Near/byuu, creator of Higan/bsnes and game preservationist, has passed away

[Queen Fiona]

Copied from the announcement document found on Twitter:

At 11:45 on Sunday, I was on a phone call with Near. They'd just taken a large overdose of codeine and guanfancine. I saw a photo of the noose.

30 minutes into the call, Les Voyages De L'âme by Alcest started playing at the other end. I wouldn't hear their voice again.

"Near took their own life". That's how a news article would phrase it. Suicide is a voluntary action, a problem with oneself. Implying nobody is to blame but the victim and perpetrator, one and the same.

But that's not how human brains work. We are not cold, calculating machines. We are a product of our environment. We are shaped by our experiences. A single, powerful traumatic event can change a person forever. So can a million small ones. This is not a weakness of the mind, it is a fundamental part of what it means to be human.

Near was a brilliant mind in a corner of the web all too often rife with toxicity and harassment. Despite this, they continued to pour their life into the one thing they loved: emulation and retro gaming. Developer of the bsnes, higan, and ares emulators, Near was a relentless force for accuracy in the formerly haphazard world of emulation. Working out the most elusive hardware glitches and corner cases, they advanced the world of SNES emulation by leaps and bounds. They also recently released their ultimate labor of love, a fan translation of Bahamut Lagoon that might well be the most exacting and meticulously crafted language adaptation of a video game of the era.

Near was also an incredibly kind, funny, and welcoming person. I'd known them for several years, but after they moved to Tokyo a few years back we started talking more often. One of the most modest people I've ever known, they were unlikely to suggest hanging out in person, but never rejected an offer. I wish I'd done that more often. We've had long text conversations, and shared many stories.

Near did not commit suicide. Near was murdered. Victim of a lifetime of harassment. After an abusive childhood, and followed by community toxicity, Near was eventually targeted by Kiwi Farms. Members of that website make a sport of preying on the less fortunate, on those in positions liable to being emotionally abused. And they do so relentlessly. From the comfort of anonymity, of sitting in front of their computer thousands of kilometers away, they take glee in slowly destroying the psyche of others, bit by bit. To death, if possible.

Near survived that. Many wouldn't, but Near was strong enough to overcome that level of emotional abuse. But Kiwi Farms is relentless. Not to be defeated in their pursuit of utter emotional and psychological destruction, they went after who Near treasured most: their friends. Doxing some, directly harassing others, and even specifically seeking out suicidal people to target.

That broke Near.

After falling down a spiral of depression and eventually breaking off contact with everyone last year, I feared for the worst. Eventually, they were luckily able to get help and found medication that helped them cope with the psychological scars of abuse in late 2020. I first heard from Near again in late October 2020, and we again started having chats. It seemed things were getting better.

Unfortunately, medication can be a fickle beast. It didn't work forever. The looming threat of Kiwi Farms, of their power to destroy not just Near but also their friends, caused them daily anxiety that just wouldn't go away. Worried that their friends would feel burdened by their condition again, Near decided to avoid the subject. I only found out about this relapse today.

To the people of Kiwi Farms, this is a videogame. That the people on the other side of the screen are real makes no difference. They delight in the kill counter going up just like an FPS player would. Lacking in any empathy, they have no regard for the damage they inflict on others.

Why do we tolerate this? "Harassment", "online bullying". How are these any different from terrorism, from someone grabbing a gun and taking the lives of others? Why does it matter that a physical bullet was not involved? The objective and the end result are the same. Saying Near "took their life" is giving these people an out for their actions, which directly resulted in the intentional death of a person.

Some of you may be aware of Near's notoriously paranoid opsec. After getting to know them, it became clear this was a defense mechanism; a product of all the abuse they received over their entire life. I was perhaps one of the few lucky enough to exchange deeply personal stories with them, yet I never knew their full name - because I didn't need to. But they'd have told me if I asked. Near is anything but cold and distant in person; those attributes were necessary façades grown in response to lifelong harassment and abuse.

