47 replies to this topic

[ThirdEyE]

I just recently was notified of the death of Brandt "bkcat" Hatch.  He drowned while swimming across a river during a camping trip, which comes as a real shock since he was an avid outdoorsman.

 

Brandt was a true die-hard Hawken fan, making amazing lego replicas and drawings of many mechs.  Good-natured, friendly, funny, talented, you could call him many positive things, but you would struggle to find something negative about him.  Seeing him improve in the game and getting to play with him as a teammate was a great experience.  I'm glad to have been his friend.

 

Currently there is a request for footage of Brandt in Hawken, as his friend has suggested a montage to be created in memoriam.  If you have any you would like to share, please message me on here, Steam, or IRC.  You can also donate to the family through this GoFundMe.

 

Stay well, friends.

[ticklemyiguana]

I wish I'd known him better, but in my experience, the guy was a decent human being. No ego to speak of, just a down to Earth player pursuing his passions. I'd like to request that in the interest of respect for the community members close to him, we all tone down the forum hostilities for a day or two.

 

 

 

 

It may not impact the game as much as some of the recent changes to it, but to me, and I know to a lot of the people here, the best part of this game is and has always been the people that play it - the community. In my mind, the loss of a member of our community is more significant to my experience than any patch. If the game passes, it does, but because of bkcat and people like him, Hawken will always be one of the greatest examples of what a stupid few lines of code can really be capable of. He was a part of this community.

Edited by ticklemyiguana, 01 July 2016 - 07:25 PM.

[Shade__]

I'd like to request that in the interest of respect for the community members close to him, we all tone down the forum hostilities for a day or two.

Sounds good, I hardly knew him seemed nice tho sucks how the good die young.

[ArchMech]

what the actual fuzzy bunny

edit: might have some footage, i doubt i could find it tho

Edited by ArchMech, 01 July 2016 - 07:15 PM.

[crockrocket]

This hits close to home. BK will always remain one of my favorite hawken players. I remember during the silence when west coast would struggle to get into a server together and bk would have to get in last cuz he had the best mmr. And he was always a good sport about it. He will be missed.


Rest in peace pilot

[Merl61]

This hit me like a freight train man. Honestly kinda just at a loss for words right now. He will be missed. Just....damn. It's tough.  Hawken lost one of its best. Stay safe out there guys. 

 

Rest in peace BK. GGs. 

 

Here's his Steam Art Gallery http://steamcommunit...4778275/images/

Edited by Lil Wizzy, 01 July 2016 - 07:26 PM.

[HOHOHOSANTA]

RIP BKCat man..good kid.

[Flifang]

You know I've always been pretty detached to the deaths of people I never got to know well but this makes me very sad.

 

I don't know if they will see it but I send my condolences to his friends and family both in hawken and outside. 

[Silverfire]

Sad news, Bkcat was a fantastic player and an awesome person and will be sorely missed.

For better or for worse, he stuck to this game and stuck with the community. This game, regardless of what it becomes, fostered a strong, tight-knit community and BKcat was a part of it. One of us forever.

Honored to have known him and played with him in TPG, in pubs, and at events.

Edited by Silverfire, 01 July 2016 - 08:04 PM.

[Badtings]

Awful news :(

[KejiGoto]

This is not the kind of thing you expect to read on a Friday night let alone any time when signing onto Hawken's forums.

 

Can't imagine what his friends and family must be going through right now. Wish I could do more than offer my sympathy and kind words. You'll be missed bkcat and deserved far better than this.

[Nept]

Thanks for posting, Thirdeye. 

 

Best I could tell, bkcat was an obviously good guy: friendly, hardworking, polite, and a constant presence in community events.  Always tough to lose someone like that - and much more so for those who knew him well.  My condolences.

