Walter Kibet Limo-Founder of Arkitech Studios Project Manager pitches his game project to Temi Afolabi-Xbox Global Expansion Africa and Middle East and Irene Githinji-Program Manager Education Microsoft ADC during the Xbox Game Camp
The only thing I’m jealous of about Ama2000s’ childhood is that their parents could not say, “Get off that game and do something to build your career prospects.” That’s because ‘professional video game player’ is now a thing, and some of these guys pull in millions, which is way more than one could expect to earn if they joined the rat race.
The only problem is that it is much like being a pro athlete—very few get to the top. The vast majority of gamers are like the big-bellied middle-aged men you see in your local sports club—they are not making a career of it.
As it turns out, the e-sports companies that have sprung up aren’t exactly killing it. There were boom years, especially when people were stuck at home during the pandemic, but that has passed.
Most esports companies are struggling financially. There are high costs to running esports tournaments, and these costs are not offset by revenue from ticket sales or merchandise. The viewership for esports is also declining. As a result, esports organizations are laying off staff and cutting ties with players.
Not even the game developers are making money. One of the most popular esports titles is League of Legends, and the developer, Riot Games, is hardly breaking even. They make losses in many of the tournaments. However, it’s worth it for them as a huge advertising event to get more players hooked, who ultimately spend on microtransactions, where the big bucks are.
Well, that’s hard to read. The whole esports industry seems to be collapsing just as kids were telling their parents they were trying to secure their future by putting in 12 hours a day on the PlayStation.
The silver lining
Competitive team players are most affected. However, if we’re being real, that should not be a big deal for the aspiring gamer. The chances of ever getting on one of those teams were as good as nonexistent.
Did you know that the average age of esports players is relatively young, typically in the early 20s, due to the importance of quick reaction times and fine motor skills?
Here are the average ages of competitors in some leagues:
- Call of Duty – 22
- Overwatch – 21
- League of Legends – 21
- CS: GO – 23
It turns out it is not the decline in motor skills that causes the average esports player to retire by 23, like Overwatch players. The motor skills do not even decline enough to make them uncompetitive in their mid-20s.
It is the stress that comes with being a competitive player that gets them. Stress, overwork, job instability and exploring new ventures are the main reasons cited.
Those new ventures are interesting. They are the silver lining we talked about. There is life as an influencer, which can often be more lucrative than the professional gamer route.
However, it should be noted that being a pro-player only requires putting in the hours to improve at the game. Being an influencer requires more. You have to be engaging, witty, and entertaining. Being good at the game comes in second.
Now, those skills will not be gained by playing games for 12 hours a day. So, unfortunately, most gamers won’t succeed as gaming influencers.
Yet, in many cases, the high profile that players get by making it into professional teams offers the best chance to transition to influencing. It’s wild.
Anyway, if gaming still sounds like a viable career for you…
The gaming industry in Africa
The African video game industry is projected to reach $1 billion in revenue in 2024, up from $862 million in 2022. This goes aginst global trends of declining video game activity.
Hence why Xbox Game Camp Africa wants to capitalize on this growth by fostering talent development, providing support, and inspiring the next generation of African game developers.
This may disappoint players, but Xbox Game Camp Africa is about helping game developers, not necessarily gamers.
The recently held 2024 Xbox Game Camp Africa was participated in by industry experts from Xbox, aspiring game developers, and gaming enthusiasts from across Africa.
The workshops covered game development aspects like design, storytelling, brand building, and marketing.
Challenges Noted:
- Developer Experience: 63% of local game developers have five years of experience or less.
- Financial Viability: Only 19% of African gaming professionals have secured external investment for their projects.
I know that most didn’t hear anything after the $1 billion statement. That means there is a large cake for both players and developers to dig into. I mean, you’re not wrong. However, go after that pie with the knowledge that your chances are slimmer than you might have imagined.
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17 comments
…..but personally I find ETS 2 more interesting n realistic than these eSports games.
that’s because you can’t afford to play those games on your pc.ETS was last updated a decade ago and yet you saying it’s more realistic,that’s garbage bro.
ETS 2 last updated 10 years ago? Maybe you are the one spewing garbage.
FYI, they just released driveable electric trucks just a few weeks ago.