We, as the internet community, need to take a hard look at what it means to continue to tolerate the existence of these communities and the actions of those in them. Not just Kiwi Farms; sites like that serve to concentrate people like this, but they exist across all communities and social media. Being passive about this problem means being complicit.

DreamHost, you are the Kiwi Farms domain registrar. CloudFlare, you protect Kiwi Farms against attacks. You both share responsibility in not just Near's death, but also others, as well as the pain and harassment of thousands more. Is this the image you want to maintain? Is the income worth the weight on your conscience?

I last saw Near on June 9. We had sushi in Akihabara, and then sat down for a cup of coffee. I was a bit busy that day, but I was looking forward to inviting them over to hang out again soon.

Les Voyages De L'âme kept playing on repeat at the other end of the call for another hour.

I couldn't bring myself to hang up.


Published on behalf of a mutual friend of Near and I, who wishes to remain anonymous for their own protection. -marcan

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As stated by a friend of mine, Near's endless desire for cycle perfect emulation, despite a lack of demand or need, including hard decapping of chips to ensure perfection, is the reason we have the ability to perform FPGA/MiSTer stuff. She described them as 'a friggin' genius'.

Of course, this is the responsibility of Kiwi Farms, as has been the case many times in the past. (People here on QQ may remember their role in the thankfully short-lived E-Hentai shutdown debacle.) But in general, the desire of those who did this would be to see people who live on the fringes of what society finds acceptable - for instance, being non-binary and using they/them pronouns - die in graves marked in the wrong names, with the wrong pronouns, just to desecrate their living memory, is something we've seen many times before, and will again.

More to the point, given the state of emulation communities, things like this have happened before, and will happen again - and some will try to treat it like some random tragedy, something we couldn't prevent, and forget about the intention these acts of harassment had.

Near isn't just some random victim. What they did for game preservation is a lasting legacy that we'll continue to benefit from long after they passed on. So, in their memory, I ask that they be remembered by the name they chose, and the pronoun they chose. And never let it be treated like a random act of God, or a tragedy - this was preventable, this was an act of violence on the person, and there are people out there who will continue these acts for as long as we allow them to.

Don't let anyone say this wasn't an act of violence, and violence against the queer at that.

 

[UrsaTempest]

o7

Their legacy will live forever. Perhaps literally.

 

[1986ctcel]

Dammit.................

Seriously fuck Kiwi Farms for this.

 

[ANGRY PUFFBALL]

Lol what a load of crap. I looked into this yesterday and figured out it was probably a work, and it took me all of 20 minutes to do sko.

a) no one has been talking about byuu for a long time on kiwifarms and in it byuu himself said he didn't care about the thread (which itself was tiny and with little content)
b) byuu has a history of suicide baiting
c) There is absolutely zero proof he's actually dead. The source on it is entirely anonymous, as is byuu himself.

From all indications, far from the claims of him being driven to suicide, the vast majority of kiwifarms apparently never heard of or cared about this guy before yesterday.

 

[Vajra]

I took a look at the thread myself and oddly found that he himself participated in it and was received and treated mostly well, quite unlike our friend Train Dodger who was relentlessly mocked. It seems most of the people in that thread actually liked the guy. There were no dox there either, so not sure where the doxing accusations were coming from.

Actually, looking into it deeper, before a few days ago he was indeed complaining about harassment, but he was saying this harassment was occurring on 4chan, not Kiwi Farms. I feel like I've stumbled into a strange rabbit hole.

Looking into it even further, he said his dox were posted on 4chan, but I can't find any sign of these dox or any indication that anyone actually knows who he is.

 

[Megaolix]

he

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he

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There was a request to use 'they'. I would ask you to respect that request at least.

And Puffball, let's not head down that rabbit hole until you have actual proof of otherwise.

 

[ANGRY PUFFBALL]

Yeah, byuu has always been a notoriously private individual.

Item of humor: the person who made the thread about byuu ended up getting his own much much longer mock thread when people found out he was much more interesting than byuu.

E: Megaolix, extraordinarily claims require extraordinary evidence. There is no proof byuu is actually dead beyond an anonymous tweet and a Google document also produced anonymously, whereas anyone can go read the relevant threads on kf.

