Christopher “Xcells” Hill only lived for twenty-six years, so his life was cut short rather suddenly.

It happened on the night of August 24 in Boones Hill, Virginia, USA. On Thursday, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department shared details of the investigation and confirmed that Xcells was shot by a resident of one of the houses.

WDBJ7 reported that the homeowner was approached by a man unknown to him, and the homeowner grabbed a gun and shot Hill, who died of his injuries. A Franklin County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson told WDBJ7 that there is no word on charges against the person who shot Xcell. (And that’s why we’re dubious about what might have happened because if it was indeed self-defence, that’s different than the person overreacting to a conversation.)

Xcells played Gears of War professionally with Eunited, NRG, Hazard Esports, Enigma6, and Echo Fox before retiring from Microsoft’s IP in 2017. He then switched to Epic Games as a Fortnite eSports player in 2018 and 2019. He had been streaming on Twitch ) just two days before his passing and had a decent fanbase, as 23,000 followers are no mean feat.

Xcells’ sudden passing has been commemorated by many: Blaze, an eSports broadcaster and talent manager, said that he was one of the best Gears (of War) players ever to have played the series, but another ex-Gears player who was a ten-time champion also remembered him. Nicholas “Icy” Cope’s statement sounds quite heartfelt (“I’m heartbroken. Love you bud, and I’m sorry this world was so hard on you. F__K MAN. Rest in peace.”).

Whatever happened between Hill and the unknown perpetrator (because the gun did go off, there’s no denying that, and there are no specific details regarding the conflict!), all we can say is God rest his soul because, at 26, he could have had a long life ahead of him.

Source: PCGamer