Pro-Gamers
Professional gamers play video games for money.
Whether a professional gamer is a subtype of the hardcore gamer largely depends on the degree to which a professional gamer is financially dependent upon the income derived from gaming. So far as a professional gamer is financially dependent upon gaming, the time spent playing is no longer "leisure" time.
In countries of Asia, particularly South Korea and Japan, professional gamers are sponsored by large companies and can earn more than $100,000 a year, in addition to the following that some obtain. In the United States, Major League Gaming has contracted Electronic Sports Gamers with $250,000 yearly deals.