 

[Megaolix]

Item of humor: the person who made the thread about byuu ended up getting his own much much longer mock thread when people found out he was much more interesting than byuu.

E: Megaolix, extraordinarily claims require extraordinary evidence. There is no proof byuu is actually dead beyond an anonymous tweet and a Google document also produced anonymously, whereas anyone can go read the relevant threads on kf.

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>Joking about declared dead person
>Dispute claim

And yet when someone pass along a notorious memeber is deceased here, we believe them.

So, let me be clear: Cease, get proof or get ejected from the thread.

 

[Queen Fiona]

Given that the news has reached the media (yes, including non-Kotaku sources), and no one is disputing the claims given how many of their friends have rallied around this, I would say this counts as 'proof', or at least pushes the burden of evidence to prove that Near is not, in fact, dead.

I mean, yes, it's possible, but without proof that they aren't given that it's hit the news, I'd say the 'extraordinary claim' is a faked death, not the suicide.

Also, it's in rather poor taste to misgender the dead.

 

[Megaolix]

What happened to Rule 8? Getting mixed signals here.

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Requesting to use a pronoun is not the same as having a discussion on pronouns.

 

[Megaolix]

If I need to walk on eggshells it'd be nice to be aware of that before hand. You guys should really add it to the list of rules if this is gonna be a thing, because I have ADHD and paying attention to these kinds of things takes genuine effort, the kind of effort where it becomes less stressful to just lurk instead of actively post in a community.

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I'm not going to slam accidental forgetting but it's a request for a deceased person, you realize?

Speaking of which, for any future poster? Kinda remember the point of the thread. We're not nitpicking about Rule 8 here.

 

[Vajra]

I'm not going to slam accidental forgetting but it's a request for a deceased person, you realize?

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No, I did not realize because I was not paying attention to that detail because I have a fucking life-ruining attention-deficit disorder.

And in case it's not coming across, yes I am stressed as fuck right now. Being labeled a bigot for shit like this is a situation I am unfortunately intimately familiar with.

 

[TotalAbsolutism]

No, I did not realize because I was not paying attention to that detail because I have a fucking life-ruining attention-deficit disorder.

And in case it's not coming across, yes I am stressed as fuck right now. Being labeled a bigot for shit like this is a situation I am unfortunately intimately familiar with.

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Nobody called you a bigot. You were asked by a mod to keep it in mind and could have simply left it at that with something as simple as an 'Oh, sorry, didn't realise'. Your choice to then argue with the request in a variety of ways; that's on you.

You are aware. You now have no excuse. That should have been the end of this, but since you insist on making it a thing I suppose the best course of action is for you to no longer post in this thread.

 

[weirdee]

No, I did not realize because I was not paying attention to that detail because I have a fucking life-ruining attention-deficit disorder.

And in case it's not coming across, yes I am stressed as fuck right now. Being labeled a bigot for shit like this is a situation I am unfortunately intimately familiar with.

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You come into this thread, and not only do you immediately start in on how you might think the circumstances of their death aren't real, but then somebody asks you to make a single correction and now you're claiming it's endangering your mental health. This thread isn't about you, and you chose to be disrespectful about this. You're the one wielding the rules as a weapon in bad faith. You can't tell me that you don't understand what you did while at the same time claiming that you're suffering under the same treatment. The eggshells are on the ground because you threw the eggs. You didn't have to come in here and be like this, but you did, and taking responsibility is at the very least within your means.

 

[TotalAbsolutism]

weirdee; do note, the user in question is now threadbanned and can no longer respond.

 

[weirdee]

weirdee; do note, the user in question is now threadbanned and can no longer respond.

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Yeah, my post was being written when you posted and I didn't see the update.

 

[ANGRY PUFFBALL]

As a postscript on this, State Department numbers on overseas American deaths show that no Americans died in all of Japan in June, meaning the guy who claimed he's dead is incontrovertibly a liar and I was right all along.

