Welcome to the Mad-Eye Games resources page!  The recommendations on this page are for products and services I personally trust and believe will help our gaming community. 

If you decide to purchase any of the recommended products below, I will receive a commission at no extra cost to you.  For more information on affiliates, please read my disclosure page.

Building a YouTube Channel 

Books

The Lean Channel:  YouTube for Entrepreneurs.   Carey Martell goes into detail of how he made his successful career on YouTube through SEO and marketing strategies.  Thanks to his suggestions, I was able to position my channel better on the YouTube search engine and gain more exposure.  

Tools

Blue Snowball Microphone.  This is the microphone I started out with when I launched my YouTube channel. It’s a good microphone for someone on a budget and provides a clear sound for YouTube.  

Audio-Technica ATR2100-USB Cardioid Dynamic USB/XLR Microphone   This is a great microphone if you’re going into podcasting and you have a bit more in your budget to spend on your YouTube channel.  I’m currently using this microphone and I think it’s a stepup from the Blue Snowball.  

Dragonpad USA Pop Filter.  Pop filters are used to protect your microphone from spit and it helps prevent pop noises from mechanical impact or fast moving air while you’re talking.  This is the cheapest one and I’m still using it today.  

Neewer NB-35 Black Microphone Suspension Boom Scissor Arm Stand with Mic Clip Holder and Table Mounting Clamp. Unless you want to be sitting hunched over your microphone, I recommend purchasing a cheap microphone stand.  This is the microphone arm stand I currently use and it has done wonders for my comfort and back.  (no more hunching)

Picmonkey.  Pickmonkey has been my goto program when I need to design a thumbnail for a YouTube video.  It’s free and if you want to use more fonts and features, you can signup for a monthly plan that’s cheaper than purchasing Photoshop.  

Gaming Equipment

Steelseries Rival 300 Optical Gaming Mouse:  This is one of the mice I’ve used for the past two years.  It has six programmable buttons and can be configured up to 6,500 cpi (the faster the cpi, the faster the cursor on your screen will move).  

Steelseries Sensei Wireless Gaming Mouse:  My current goto mouse for computer gaming.  It’s a stepup from the Rival 300 model and you don’t have to deal with wrapping the cord around the back of your laptop.  

  

Extra Large Gaming Mousepad:  I didn’t know these kinds of mousepads existed until I won one at an event.  These are really nice since you can have more room to manuever your hand and arm while not having it wander off the mousepad.  

Corsair Gaming MM200 Cloth Mousepad.  My backup mousepad when I need to game on the go.  Its small size really comes in handy when I don’t want to take up too much space at a friend’s house.  

Building a Blog

Finding your domain name

Bust a name.   This can provide a lot of fun if you’re bored.  By using bustaname.com you type in combinations of words you’d like to use for a domain name and the site will give you dozens of combinations.  Once you’ve decided on a website domain name, you can check if that name has already been taken.  

Hover.  Hover.com is a quick and easy to use website where you can register and purchase your domain name for your own personal blog and/or website.  

How to start a blog

WordPress.  Wordpress is an online content manager used to manage websites.  It is compatible with thousands of themes you can import or if you like you can use the built-in themes provided.  Most of the blogs I’ve come across swear by WordPress. 

Blog Hosting

Bluehost.  This is the goto hosting service if you’re a beginner blogger and want to get something for a cheap monthly rate.  The support is 24/7 and it’s easy to setup.  For videos on how to setup and use Bluehost, check out Abby’s video tutorial from justagirlandherblog.com  As of right now the cheapest monthly plan is $2.95 / month.  

MediaTemple.  I used Media Temple for my website hosting since I plan to upload a podcast, several videos, and eventually my own designed videogames.  If you want your site to have the ability to handle countless visits and provide a lot of media content, you can start with MediaTemple’s $20 / month plan and adjust accordingly.  You also don’t have to pay upfront like with Bluehost.  

Cloudflare. This is not a website host, but a useful caching service and online security provider for blogs.  They have free plans and monthly plans depending on the types of solutions you’re looking for.  A great solution if you’re running into bandwidth or security issues.