Tin tin
Yes that true but I think GTA VI will be the most realistic game to ever exist even the legendary PS5 engine couldn’t handle it
Check out Linus Tech Tips recent simulator rig build.
Funny thing is for such a booming industry I don’t even hear about people talking about home grown games.This “1 Billion dollar” industry is mostly not benefitial to us as Africans.
Part simulator, part game. Bullet ballistics should be realistic, and the sound insane. You do not get to regenerate on a well placed shot like Ghost Recon, not Future Soldier, the first and best one.
Ffr
P IRATES
BUCCANEERS
OF THE
ATLANTI C COAST
BY
EDWARD ROWE . SNOW
AUTHOR OF
The Islands of Boston Harbor ; The Story of Minot
’
s
Storm an d Shipwrecks of New Englan d
Roman ce of Boston Bay
THE YANKEE PUBLISHING COMPANY
72 BRO AD STREET
BOSTO N, MASSACHUSETT
P REFA CE
Reader—here is a volume devoted exclusively to the
buccaneers and pirates who infested
,
the shores, bays, and
islands of the Atlan tic Coast of North America . This is n o
collection of Old Wives
’ Tales, half
-myth, half
-truth,
han ded down from year to year with the story more
distorted with each telling, n or is it a work of fiction . This
book is an accurate account of the most outstanding pirates
who ever visited the shores of the Atlantic Coast .
These are stories of stark realism . None of the arti
ficial school of sheltered existence is included . Except for
the extreme profanity, blasphemy, and obscenity in which
most pirates were adept, everything has been included
which is essential for the reader to get a true and fair
picture of the life of a sea-rover.
Bold, daring adventurers, whose deeds are still dis
cussed from the far reaches of North America to the
tropical islands of the West Indies, parade through the
pages of this volume . There is har
‘
dly a square mile of
sandy beach from the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland
to Key West, Florida, which has n ot felt the imprint of
the buccaneer
’
s boot .
In gathering material for the pages of this volume,
there were many persons who were very generous in their
assistance . Anna -Myrle, my wife, deserves my sincerest
thanks and appreciation for her unselfish part in the work,
while Dr . Robert E. Moody was ever willing,
to read the
various chapters with a critical eye . Dorothy Carmichael
generously gave her talent and time . My mother, Alice
Rowe Snow, read many galley sheets with her expert
nautical eye . Raymond Hanson
’
s assist ance was priceless .
Whenever a critical technical problem presented itself,
Nathan R . Krock was ever capable in solving it .
Others to whom I am grateful include : Elizabeth L .
Adam s, William Alcott, Warren 0 . Ault, Doris Bean,
Alton Hall Blackington, Alice Powers Blackington, Dorothy
Blanchard , James L . Bruce, Clarence S . Brigham, Kath
erine Clark Bulher, Madeleine Connors, Elizabeth Earle,
Robert J . Egles , Laura Gibbs, Francis F. Haskell, Marion
Haskell, Emily Heittm an , Vincent Holmes, Helen Hope,
Flora V. Livingston, Eleanor C . Metcalf, Robert I . Nesmith,
Foster M . Palmer, Ernest D . Sproul, Irwin Smith, Donald
B . Snow, Edward D . Snow, Eunice T. Snow, Harriet Swift
,
John G . Weld, and Warren G . Wheeler .
While in England I was helped Considerably by Mrs .
Kathleen Baber of Harrow and Mr . Frederick Penfold of
Bristol . I shall n ot forget their kindness .
The following institutions were generous in their
assistance : The Bostonian Society, The Boston Public Li
brat y,
the Marine Museum,
the Massachusetts Historical
Society,
the United States Coast Guard, the Society for the
Preservation of New England Antiquities,
the Ma ssachu
setts Archives,
the Suffolk Court House,
the
‘
Boston Marine
Society,
the Harvard College Library,
the Boston Athe
n aeum ,
the Peabody Museum,
the Essex Institute, and the
AmericanAntiquarian Society.
If I have neglected to mention any person or any
organization in the stress of publication, I trust that I shall
be forgiven .
E. R . S .
WI NTHROP , M ASSACHUSETTS
OCTOBER 7 , 1 944
C O NT EN T S
INTRODUCTION
PART ONE—NEW ENGLAND PIRATES
CAPTAIN BELLAMY, WRECKED AT CAPE COD .
