How playing Fortnite saved the life of a young gamer

(Image credit: Future)

A young gamer's had his life saved after a friend heard him suffer from an epileptic seizure while playing Fortnite. 

Aidan Jackson, an 18-year-old from Cheshire, was playing Duos with his friend Dia Lathora who lives in Richardson, Texas.

After saying he felt unwell during a game, he went to lie down on his bed. However, he left his microphone on. Dia, who was still playing Fortnite, could hear Aidan starting to suffer from a seizure. 

She told Totally Game: "I knew something was wrong as soon as he started making distressing sounds - he was breathing really hard and it sounded like he was convulsing."

Dia then rang up emergency services in the UK to alert them to the incident. Aidan's parents found out about their son's seizure when police officers came to the door to inform of the call from Dia. 

Aidan has since been officially diagnosed with epilepsy, and he credits Fortnite for being a key party in saving his life. He said: "I guess I never expected that something like Fortnite would be the main reason that saved my life - I'm glad I got into it now because if I hadn't maybe the outcome of this situation would have been different.”

Aidan’s mum Caroline also told Totally Game: "I think Dia is absolutely amazing, what she did for us as a family was incredible - to think that she was able to get Aidan the help that he needed in that space of time, all before we even knew anything was wrong.”

Totally Game is a weekly show that focuses on the stories of players around the world, from the inspiring tales of people who have overcome difficulties using games to the amazing feats of record breakers. You can catch new episodes every Wednesday on Snapchat, YouTube, TikTok, and right here on GamesRadar. 

Ben Tyrer

Hello, I'm GamesRadar's News Editor. I've been working in the games industry since 2013, after graduating from Bournemouth University with a degree in multimedia journalism. Since then I've worked for Official PlayStation Magazine as a staff writer and games editor, as well as writing for Official Xbox Magazine, Edge, PC Gamer, GamesMaster, PC Games N, and more. When I'm not moaning about being beaten on FIFA and Warzone, I'm writing news, features, and reviews for this wonderful site.