Featured Image Credit: SWNS
Topics: Gaming, Technology, TikTok
Callum Jones
Playing video games is a very much a hobby for a lot of us, and the thought of getting paid for doing that is not one many will have.
But one woman earns an impressive $5,000 a month for playing her favorite video game, The Sims.
Well, it is way more than just playing as Danielle Howell, 20, builds settings from a variety of famous pieces of pop culture.
Howell spends hours each day on The Sims designing and building houses from the likes of Hogwarts, SpongeBob's Bikini Bottom and Family Guy.
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After the designing and building, The Sims fanatic posts her final work on her social channels.
Howell says that she has 'always had a passion' for video editing, so began to post some of her impressive builds online.
She quickly went viral on TikTok with a video where she built the apartment Carly and Spencer reside in the TV show iCarly.
Howell gained over 100,000 followers on TikTok in less than two weeks, and took the plunge to do it full-time last year.
The TikToker spends many hours looking over every inch of her builds, with her Hogwarts Castle design taking over 14 hours.
Howell's virtual building has even helped her in the real world, as she designed her apartment bedroom in the game before decorating it in real life.
The famous Sims player from Birmingham, Alabama, said: "I remember I was watching iCarly one day and had The Sims on in the background and I decided to build their apartment - that was the viral one that started my career.
"I filmed the process and posted it when I had 400 followers and the next day, I woke up with seven million views.
"I then got loads of suggestions for other TV shows and film houses that I should build.
"I don't get as many requests anymore as I've done a lot.
"But some of my favourites are SpongeBob Bikini Bottom, Hogwarts Castle, Monsters Inc The Laugh Floor, the house from Encanto, and the house from Family Guy.
She continued: "Whenever I do a TV show build, I have to re-imagine some bits behind the scenes and the fourth wall.
"I go frame by frame on the TV show to try and make it look exactly the same.
"I have a really keen eye for detail and people always comment if I've missed the slightest thing, so I try and take my time to avoid those comments."
To kickstart her full-time Sims building career, Howell quit her job working in a grocery store, saying that her main source of income now is from sponsorships, where she puts company logos in the game.