 

[Aleh]

As a postscript on this, State Department numbers on overseas American deaths show that no Americans died in all of Japan in June, meaning the guy who claimed he's dead is incontrovertibly a liar and I was right all along.

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... umm. No.

 

[ANGRY PUFFBALL]

That's the same guy who claimed byuu was dead in the first place (with zero evidence other than his word), and who blocks anyone who asks for proof. I think I'll believe the State Department over some Twitter rando who refuses to post any evidence.

Also, anyone who has ever dealt with the Japanese government's bureaucracy should know how ridiculous his claim is. They flat out send people to your house if you are so much as late returning a phone call.

 

[Aleh]

That's the same guy who claimed byuu was dead in the first place (with zero evidence other than his word), and who blocks anyone who asks for proof. I think I'll believe the State Department over some Twitter rando who refuses to post any evidence.

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Except he's not some Twitter rando, as you put it. He's a personal friend of the dead person, one with known and preexisting associations. He's also provided a rather plausible explanation for the specific datum used as "proof" that he's lying.

Your claim was that he was "incontrovertibly a liar" for saying his friend was dead based on a lack of entry in a database. Again, his friend.

Simply put, you're being an asshole.

You're also overstating the evidence.

Also, anyone who has ever dealt with the Japanese government's bureaucracy should know how ridiculous his claim is. They flat out send people to your house if you are so much as late returning a phone call.

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The Japanese government has very little to do with this. The "evidence" being used is a US State Department database... and apparently one that's not complete.

The government is not competent, as anyone who's had to repeatedly deal with them should know. I can't get too into it because, well, Rule 8... but it should be fucking obvious.

This isn't proof. Occam's Razor applies.

 

[TotalAbsolutism]

As a postscript on this, State Department numbers on overseas American deaths show that no Americans died in all of Japan in June, meaning the guy who claimed he's dead is incontrovertibly a liar and I was right all along.

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Congratulations on showing your ass in such a fantastic manner.

You can leave the thread now.

 

[Oscar_Mike]

And yet when someone pass along a notorious memeber is deceased here, we believe them.

So, let me be clear: Cease, get proof or get ejected from the thread.

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I would point out, we believe that both because no one has any reason to lie about someone else dying nor do they try to pin the blame on anyone else. I would certainly hope that if someone here made a post claiming that they had committed suicide because I was harressing them, that you wouldn't just take them at thier word and ban me with zero investigation. People have regularly tried to smear kiwifarms by claiming they haressed someone into killing themselves when that wasn't true. Chloe Segal, for example, committed suicide as a protest over how the US treats the mentally ill and homeless, and her "friends" tried to use her death against the farms anyway.

As for proof, given the circumstances it's very difficult to prove that near is abosolutely, 100% not dead, however the fact that US state department records say no American citizens have died in japan on the date Near is alleged to have done so seems to be the best we'll get. It's certainly enough to raise questions.

Except he's not some Twitter rando, as you put it. He's a personal friend of the dead person, one with known and preexisting associations. He's also provided a rather plausible explanation for the specific datum used as "proof" that he's lying.

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He's some random guy on the internet with exactly zero evidence aside from "dude, trust me, Near's totally dead, because I say so", and his story for how he allegedly knows near is dead has changed repeatedly. Two month in and there's still no body. No death certificate, no obituary, not one shred of official documentation to establish near is dead.

Your claim was that he was "incontrovertibly a liar" for saying his friend was dead based on a lack of entry in a database. Again, his friend.

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Per Near's own words, near has no close friends.

The Japanese government has very little to do with this. The "evidence" being used is a US State Department database... and apparently one that's not complete.

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Not complete according to....some dude. Why exactly should I assume this guy has any expertise when it comes to this even if he was a neutral party and not someone that has vested interest in debunking any evidence that suggests near isn't dead?

The government is not competent, as anyone who's had to repeatedly deal with them should know. I can't get too into it because, well, Rule 8... but it should be fucking obvious.

