REGINA -- “I feel like I’m more of a slayer/sniper,” Mathew Fiorante says. “I always charge first. I always get all of the kills. My teammates are more objective, but I like to just kill everything I see.”

He’s a natural-born killer. Leaping high up in the air, he can pick his target — using a sniper rifle, grenade or whatever weapon he fancies — to deliver another brutal execution. When he goes to battle with his troops, he’s just as deadly.

And, as the 15-year-old Regina product recently proved, he can kill with the best of them.

At this year’s Major League Gaming’s Halo: Reach Winter Championship, which took place in Columbus, Ohio, last week, Fiorante and his team of four, Status Quo, defeated 2011-champs Instinct to win the tournament and pocket $20,000.

“It was probably the most amazing experience I’ve ever had. I look up to the players that win tournaments and then I come and win the tournament. Some of the best players in the league have been playing for 15 years and I’m 15, so it’s like beating your elders,” Fiorante says.

“It was kind of back and forth all game: one kill, another kill, one kill, another kill.”

Never heard of Major League Gaming? You’re hardly alone. But, whether you’ve heard of the league or not, it’s clear that video games have officially made the move from the basement to the big time. Now, top gamers can compete at sponsored tournaments and take home cash. There are even coaches.

And Fiorante is right in the middle of it.

“I feel like it’s just the beginning,” Fiorante says. “It’s expanding all across the world and it’s going to be like a national sport.”

Fiorante’s gaming days began like they do for a typical child. When he was seven years old, he began playing Halo with his brother, Chris. Fiorante had always had an interest in sports and was naturally hooked on the competitive aspect of video games.

Suffice to say, he’s logged more than a few hours since then.

When he first heard of MLG, it piqued his interest. Founded in 2002, MLG reaches hundreds of thousands of fans in 170 countries. The league hosts a number of high-profile events for games such as Halo: Reach, Mortal Kombat 9 and StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty and attracts 1,200-1,500 competitors — the common demographic being 16- to 28-year-old males. At these big events, hundreds of thousands of dollars in prizes are often available. In addition, around 750,000 matches are held each month on gamebattles.com.

Fiorante has competed in three MLG events since he was 14 — not to mention numerous local tournaments. Last year, Fiorante says he earned $25,000-$30,000.

“I never thought I’d be able to make that much money playing video games,” he says.

Andy Dudynsky, a MLG commentator known as Bravo, has marvelled at Fiorante’s skills.

“It’s been a real rise to the top for him,” Dudynsky says. “He started out as a player who no one had heard of that was gaining some respect — people were willing to play with him and give him a shot.