Published , by Asif Khan
Published , by Asif Khan
Alec Holowka has passed away. The developer of Night in the Woods had been at the center of a number of allegations of sexual abuse, and it appears that things came to a head this morning. Alec's sister announced the news of her brother's passing on Twitter.
Here's the full statement from Twitter:
"Alec Holowka, my brother and best friend, passed away this morning.
Those who know me will know that I believe survivors and I have always donne everything I can to support survivors, those sufferinng from mental illnesses, and those with chronic illnesses. Alec was a victim of abuse and also spent a lifetime battling moode and personality disorders. I will not pretend that he was not also responsible for causing harm, but deep down he was a person who wanted onlt to offer people care and kindness. It took him a while to figure out how.
Over the last few years, with therapy and medication, Alec became a new person-the same person he's always been but without any of the darkness. He was calm and happy, positive and loving. Obviously, change is a slow process and it wasn't perfect, but he was working towards rehabilitation and a better life.
In the last few days, he was supported by many Manitoba crisis services, and I want to thank everyone there for their support. I want to thank Adam Saltsman for staying up late talking with us and reminding Alec that there was a future.
My family has and always will be the most important thing. Please give us time to heal. We tried our best to support Alec, but in the end he felt he had lost too much.
I currently do not see a place for myself in games or on Twitter. I will not be looking at the responses to this post. I appreciate everyone who has reached out to me over the last few days. For anyone who is in a time of darkness, I encourage you to reach out for support. There are always people who will be there fo you."
The statement has since been deleted from Twitter as Alec's accusers and his family have been targetted by trolls and angry fans on social media. The Night in the Woods devs had removed Alec from the team earlier this week, and it appears that things became too much for the young man. We can't confirm that his death was the result of suicide, but the tone of his sister's message certainly hints at that. This would be the second recent suicide in the gaming community as we lost Etika earlier this summer.