TotalBiscuit death: YouTube star and gamer John Bain dies aged 33

YouTube star and vlogger John Bain has died at the age of 33.

The game critic was better known under his online aliases: TotalBiscuit and CynicalBrit. He was best known for the YouTube videos in which he reviewed and discussed games.

On that same channel he had documented his long battle with cancer. He retired from gaming criticism earlier this year, when he announced that treatment was no longer effective.

Mr Bain's death was confirmed on his official account as well as on that of his wife, Genna Bain. "Rest in peace my dearest love," she wrote, alongside a poem.

Through a decade of games reviews, writing and vlogging, Mr Bain became known for his often frustrated critique of the games industry and its support for big titles that he said concentrated on maximising profits over players' experiences. He amassed 2.2 million subscribers on YouTube as a result of those videos.

He also helped curate games on the Steam store, where he also had a huge following.

Mr Bain first contracted bowel cancer in 2014, but announced after treatment that it had gone into remission. It would later return and spread to his spine and liver.

His death prompted reactions from members of the gaming community including the official Fortnite channel. "I’m so sorry for your loss," the game's official Twitter account posted.

Brendan Greene, who created the game Playerunknown's Battlegrounds, joined the tributes.

"Truly saddened to hear we have lost @Totalbiscuit," he wrote. "He was a giant in our industry and will be sorely missed."

And Twitch – where Mr Bain was a well-known supporter of independent games – thanked him for his support.

"John Bain's opinionated game critiques and sense of humor led to him becoming one of the most prominent voices in the gaming industry. The emote bearing his face represents the indelible mark that he has left on Twitch," it wrote on its Twitter.

"Thank you for everything, TotalBiscuit."