“I was very poor as a kid and had to share a bed with seven siblings. But now I have $300,000 thanks to esports.”
RIYADH: When it comes to rags-to-riches stories, Rowgien “Owgwen” Unigo’s is a tough one to beat. As a child, he shared not just one bed with seven of his siblings. Today, he’s a 23-year-old professional esports player with a career earnings of $300,000.
“I grew up in a very poor family,” says Owgwen, from Quezon City, Philippines, who is the roaming world champion for Saudi Arabia’s Falcons in “Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.”
“We are seven siblings and just started living in our grandparents’ house. All seven of us sleep in the same big bed. I’m the oldest. Sometimes my other siblings would wake up in the middle of the night because there wasn’t enough space in the bed for all of us, so we couldn’t sleep.”
His family struggled to make ends meet. His mother, who worked in a restaurant, and his unemployed father divorced when he was young.
“We were so poor that we had soup and rice every day of the week,” O’Gwen says. “The soup was free from a neighbor and the rice was from my grandmother, who we lived in the same house with. There wasn’t enough rice to eat because there were seven siblings. It was really hard.”
Despite all these events, he developed a passion and talent for gaming, playing games whenever he could with friends and people who saw his talent.
Owgwen, whose incredible gameplay has been loved by millions of fans around the world, vividly remembers the first time he won the “Mobile Legends: Bang Bang” amateur tournament in the Philippines.
“I thought, ‘There’s money here,’” he recalled. “I win – I get paid to win these competitions. And that helps a lot when it comes to taking care of the family. As the oldest son, that money helps my family survive every day.”
His dream is to become a professional esports athlete. The obstacle to becoming an esports athlete is that he has to take a break from his call center job to compete as much as possible and be recognized, since he is only 19 years old.
“Luckily, Coach Ducky was the one who looked out for me. He helped me get into esports and the rest is my journey,” Owgwen said of fellow Filipino Francis “Ducky” Glindro, who coaches the Falcons.
“I raise three siblings, who are only children, aged 14, 12 and 11, and are still in school,” Owgwen added. “I help the family earn money and of course pay the bills.
“It means a lot to me to be able to do that. Life is hard when you have nothing and you have to struggle to survive. Doing that has allowed my family and myself to experience some normalcy.
“I made about $300,000, which has changed my life and my family’s life. I feel so good that I can give my family the life they want.
“What inspires me the most is that I come from poverty, which makes me want to compete and play effectively against my opponents.”
In addition to supporting his family, he recently set up his first business: an internet cafe and gaming center in Binangonan, about 30 km from the Philippine capital Manila. His father helps him run the gaming center.
“Business is booming,” Owen smiles.
Growing up, Owgwen never dreamed that his gaming would take him to places all over the world. Two years ago, when he was 21, he took his first flight, and since then he's traveled to Cambodia, Indonesia, Romania, Japan, and Saudi Arabia.
The latest project is the Esports World Cup in Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest gaming festival, which runs for eight weeks from July 3 to August 25 at Boulevard Riyadh City.
The high-level tournament sees the world’s best players and clubs compete for the Esports World Cup Club Championship. With a prize pool of $60 million, it is the largest prize pool in esports history and is truly life-changing.
With Owgwen’s impressive performance, the Falcons advanced to the finals of the “Mobile Legends: Bang Bang” Esports World Cup earlier this month. However, in an incredible game of the era, they were defeated 4-3 by Malaysian team Selangor Red Giants in front of a huge crowd at the Saudi Esports Federation Arena.
Despite Owgwen’s disappointment, the Filipino knows that overcoming obstacles is what he’s made of. He also sees the bigger picture and is amazed by the passion for gaming and esports in the Kingdom.
“This place is huge,” Owgwen said. “Saudi Arabia supports esports. It allows us to shine as athletes who might not otherwise have the chance. It means a lot to me. I think it’s a pleasure to serve the Falcons here.
“They trusted us to keep their name. We reached the final but unfortunately we didn’t win. But it was still a great experience for us on this trip to Saudi Arabia.”
When asked if he wanted to become a millionaire from esports, Owen replied, “I’m not interested in the money. I’m more interested in winning esports games and helping my teammates develop in the ‘ML:BB’ path.”
And his message to those who were once just like him, with only dreams and love for their family to live for?
“Never stop,” he said. “Never stop pursuing your passion. If you really love what you’re passionate about, you’ll never regret it. And you’ve come this far.”