 

And a couple messages from our banned friends:

 

OdinTheWise:

bk was a great friend and a great player, glad i knew him for the short time i did

 

Crafty:

I am so sorry.
Brandt was apart from being a genuine talent in art and sculpture, a keen intellect with the mind of a born engineer.
 I can remembering him as a consistently solid player on the THC roster who worked very hard to improve. Through dedication and practice he eventually earned the opportunity to take a regular match from the best players in Hawken.

Spoiler

10:13 PM - Crafty: he was really good
10:13 PM - Crafty: one of us
10:13 PM - Crafty: high tier player
10:13 PM - korea: he loved hawken so much lol
10:13 PM - korea: always tried to get us to play it
10:13 PM - korea: would even put up with our shitty dota games just to get us to download it
10:14 PM - Crafty: ya man
10:14 PM - Crafty: he never missed a season
10:14 PM - Crafty: always scrimmed
10:19 PM - Crafty: thats a hard loss
10:19 PM - Crafty: he was really cool
10:19 PM - Crafty: he made these incredible hakwen mechs with lego
10:20 PM - Crafty: blew minds
10:20 PM - Crafty: talented
10:20 PM - korea: yeah i know i saw them in person all the time haha. his sketch book was even better
10:24 PM - Crafty: we're all gonna feel this in hawken
10:25 PM - Crafty: he was such an active community member

Anyone who played with him will tell you, they were better for having him on their side.
He was a real good nerd.

Edited by Nept: Ultra Lord of the God-Kings, 01 July 2016 - 07:57 PM.

[Onebullit]

Just after i watched Final Destination 5, i visit the Hawken forums to see this sad post.

It's very sad to read this.

[XPloyt]

Sad news, Bkcat was a fantastic player and an awesome person and will be sorely missed.

For better or for worse, he stuck to this game and stuck with the community. This game, regardless of what it becomes, fostered a strong, tight-knit community and BKcat was a part of it. One of us forever.

 

 

Real Talk. Very surreal and tragic.

 

Of the little things I do remember of players and their antics, it was always nice to see his name in the lobby. Good sport. Never a sore loser, and always seemed to get his vengeance. He wasn't a player you could manage to stomp, because he always had the fiery passion to get his revenge. Yeah, he'll be missed.

 

What a way to go out, man. So young too...I hope I never meet that same fate. R.I.P. bkcat1

[WmMoneyFrmMissouri]

This is a loss. My condolences to his family, as someone who has lost a lot of loved ones it f'ing sucks and not much to make it better but time. At least he will always live on in the hawken hall of fame to us that will remember.

[TheButtSatisfier]

Man, that's terrible. My condolences. BK was always a pleasure to interact with.

[Call_Me_Ishmael]

I liked bk, even though I rarely spoke with him on ts. 

 

Requesat in pace, pilot.

[wolfrock]

The loss of a child is devastating. Nobody should ever have to go through something like this, but I hope bkcat's family has the support they need to get them through the tough times ahead.

It has been a terrible time for so many people lately, so I urge you all to take the time to help your friends and neighbours whenever you can.

[BluetoothBoy]

Just found out about this while playing a match, totally killed my mood to play... This sucks. I wasn't terribly close to him but he was one of my favorites in the community, especially as a fellow artist and Lego enthusiast. He will be missed. :(

[DemitronPrime]

very sad indeed...

 

rest easy pilot, you served with honor and distinction

 

Edited by -TDM- Demitron-Prime, 01 July 2016 - 08:44 PM.

[LadyTiggs]

It's so sad and tragic.  RIP 

[CZeroFive]

Made a donation just now. It's tragic to have someone you care about just disappear the next day. My condolences to everyone and anyone affected.

 

o7

[Nov8tr]

I am so shocked by this. It's just so hard to accept with his skills, but as we know, rivers can do unexpected things. I know this is hard on his family because it would be hard on me if it was mine. He was a good dude and I had many a great match with him. He was a straight up guy, no BS. Played by the rules and had fun. The game just became a little less without him. I am pretty bummed out now. Too many good ones gone. Thanks for the matches bro.

[DerMax]

Not cool man.

