World of Tanks Twitch streamer Brian "PoShYbRiD" Vigneault has died of unknown causes while taking part in a 24-hour charity livestream event at his home.
According to PVPLive, the 35-year old left his desk at around 3:30am CST - 22 hours into a stream marathon that was raising money for the Make-A-Wish foundation - to go "for smokes." He still hadn't returned by 11am, leading those on his Twitch chat to assume the father of three had fallen asleep.
At around 7pm, one of Vigneault's viewers noticed he had appeared online in Discord and sent him a message. But it was a detective who responded, informing them that the streamer had passed away.
The Virginia police homicide unit are still investigating Vigneault's passing, which is standard procedure for any suspicious deaths. "There is no reason at this time to suspect foul play," a spokesperson told Polygon.
While there have been several cases of individuals dying as a result of marathon gaming sessions in Asian countries, the cause of death in this instance has yet to be confirmed. PVP Live speculates that Vigneault, who was known for chain smoking and drinking during streams, died of heart complications brought about by sleep deprivation.
World of Tanks publisher Wargaming.net gave the following statement: "Wargaming is saddened to hear of the loss of streamer and tanker Brian Vigneault, aka 'PoShYbRiD,' a devoted player of World of Tanks and contributor to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. We offer our most sincere condolences to his family and friends during this difficult time."
Vigneault's gaming clan, FAME, posted a tribute on its Facebook page.
"...we just can not find words to describe how sad is this moment for all of us and for sure this game will not be the same without the legend," it states. "Maybe the saddest lines can not really be written, and the saddest thoughts can not really be uttered."