com