If you want to make a little extra money while playing the supremely unpopular Fallout 76, then you can always be an illegitimate gun runner. People who are sitting on clever exploits for accessing dev tools and item duplication have been making an absolute killing selling their ill-gotten gains to other players on sites like Ebay, trading them in game for very real money.
Eurogamer dug into this virtual gun running and discovered a cottage industry that was making bank for a number of involved individuals. The reporter bought a massively overpowered gun on Ebay for $10 and was quickly brought into the surprisingly professional world of Fallout 76 black market deals. The seller contacted them on Discord and promised a swift delivery after they had conducted another drop off for another player, even apologizing for the inconvenience of a mild wait.
Joining the seller's server, the reporter then made their way to the proposed meeting point of Charleston Station, where they found the grifter squatting by a low table. There was the gun, shiny and new, ready for use. It was seamless.
Ultimately they got talking and the seller confirmed they'd made around $2,000 selling virtual in-game items and that they knew people with custom sales websites which have pocketed over $10,000 for their efforts. Another claimed they'd made $20,000, having sold one power armor set to a buyer for $250 earlier this year.
The most successful seller of all, however, goes by the name of Martin Tim, and claims to have made more than $50,000 selling in-game items. He does manage 12 different PlayStation accounts to get the job done, but that's a small price to pay for what is, for most, a high-income. Especially when it's as low intensity as selling virtual goods.
Have you ever made much money from selling things in-game?