[Zdragow]

Only got the chance to interact with him when the whole league thing was starting out. He was a cool dude. For as inactive as I am here, I'm glad I at least got the chance to play with him.

 

Rest in peace, bk.

[LEmental]

When one of my friends pass away, I've found it helpful to share bits of why I (and others) appreciated them, or stories that we fondly remember. I encourage all of you that were moved by him to do the same.

I don't really have any stories to share about bkcat. He was a very humble/quiet person. I had the pleasure of being on his team. Hawken was really the only means that we interacted but Hawken is also a game that meant a lot to both of us. He was a real treat to play with. One of the harder pilots to take down. Really, bk was one of the most consistent players. If he got destroy, it was for a good reason. A team player, never a show off. I couldn't ask for a better teammate.

fuzzy bunnyng fuzzy bunny

Tragedies like this really makes me appreciate the time I spend with others. Each moment is precious.
 

Edited by LEmental, 02 July 2016 - 01:12 AM.

[Aregon]

Rest in peace Brandt "bkcat" Hatch, must your name be remembered by family and friends until ages pass. 

[Miscellaneous]

It's a terrible day for rain. 

 

Rest in peace, bkcat. You will live on in our hearts. 

[Ashfire908]

:(

Rest in peace, bkcat.

[JeffMagnum]

I never really talked to him outside of matches, but I watched him develop as a player and considered him to be part of the second wave of truly exceptional pilots. He seemed to have a certain admiration for my play at least earlier on, so I feel he would've liked to have heard that. But despite how much time and effort some of us have invested, Hawken is just a game, and I don't think his skill at it should be one of the main things he's remembered for.

From when I did speak to him though, he struck me as a genuinely nice and intelligent guy. I can't think of a single negative thing to say about him out of all the times I saw him, and he was always humble in his wins and took his losses gracefully. I'm sure that good sportsmanship translated into other aspects of his life as well. It's a shame that someone with such a promising future had to go so young and in such a tragic way.

Rest in peace man. You'll certainly be remembered here and elsewhere.

Edited by Brumbpo Tungus, 02 July 2016 - 07:21 AM.

[Hijinks_The_Turtle]

Oh crud, I just logged on to post something here. It's quite a shame to see a wonderfully creative individual leave. I never really interacted with him much in terms of playing Hawken, as I mostly stayed in the arts & media side, but I know he was in TPG and all that cool jazz. But what I can say is that I aspired to be a better person in-game like him.

Anyway, I enjoyed all the Lego builds he made. A lot of them were just down right amazing. As from one Lego enthusiast to another, his builds really showed how imaginative he was in figuring out how to make the mechs look as they did and am saddened to see that spark go. Rest in peace bkcat.

[ThereIsOnlyOne]

Hail the fallen pilot.

[EM1O]

Saw the RIP line on hawken TS.  another wonderful person logs off of Hawken forever. so, so sad.

[Nept]

From Amid:

I didn't get to speak with him much, but I did play against him a lot. A part of me doesn't believe I won't get to ever again.

It was a privilege to learn from him and a joy to spend time with him in this game we love.

Hail the fallen pilot.

 

[hoghead]

Sorry to hear.  Its been a tragic month.

[SparkyJJC]

I did not know bkcat too well, but reading this and all of the condolences, it's just hard to resist tearing up a little. I wish I had more to say, but it is hard to put something like this into words.

Rest in peace, bkcat. You will live on on our hearts.

[Xacius]

That's a shame.  From his lego creations, it's evident that he had artistic talent.  He was also a very respectable player.  I never witnessed him mouth off or try to blame his team for poor performance.  Great guy; he'll be missed.  

 

At least he won't be around to see his favorite game go to fuzzy bunny.  

 

 

[M1lkshake]

I didn't know him very well, and I almost never spoke with him. All I remember is that whenever he was on an opposing team, I would always be a little bit on edge. He was always a threat.

[PoopSlinger]

Dang

[CraftyDus]