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Unluckily for you, I can get into it, sort of, by citing the experience of some people that do live there, a couple guys that run a podcast I follow.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcmxOGYGF51T1XsqQLewGtQ

According to them, japan certainly has issues with being bureaucratic, excessively fussy about details, and otherwise aggravating to deal with, but I don't see any reason to conclude they would find the body of a citizen of there closest and most important ally hanging from a ceiling and go "eh, no need to pass that info along".

This isn't proof. Occam's Razor applies.

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Occam's Razor says that the theory with the fewest assumptions is most likely to be true.

If near is dead, then in order for that to be true the state department and Japanese government must have screwed up and not listed near on the report nor corrected that screwup for several months, and also everyone else attempting to find solid documentary evidence of thier death must have just made some mistake and failed to find the actual evidence that verifies his death that absolutely must exist, despite their full name know being know and making searching for records much, much easier.

If he's not dead, then we must assume Near, who has a history of faking sucide, has done so again and that some random dude on twitter is lying.

Occam's razor clearly favors "dude on internet is lying" over all alternative theories, and it frankly boggles my mind that after decades of messaging not to believe everything you read on the internet that people are still failing for totally evidnceless claims like this.

 

[Aleh]

He's some random guy on the internet with exactly zero evidence aside from "dude, trust me, Near's totally dead, because I say so", and his story for how he allegedly knows near is dead has changed repeatedly. Two month in and there's still no body. No death certificate, no obituary, not one shred of official documentation to establish near is dead.

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On the Internet. As for obituaries, that's normal in cases like this, or do you think that Near had the sort of real-life presence, in his real-name identity, that would get one written? And if so, would people make the connection?

It's a cost of being pseudonymous on the Internet.

His friend's story, meanwhile, has not "changed repeatedly." That is, bluntly, something you're making up.

Per Near's own words, near has no close friends.

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This is called attacking a strawman. I said nothing about how close they were, merely that they were friends.

Not complete according to....some dude. Why exactly should I assume this guy has any expertise when it comes to this even if he was a neutral party and not someone that has vested interest in debunking any evidence that suggests near isn't dead?

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... are you fucking kidding me?

Unluckily for you, I can get into it, sort of, by citing the experience of some people that do live there, a couple guys that run a podcast I follow.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcmxOGYGF51T1XsqQLewGtQ

According to them, japan certainly has issues with being bureaucratic, excessively fussy about details, and otherwise aggravating to deal with, but I don't see any reason to conclude they would find the body of a citizen of there closest and most important ally hanging from a ceiling and go "eh, no need to pass that info along".

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This in response to a statement that the Japanese government isn't relevant since the commentary is on a US State Department database.

Occam's Razor says that the theory with the fewest assumptions is most likely to be true.

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You're misapplying it.

If near is dead, then in order for that to be true the state department and Japanese government must have screwed up and not listed near on the report nor corrected that screwup for several months, and also everyone else attempting to find solid documentary evidence of his death must have just made some mistake and failed to find the actual evidence that verifies his death that absolutely must exist, despite his full name know being know and making searching for records much, much easier.

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Nope!

If he's not dead, then we must assume Near, who has a history of faking sucide, has done so again and that some random dude on twitter is lying.

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Again, not some random dude.

Occam's razor clearly favors "dude on internet is lying" over all alternative theories, and it frankly boggles my mind that after decades of messaging not to believe everything you read on the internet that people are still failing for totally evidnceless claims like this.

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What you are doing is called "assuming bad faith" in the legal profession. By contrast, best practice in general is to assume good faith unless you have evidence to the contrary. Simply put, you are attempting to flip the burden of proof on its head, and while I generally avoid speculating about such matters, this is in the context of ongoing attempts by Kiwifarms and similar groups to absolve themselves of guilt in the affair by attempting to downplay the consequences of their harassment and cyberstalking campaigns.

Simply put, you are also being an asshole.

 

[TotalAbsolutism]

Thank you, Oscar_Mike for demonstrating your apparently quite extensive investment in this topic.

I don't think there is any need for you to comment further, and so I shall take steps to ensure that remains the case.