The first route would probably make more sense (there aren't that many people like you I guess), but it would require you to move (the market for such skills is small) - maybe even to another continent.
If, on the other hand, you want to be a "generic" SE (that can work anywhere in the world and maybe has a shot at remote work), you need to pick a specialty and prove employers that you can deliver within it. That's worth more (although less fun) than cute CS projects you've listed. Just select area/technology/stack you like and start learning about it and eventually build something non-entirely-trivial with it. If you want to see what's hot, take a look at monthly "Who's hiring" threads posted here - they give a good overview of what tech is currently in demand and/or trending up.