The gaming community is mourning the loss of Manuel Otto, the German video game designer who created the widely popular game “Stick Run,” after he apparently took his own life during a livestream on the Twitch platform. He was 30 years old.
Authorities discovered Otto’s body Tuesday following reports of a fire in an attic room at a property in the Bavarian village of Breitbrunn am Chiemsee. The Stick Run Team, Otto’s colleagues, confirmed his death through social media statements, describing the circumstances as a suicide that occurred while he was broadcasting live online.
“It is with a heavy heart that we confirm and announce the passing of our creator, developer, and fellow Stick Runner, Marc-Manuel Alexander Otto,” the team posted Wednesday on their official page.
Otto’s legacy in the gaming world began remarkably early. He was merely 14 years old and still in high school when he created “Stick Run” in 2010. The game, which features players controlling a stick figure navigating through various obstacle courses, initially launched as a free game on Facebook before expanding to Android and Apple platforms. The simple yet engaging concept resonated with audiences worldwide, attracting more than 43 million players over the years.
The streaming platform Twitch responded swiftly to the incident, removing Otto’s channel and the recorded video to prevent further viewing. A company spokesperson acknowledged the gravity of the situation in a statement.
“What took place is horrible, and the mental health and wellbeing of our community matters deeply to us,” the spokesperson said, adding that the platform encourages anyone struggling with similar issues to seek professional support.
The incident has raised renewed concerns about mental health awareness in the gaming and streaming communities, where content creators often face unique pressures from constant public exposure and audience expectations. Videos from the livestream that later appeared online reportedly showed Otto setting himself on fire, though such content has been largely scrubbed from major platforms.
Despite his youth, Otto had achieved what many developers spend lifetimes pursuing: creating an experience that touched millions of lives. His game’s accessibility and straightforward design made it particularly popular during the early years of mobile gaming and social media integration.
“Thank you, Manuel, for being a part of our childhood,” his team wrote in their tribute. “You will never be forgotten.”
The tragedy serves as a somber reminder of the importance of mental health resources and support systems, particularly for those in creative industries who work in isolation despite having massive public followings.
For anyone experiencing a mental health crisis, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours a day at 988, by text, or through their website at 988lifeline.org.
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