RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — Coming of age in the Brazilian
favela of Vigario Geral, Luiz Augusto Jr used to spend his money playing video
games.
Now, he makes a living as a gamer.
اضافة اعلان
Augusto, 23, was working in construction as a stonemason’s
apprentice three years ago when his life took a turn.
An avid gamer, he got involved with
AfroGames, a charitable
project to give young people in Rio de Janeiro’s impoverished favela
neighborhoods access to the multi-billion-dollar gaming industry.
The project gave him training and a grant to launch his own
channel online, where he posts gaming content under the moniker of “AFG Sr
Madruga” and plays a mean game of “
Grand Theft Auto” live for his fans.
“I used to spend a good part of my salary playing at a LAN house
(a gaming center or cyber cafe) here in the favela,” he said.
“When I went to AfroGames, my mom and grandmother thought I
could never make money playing video games. But they supported me, and here I
am,” he told AFP.
Augusto is the first live-streaming gamer sponsored by the
project, which was launched by AfroReggae, a non-profit organization that runs
art and education programs.
Around 100 young gamers now participate in AfroGames, whose
activities are sponsored by companies including Brazilian airline GOL and media
powerhouse Grupo Globo.
The project offers programing and English classes, and has
set up a gaming center in Vigario Geral, with top-of-the-line computers and
mentors to help young gamers learn.
It has also launched a professional gaming team — AFG
esports — whose six members earn minimum wage, 1,100 reais ($210) a month, and
prepare for tournaments with the help of a coach, a psychologist, and a fitness
trainer.
They made their debut at the “League of Legends” world
tournament in 2019. The popular battle game’s championships handed out $2.2
million in prizes that year.
Augusto, meanwhile, receives a monthly grant of 600 reais
for his webcasts.
“It’s brought me recognition in the favela. And I want to go
even farther. I want to be an influencer and a content producer. I’m learning
to do that here,” he said.
Bringing diversity to gaming
The global gaming industry will generate estimated revenues
of $180 billion this year, according to specialist firm Newzoo — more than
double the $74 billion forecast for the music and film industry.
It is not an easy world to access from the favelas of
Brazil, where computers and gaming consoles are far too expensive for families’
budgets.
The idea for AfroGames came from Ricardo Chantilly, a former
music executive who is friends with AfroReggae’s directors.
“They wanted to do a music project, but I told them esports
was the way to go. We set up a meeting for me to show them my idea,” he said.
In his presentation, he included pictures from international
and Brazilian gaming tournaments, with packed gymnasiums where not a single
black or brown face could be seen.
“We realized we weren’t represented in those pictures. So we
said, ‘Why don’t we put a team together from the favela?’” said AfroReggae
co-director William Reis.
The project is now planning to expand to another Rio favela,
Cantagalo, with an esports arena to hold what Reis is billing as “the first
favela gaming championships.”
“When I was a kid, friends would get together and form a
rock band,” said Chantilly.
“Today, they put together an esports team. Gaming is the new
rock’n’roll.”
Up next: Sexism
AFG esports team members train five days a week, in addition
to English classes.
In another trailblazing move for the gaming world, which has
faced accusations of sexist abuse of female players, the team includes one
young woman: 19-year-old Gabriela Evellyn, known by her gamer name, “AFG Haru.”
“When we’re playing, being a woman makes no difference,” she
said.
“But if someone cracks some kind of joke, I just play harder
so I can beat them. Then I say, ‘See? You just lost to a girl.’”
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