With heavy hearts, the team behind Game Theory has announced today that the popular YouTube channel’s beloved editor, Ronnie “Oni” Edwards, has passed away at the young age of 25. According to the official report, the cause of death was apparent suicide.
Edwards was mostly behind the scenes for fans of the intricate YouTube series, though his particular brand of editing, humor, and incredibly thorough contributions to the Game Theory family made him notorious in the gaming community, making the news of his death more difficult to bear.
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The host of Game Theorist, Matthew Patrick, was the one to break the news that Edwards took his own life on July 4th. The reveal happened via a new video, with expressed permission from the deceased’s family, called ‘Losing the Battle’. The purpose of the video was for Matthew Patrick to explain his time with Edwards in a touching tribute while also talking about what lead up to the ultimate decision. The video was incredibly emotional, echoing that of the gaming community as a whole that enjoyed Edwards’ work.
In the Losing the Battle memoriam, Patrick stated “On July 4th Ronnie was found dead, a victim of suicide. We found out two days later. We had been communicating about a project he had been editing on, he went silent for a couple of days so we went to his apartment to check up on him, only to be met with a coroner’s notice.”
This news also comes shortly after Edwards himself was in the middle of an internet backlash during E3 2018 when some fans posted to Reddit stating that Edwards came off as rude and “disrespectful” to those there to meet him. Though Patrick was quick to add in the video that this incident did not lead to Edwards’ decision, it had been a rough few months and created worry for those closest to him.
At this point and time, we do not know if Game Theory will plan on continuing their channel in the usual fashion, though Patrick admits that Edwards’ work was paramount to the project as a whole. Our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time.
If you, or someone you know, is suffering from depression, please do not hesitate to reach out to the below suicide hotline. There is absolutely no shame in asking for help:
1-800-273-8255, or go here to this website to learn more information on how to reach out.
H/T GameRevolution
