With the advent of massively multiplayer online games in the early 2000s, entire communities of players faced the same fate, forging friendships through their adventures. Among these players is Mats Steen, who hides behind the pseudonym Ibelin, a victim of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a rare disease that causes muscle degeneration.
Ten years after his death, in 2014, when he was 25 years old, Netflix dedicated a long documentary to him, almost two hours long, which reviews his unusual story, closely linked to the game. world of warcraft.
This Norwegian discovered Blizzard’s online game when he was only 14 years old. At the time, his doctors explained to him that he should rest, but above all, the young teenager wanted to have fun and discover new adventures in a video game that was causing a stir: world of warcraft. With over 13 million players, Mats will quickly want to escape and build a solid reputation in the world of Azeroth.
A player who has scored thousands
Create a character that you will call Lord Ibelin Redmoore and invent a story for him to travel through the vast expanses of this constantly evolving virtual world. His parents, aware of his state of health, first tried to stop him, in vain: “The more he depended on his chair, the more he spent his time playing,” recalls his father, Robert Steen, in the documentary, “we decided to let him play a lot because “I was very limited in other things.”
At 16 years old, a relationship will change everything. Sure world of warcraftHe meets Lisette, a teenager who still does not know Mats’ condition. The two players, who meet periodically in the “County of Gold”, share their desires and their stories.
The day Lisette sees her grades slip in class, her parents deprive her of video games, prompting the boy to contact them to explain how their daughter is doing him a lot of good in a bleak real life. It was the birth of a great friendship that would continue until his death.
But Mats Steen left his mark on the history of world of warcraftnot only through the friendships he will create by joining a guild, but by telling why Azeroth means so much to him. In his blog he explains that in the Blizzard game “disability is invisible.” His favorite game allows him to live a life he could never have: “It’s like someone freed me from my chains,” he explains.
Within their “role-playing” guild, where each plays a specific, scripted role, their illness is taken seriously and the friendships created in the game will also be true in real life.
To play, although his muscular abilities are not good, Mats uses several accessories that work within the Blizzard game. In a time when accessibility options are still not discussed, manufacturers of accessories for people with disabilities are increasing their offering so that everyone can play.
In the last years of his life he agreed to become an ambassador for greater accessibility in the world of video games.
“We receive mountains of emails”
In 2014, when his illness began to seriously affect his health, he escaped from Azeroth for about ten days. Mats, however, understands that his guild friends are very worried. Then they ask for a contact address so they can talk to him and not be left in uncertainty.
When he died on November 18, 2014, a message from his parents on his blog changed everything. The latter, who is not fully aware of the friendships he was able to create through a simple video game, will receive dozens and dozens of messages of condolence. They quickly realize that in the world of world of warcraftMats has become an iconic player in the daily lives of many others.
“Mats was amazing, I have no other words to describe him,” one wrote. “He was always kind to me and had great maturity,” adds another. “I only knew him as his character, but he left an impression on me because of his kindness,” says one of his virtual friends.
Blizzard’s ultimate tribute to “Detective”
Their guild then organizes to participate in Mats’ funeral in Norway. They come from many countries, including Denmark, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. In a message written shortly before, player Kai Simon, who had announced the player’s death to the rest of his guild, tells how he met Mats “in a world that doesn’t care who you are, what body you have, or what you look like.” ” It points to a universe where the only thing that matters is “how you behave towards others.”
Given the magnitude of the tributes surrounding this respected and appreciated player, Blizzard will take the issue seriously and will develop a tribute in the game, near Goldshire, the place of his first meetings and adventures.
He did so in 2015 with a sign that indicated “Deep mourning, eternal memories” at the foot of a tree in a lush forest. Around, there are no enemies, but flowers, left by adventurers who continue, years later, remembering Lord Ibelin Redmoore, the best private detective in all of Azeroth.
In the Netflix documentary, Mats’ life continues world of warcraft is illustrated by sequences from the game, based on discussions he had with his teammates. An animated film made possible by the role-playing aspect provided by the guild he joined. We see a helpful boy, enjoying the company of his peers, ready to go on an adventure.
Final farewells that show that video games are far from the clichés that we can attribute to them. Forge friendships that, even after death, continue to endure each year for ten years.
Source: BFM TV
