Nonfiction reading response: New York Times article

Imagine making a million dollars a year playing video games! The article “In Gaming, He’s No. 1 With a Bullet: Sponsors Help Rising Star Train Like an Olympian” by Conor Dougherty (New York Times, November 16, 2014) describes how Matt Haag and his team OpTic make about a million dollars every year playing “Call of Duty,” through YouTube contracts, ads, and sponsorships, as well as tournaments. The author implies that the Olympic-like training for video gamers is a bit silly, but Matt takes his training seriously so that he can keep people interested in what he does and keep making money. The pastime of gaming has become more of a stressful business for people like Matt, who think of it as an investment in their future.

            Gamers like Matt usually eat In-N-Out burgers and sugary drinks and sit all the time. But now that he and his team are sponsored by Red Bull, they are doing special training to keep up their performance. The article states that they eat, “high protein pancakes with ingredients like flax oil and chia seeds, whose balance of carbohydrates, fat and protein was created by a dietitian hired to eat more healthily.” They also take an hour-long yoga class everyday that teaches them how to stretch their wrists. This shows how serious they are about staying healthy and keeping up their energy to get an edge in competition.

            What started as an enjoyable pastime has become more like work for Matt. His team plays video games for a very long time into the night. To keep his fans interested, he has to share stories from his personal life, and when he plays online he even has to talk to his fans while playing. The article states, “Mr. Haag, bags under his eyes, wanted to take a night off and go back to the house in Venice. He asked his teammates if they wanted to go with him. They declined.” Matt then decided to stay and play even though he didn’t want to because he wanted to keep his fans. This shows how dedicated he is to his fans; he understands that if he keeps them, then he keeps his top position in the gaming world.

The article made me realize that being famous in online media doesn’t last very long and Matt Haag is aware of that which is why he keeps thinking about his future. It also made me realize that any job that you’re interested in will get old after a while.