Behind the screens: How SA streamers turned sharing their hobbies into a full-time gig

More than 100,000 people watch Amber game online but the Aussie live streaming star reveals there is a dark side to the lucrative industry.

Maddy Watson (@justmaddyx) is a full-time Twitch streamer who has built a career live streaming herself playing video games. Picture: Emma Brasier

Being paid to play video games may sound like a fantasy career plucked from a teenager’s wishlist – but for Maddy Watson, 27, it’s her 9-to-5.

Over the past seven years, the Adelaide gamer has turned her childhood passion into a full-time gig with thousands tuning in to watch her play video games live each week.

“Gaming has been a passion of mine since I came out of the womb basically,” she said.

“Being able to turn this hobby into a full-time career is a blessing.”

She began streaming her Fortnite plays on Twitch, an interactive live streaming platform, in 2018 after a friend suggested it.

As her following grew, she realised that she had found her calling and quit her job at Telstra to stream full-time in early 2020.

Since then, she hasn’t looked back and now has over half a million followers across Twitch, TikTok and Instagram alone.

“It’s been amazing, as someone who’s quite introverted and shy it has given me a lot of confidence to break out of that,” she said.

“This community means a lot to me.”

Adelaide YouTuber and streamer Michael Anderson. Picture: Instagram

Better known as Ando, he posts Pokemon card opening videos. Picture: Supplied

Fellow South Aussie Micheal Anderson, 30, opens Pokemon cards for a living which still feels “surreal.”

Better known as Ando, he’s been making content for over a decade on his YouTube channel UnlistedLeaf which has almost three million subscribers.

“I started around 15 years ago, but it took three years of uploading cringy comedy videos that didn’t go anywhere,” he said.

“Then one day, I uploaded a video of me opening Pokémon cards, just because I love Pokémon and that one just took off.

“From there, it felt like I caught a wave and I’ve been riding it ever since.”

When it comes to livestreaming, you’ve got to be on the ball, he said.

“You’ve got to come up with the ideas, make sure the videos get done, and keep the whole thing moving. There’s no off-switch, it’s always go time.”

SA influencer and gaming streamer Amber Wadham. Picture: @itspaladinamber

She encourages anyone with a passion for gaming to pursue it. Picture: Instagram

When Amber Wadham, 29, started streaming in 2018, all she had was a PlayStation, PlayStation camera and laptop.

“I remember thinking to myself with my first stream ‘this is going to be so embarrassing,’ because at the time I only had my PlayStation and my laptop to read chat from,” she said.

Now streaming full-time, she’s built a “solid community” of around 112,000 Twitch followers over the past four years.

While being a content creator isn’t without its challenges, it’s opened the door to many opportunities including being an ambassador for Maybelline’s Through Their Eyes campaign, working with Razer and getting her own charm in Rainbow Six Seige.

“It’s really cool to think that if I ever walked away from gaming, I’d be able to say I had some real impact,” she said.

With many teens hoping to become content creators, she said education about online risks and consequences was crucial.

“A lot of the issues in the industry stem from kids having unfiltered access to the internet and having no real conversation around why your online behaviour has real-world repercussions,” she said.

Originally published as Behind the screens: How SA streamers turned sharing their hobbies into a full-time gig