It is with great sadness that I share this news with the South African gaming community. It was confirmed this morning that ZAPA founder, and one of the best people around, Dirk Huysamen has passed away.
The ZAPA Gaming Facebook page confirmed the news this morning saying that DJ passed away on the evening of 4 February 2025. This news has taken the community by surprise and heartfelt messages have been poured across the Facebook group by all members.
ZAPA Gaming started as a small group and grew into its own dedicated local gaming platform. Dirk would go out of his way to ensure the local community came first. He always had the gamer’s best interest at heart. The group was driven by the love and passion for gaming and most important of all, DJ’s selflessness.
I remember speaking with DJ during Comic Con Africa where he shared how difficult it had become to provide products to local gamers when everything has been gated by distributors running their own retailers. He shared how important it was to import products in order to make cool figurines and collector’s editions available in situations where locals would miss out.
Every discussion I had with DJ was met with laughter and geek overload as we shared what we were currently playing and how cool it was. Not to mention our similar love for expensive statues and merchandise.
DJ only wanted people to enjoy things as much as he did. His remarkable love for the local scene is difficult to find, especially with all the ongoing challenges in the industry.
DJ will be missed. He was just an awesome person and from myself and the entire GLITCHED brand, rest in peace, brother.
If you would like to share condolences, visit the ZAPA Gaming page on Facebook here.
