James Light, the Associate Producer at Hell Let Loose publisher Team 17, has died at the age of 28. The developer passed away on June 18 and news of his passing was made public today in a statement from his colleagues. The tribute reported Light had suffered complications following cardiac surgery.
A promising career cut tragically short
James Light began his career in game development in 2018 at Team 17 as a QA Assistant for Hell Let Loose. Through his “incredible work ethic, humility, and enduring kindness”, he was promoted to a role as Production Assistant before his final position as Associate Producer overseeing the PC development of the game. A tribute was paid to Light on the game’s Reddit sub after his colleagues and family agreed he would have wished for players to know. The full statement can be read below:
It is with great sadness that we share the news of the passing of our beloved colleague James Light.
James passed away on the 18th of June at the age of 28 as a result of complications following cardiac surgery.
His passing was a surprise, and has devastated all who knew him.
James began his career in video games in 2018 – working in the Team17 QA department on Hell Let Loose. Over the course of the last four years, his incredible work ethic, humility and enduring kindness made him a delight to have as a colleague.
He is certainly one of the key reasons Hell Let Loose has reached where it is today.
Despite being extremely effective, he was always the first to champion the efforts of others and bring praise to the team as a whole. His achievements – though quiet – saw him develop into the role of Production Assistant, and then several months ago receive his final promotion to the position of Producer – formalizing his role in overseeing the entire PC development side of Hell Let Loose. He had more knowledge of the game than perhaps anyone else – certainly more than me – having reported and studied thousands of bugs – knowing every intricacy and nuance across every aspect of the game.
As a team, we have thought long and hard as to whether we would share his passing with the community and felt ultimately – with permission of his family – that it is what he would have wanted.
For as much as this is an in memoriam, it is also a celebration of our colleague and friend, who made an indelible impression on the game that many have spent hundreds or even thousands of hours enjoying. More importantly, he made that same impression on us.
We will miss him immensely.
PlayStation Lifestyle sends its condolences to Light’s colleagues, friends, and family.