CAPTAIN QUELCH, WHO BROUGHT GOLD TO NEW ENGLAND
I WI LLI AM FLY, HANGED IN BOSTON
ASHTON, WHOSE STORY Su RP A SSE s-ROBINSON CRUSOE
THOMA S POUND, WHO ESCAPED THE HANGMAN
’
S NOOSE
THOMA S TEW OF NEWP ORT,AID E D BYNEWYORK
’
S GOVERNOR
CAPTA IN PHILLIPS, WHOSE HEAD WAS PICKLED
OTHER NEW ENGLAN D PIRATES
DIX IE BULL, THE FIRST NEW ENGLAND PIRATE
THOMA S VEAL, THE PIRA TE OF DUNGEON ROCK
FIRST PIRATES HANGED IN BOSTON
J OSEPH BRA DISH
THE LA ST PIRATES EXECUTED IN BOSTON
PART TWO—CHESAPEA KE BAY To FLORIDA
CAPTAIN GEORGE LOWTHER
CAPTAIN EDWARD LOW, THE INFAMOUS BUCC ANEER
CA PTA IN FRANCIS SPRIGGS, ACTIVE OFF FLORIDA
’
S COA ST
CHARLES HARRIS, HANGED WITH HIS CREW AT NEWPORT
PART THREE—NEW YORK, PHILADELP HIA , AND SOUTHWA RD
CA PTAIN WILLIAM KIDD,
“
INNOCENTEST
”
OF THEM ALL
BLACKBEARD, THE MOST FEROCIOUS PIRATE
MAJ OR STEDE BONNET, THE GENTLEM AN PIRATE
CHARLES GIBBS, WHO WA S HANGED AT NEW YORKg.
THE PIRATES EXECUTED AT PHILADELPHIA
PART FOUR—THE WOME N PIRATES
ALW ID A AND MRS . CHING
MARY READ AND ANN BONNEY , WHO LOVED AN D FOU GHT
PART FIVE- NEWFOUNDLAND AN D NOVA SCOTIA .
BARTHOLOMEW ROBERTS, THE PIRATE CAVA LIER
THE HUSBAND AND WIFE PIRATES
PART SIX—SEARCHING FOR BURIE D P I RATE TREA SURE
THE LURE OF PIRA TE GOLD
PIRATE TREA SURE FOUND NEAR BOOTHBAY, MAINE .
A SUCCESSFUL CA PE COD PIRA TE TREASURE HUNT .
INTRO D UCTIO N
Pirates were the most picturesque and romantic
figures who ever sailed the seven seas . They were also the
most terrible . Old as the history Of commerce, piracy was
one Of the first activities connected with early travel an d
trade, for wherever people go with goods and gold rob
bery inevitably follows them . The Greeks had a word for
piracy
The Romans called these adventurers of the
‘ Mediter
ran ean pirate . S pellman in his Glossarium , Dr . Gowel in
his Interpreter, and Blount,
in his law dictionary recount
the history of the modern development of piracy. In ancient
days the name pirate denoted a maritime kn ight . Gradually
the word came to mean an admiral or commander at sea .
Lord Edward Coke calls such an individual a man accus
tomed to the practice of
“ Roving upon the sea .
”
Another term for pirate is buccan eer, which comes
from the French word bou can ier,
“
a drier of beef.
” Men
went ashore on West Indian islands where the Spaniards
had already murdered most of the population . Here they
captured and killed great herds of cattle which were
roaming the islands , run ning wild because of the death of
so many of the inhabitants . Drying the beef,
they sold it
to various traders and merchants . Since the Spanish dis
approved of this practice,
the buccaneers began to carry
arms for defense . Gradually,
the buccaneers changed from
drying beef to killing the Spanish crews of Ships they
encountered , pillaging and looting as they went . They
eventually organized themselves as Brethren Of the
Coast.
One branch of buccaneering was filibu sterin g. The
m en who practiced this type of piracy were military ad
venturers operating as freebooters along the American
Coast without the backing of any country . AS a rule the
term did n ot apply to buccaneering north of Cuba .
Pirates , buccaneers, fil ibu sters, and freebooters ap
peal to the imagination of both young a n d Old . Children
have always enjoyed building a raft or manning a leaking
rowboat to sail or drift to an uninhabited island n ot too
far from shore, where they pretend to be either Blackbeard
or Kidd to their heart
’
s content. Was it not Mark Twain
who said that a boy never had a real childhood un less he
played as a pirate or buccaneer?
