Fornite gamer Griffin ‘Sceptic’ Spikoski made almost US$200,000 last year. He’s 14
- Griffin Spikoski is shy and anxious in person, but confident, playful and mischievous in the virtual world
- Big break came last year when he beat a well-known Fortnite player and uploaded video of the battle to YouTube
Griffin Spikoski spends as much as 18 hours a day glued to his computer screen playing the wildly popular, multiplayer video game Fortnite.
His YouTube channel – where he regularly uploads videos of himself playing the online game – has nearly 1.2 million subscribers and more than 71 million views; figures that have netted him advertisers, sponsorships and a steady stream of income.
Last year, that income totalled nearly US$200,000.
The healthy sum – more than enough to comfortably raise a family in most American cities – is all the more impressive considering Spikoski is 14 years old.
Still, he approaches video games the way an elite student athlete would approach a sport like football or basketball: when he’s not playing, Spikoski, who goes by the name “Sceptic” on YouTube, completes school work online.
But video games remain his focus, according to family members.
“It’s kind of like my job,” Griffin told ABC affiliate WABC-TV, noting he plays about eight hours a day in his Long Island home.
