Former teacher says gaming career has doubled her previous salary

Jarvs Tasker, who left teaching after chronic illness forced her to give up the career in 2019, says she now earns twice her former salary through a business serving the gaming industry. Tasker, 35, is the founder and director of Jarvs Indie Insights, which provides communication and marketing services. She made the comments during a visit to the University of Suffolk’s e-sport building in Ipswich.

She said her teaching experience had transferred to gaming, particularly in community management. After leaving education, she initially volunteered for PlayStation’s YouTube channel before developing her current work. Tasker said the games industry offered many routes that young people might not know about.

She also argued that passion was important because gaming communities could recognise when people entered the sector solely for money. On artificial intelligence, she said the industry was doing well in rejecting its use because players disliked it. In her view, the sector continued to champion human creativity.

The event was organised by Game Anglia to showcase independent developers and studios in the East of England. Mark Backler of Game Anglia said it was more possible than before for individuals to develop and release independent games, although the market was competitive. Developer Sam Read-Graves said the region’s gaming sector had grown substantially over the past decade, supported by clusters of students and developers.

Abbygale Dunn, who runs Essex-based Astral Forge, said there was considerable space for women in the industry. Game scout Omar Khalil identified visibility as a major challenge, saying the UK had no shortage of talent but many games competed for attention.