The strange wild thrill from reading pirate tales is
nearly always inherited from childhood . If as Wordsworth
sa ys
“
the child is father of the man,
”
everyone has in his
heart a desire for romantic advent ure . Age makes little
difference in this respect .
My own interest in pir ates and buccaneers began
when I was about four years Old . My Older brother Nicho
las,
then twelve years of age, had been showing a group
of his chums grandfather
’
s collection of foreign curios .
The boys were all gathered in ou r parlor . High on the wall
hung a pirate
’
s poison dagger, which my grandfather had
captu red af ter a fight with the pi rates on the island of
Mindanao , near Z amboanga .
“ Here is a real pirate
’
s poison dagger, cried
Nicholas, pulling the ancient relic from its scabbard .
“
If I
cut
‘
you , you
’
ll die
‘
a horrible death .
”
Just then Mother heard the comm otion as Nick chased
the other boys around the parlor. She ran to the door,
almost fainting when she saw what was happening .
Put that dagger down at once, she screamed .
“ Let
me have it !
”
“ NO, Mother, I
’
ll put it away myself, said the boy.
But in the confusion Mother received a gash in her hand .
“ Oh, I am ou t . What shall I do ? The poison will kill
me, cried Mother . It was a terrible situation, and I never
forgot it . Mother did n ot die ;
in fact the ou t had n ot
penetrated beyond the outer skin . However,
the next day
Mother took us all in the parlor and warned us never again
to touch the poison dagger . She told us in such a dramatic
manner and with such Vivid imagery that we n ever
‘
forgot
her solemn warning.
A
Later on I passed through an active period of search
ing for buried treasure on every island near ou r home.
Even today, when I hea r of a location where a treasure has
been discovered, I find it fascinating to learn what I can
about it, visiting the scene and photographing the money or
the Objects found whenever possible . At the present time
there are a t least four locations in Massachusetts alone
where the prospects of finding coins are good . To be sure,
the expenses involved would be more than the net return,
but the fun of searching for buried or sunken treasure is
much more alluring than any po
‘
s
‘
sib
’
le financial gain .
It is interesting to conjecture as to how much money
the famous pirates of Old buried along the Atlantic Coast .
A conservative estimate, exclusive of the Oak Island hoard ,
totals about but if five percent of this is
recovered within the next century,
in spite of the new radio
locaters and other
“
devices,
it will be a miracle .
Men like Blackbeard are believed to have buried
their treasures well . The night before he died , one of his
crew asked Blackbeard if anyone knew where his treasure
was hidden . His reply was typical . He answered,
“ Nobody
but myself a n d the Devil knows where it is, and the longest
liver Shall take all .
Christopher Columbus himself is claimed by some to
have been the first pirate in America . Francis Drake was
also a pirate—in 1 572 he sailed on an expedition in to
West Indian waters, reaching the Port of Nombre de Dios
late on e night, where b e caused terrible bloodshed .
Some of the great men of piratical history, whose
activities centered elsewhere than along the Atlantic Coast,
are listed below :
Roc the Brazilian ; Peter the Great, a French buc
caneer; Bartholom y Portuguez,
the filibuster (
freebooter)
John Esqu em elin g, who writes of his experiences and
those of others ; Pierre of Tortuga ,
the pearl pirate ; Francis
L
’Olon n ois,
the torturer; and Raven eau de Lissan , well
kn own around Cu ba . La Fitte,
the pirate of the bayous
outside Of New Orleans ,
is in a special niche in the Gulf
of Mexico
’
s Hall of Fame . Colorful Henry Morgan,
in a
class by himself for his atrocities and daring around
Panama, was on e of the greatest buccaneers Of all time .
Another great pirate was
“
Long Ben
” Avery. Al
though his depredations were committed in the Indi an
Ocean, he visited America to sell his fabulous fortune in
diamonds and other precious stones which he had acquired
by capturing and plundering ships of the Great Mogul .
When he reached the New World, he changed to a small
sloop and scattered his crew along the entire Atlantic
Coast, allowing them to go ashore with rich treasure .
Avery, however, had concea led the greater part of the