Overwatch is one of the quickest growing gaming communities online ever since its launch back in 2016, and fans all over the world have been using the game to meet up with friends and share mutual interests. Some groups in the game have become so tightly knit, that when player Willem Den Toom passed away this year, his friends came up with an in-game tribute for him.
In a video from Too Much Gaming on Youtube, players have grouped up to perform a "12-Gun salute" for Den Toom. What started out as 12 Pharahs shooting rockets at the sun in unison ended with Hanzos shooting spirit dragons at the moon one-by-one.
The uploaders also posted the video along with a short message in Den Toom's memory. They write, "Wherever you are. May the payload be always moving, the point always contested, no one trickles out, and may there always be a healer on your team. We miss you, big guy. This play of the game is for you."
Any regular member of the online gaming community will know that this isn't the first time that players have been making tributes to fellow gamers who have passed on. When Carrie Fisher died near the end of 2016, multiple players held a virtual vigil for her in-game by visiting the planet of Alderaan - Princess Leia's (Fisher) home planet.
Even developers have been known to make their own tributes. After Robin Williams' death in 2014, World of Warcraft procured a genie character named Robin that lived inside a lamp, even repeating some lines from his movie "Aladdin" (1992), "Phenomenal cosmic power... itty bitty living space."
Though it may not seem like much to some people, others who have viewed the video have expressed their condolences and said that they have been moved by the gesture. Rest in peace, Will Den Toom.
Overwatch is now playable for PS4, PC, and Xbox One.
