This post will discuss why now is the best time ever to be a content creator, and you need to consider starting your journey today. User Generated Content is a growing industry, this post will use the massively popular FiveM as an example of how successful this can be.
Then...
At the beginning of Tebex, nearly 10 years ago now, it was almost unheard of to monetise your server and as such people didn't really see much value in running a server. Although there were some diehard communities that were managed by passionate people, at some point, the funds to keep the project and dream alive needed to be found somewhere, and not everyone is financially secure enough to pay for this out of pocket, resulting in few servers lasting more than a couple of weeks. The same can be said for people who dedicate time to creating mods and plugins etc, at some point their time investment can come down to working a few extra hours to pay bills or creating a new script. Often, the bills will win (rightly so).
Now...
Things have changed in the past 10 years and Tebex has been a leader in many ways in this industry, we now provide the platform and tools for many creators to make enough money to live, meaning they can dedicate their time to their content creation and not have to worry about picking up extra shifts to make ends meet.
We're so proud of this history and we consider this a real achievement. When we receive emails from sellers who tell us they have been able to resign from their 9-5 because their project is going so strong, we are so humbled and happy for them.
The Best Time To Be A Content Creator
We're in the midst of a new era in terms of User Generated Content (UGC), and Tebex is forging the way ahead. UGC can be anything from maps, scripts, mods, addons, plugins, custom skins etc, including creating your own custom server and making video content.
Being a content creator doesn't mean you need to be a Twitch streamer or make YouTube videos, you can be a content creator creating game content for server owners. An example of this: a very viable career can be made from creating FiveM (Grand Theft Auto V) products such as scripts or models, as well as actually running a FiveM server. Grand Theft Auto V is consistently ranking high on the Steam player count charts, which is no surprise when you look at how versatile the game is, this is especially visible when you look at FiveM servers. FiveM has been a huge success in the UGC industry, as explained here in our blog post.
Let's take a look at a popular FiveM server now, watch the trailer for Nopixel 3.0 below (video made by GTA Wise Guy):
After watching the video, hopefully, you were able to see how creating content for game servers provides a new experience for players time and again.
Some FiveM servers completely build their content from scratch using a talented in-house development team, but many servers create a great universe for players using sold assets and scripts - saving them time. The assets that can be purchased can range from car and building models to scripts that create events for your player base to enjoy, and a lot more.
The freedom to create your own universe is appealing to many, many people. No longer needing to rely on one sole source of multiplayer or co-op play (usually the game's dedicated servers, which often stagnate with no new features) is a huge advantage.
The wide scope of server ownership and content creation means extensive freedom for players - players can enjoy Minecraft in a space theme, prison break, mini-games, Pixelmon and more. FiveM players can roleplay as police, dancers, ambulance service, doctors, or more shady individuals - the sky is the limit. All of this brings diversity to playing a game, and every game breeds different opportunities for creativity.
Every server is different - which means new experiences for players time and time again. In turn, this means that games never truly die down as players will continually be finding new universes to explore, and new content to create or react to, which leads to more YouTube and Twitch content, which leads to more exposure for the base game and more sales along the pipeline.
An Opportunity For Everyone
So let's recap here. You can make money by creating good UGC, maybe a little, maybe a lot. The key point here is that making money from your passion, and potentially making it your career is now entirely possible. You don't need to have gone to university, and you don't need to work for a AAA studio to be able to make a great experience for players - you can actually make your own content, either as an ingame product or as a server experience to players.
The UGC industry is growing and we're excited to be a market leader in this period of growth.