Byron Bernstein, known by the nickname “Reckful”, was a Twitch streamer and a famous World of Warcraft player. One of his notable achievements was ranking first in 6 consecutive seasons of World of Warcraft, as well as winning numerous awards at various tournaments and events related to the game.
However, yesterday, July 2, Reckful committed suicide due to depression.
Before taking his own life, Reckful posted a picture with his girlfriend on Twitter, writing: “I know I’m always a bit crazy, but at least you’ll never be bored. Will you marry me, Becca?”
Initially, people thought Reckful’s actions were simply a proposal to his girlfriend. But Reckful continued to write.
“I seem to be stuck in despair and can’t find relief. I hope someone can show up to save me.”
“I apologize to everyone who will have to endure my madness, but know that in this case, the insane cannot control their actions.”
These strange tweets made many feel that something was wrong. And just 5 hours later, Reckful’s roommate reported that the gamer had committed suicide due to depression and passed away at the age of 31.
Many clubs, professional gamers, and casual players were shocked and took to the internet to share their condolences. Notably, in World of Warcraft, tens of thousands of people logged into their accounts, controlling their characters to gather at the Cathedral of Light in Stormwind City and the central area of Orgrimmar (the capital city of the Horde) to hold a collective memorial.
This massive influx of players even caused server overload and congestion for Blizzard.
The official message on Twitter from World of Warcraft stated: “One of the greatest World of Warcraft players has temporarily stepped away from the keyboard to say goodbye to us.”
The official blog of Hearthstone also wrote: “We will never forget him!”