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The 26-year-old man, from the Liaoning Province in North East China, had been playing 'almost all' week during the Chinese Spring Festival, reports the China Daily. Obesity, as well as gaming, was blamed for his death - the man identified only as 'Zhang' weighed 150kg (23.5 stone) and it is believed his heart struggled to pump blood throughout his

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enormous body, states the paper.

It quotes a local teacher blaming the lack of entertainment for young peopple during the 'dull' holiday. 'There are only two options: TV or computer. What else can I do in the holiday as all markets, KTV and cafeterias are shut down?' she says. said.

The exact game the man was playing has not been identified.

Seemingly an Asian phenomenon, Zhang's death is not the first by any means from excessive gaming. In the recent past a Taiwanese man died after three months of living and gaming in a cyber cafe. After an argument with his wife he reportedly did not want to go home.

Gaming addiction is seen as a problem in the technologically advanced South Korea. In September 2005 we reported that online gaming was becoming such a problem that so-called 'addicts' could soon be sent to rehab.

Previously, Chinese state media has also reported that around 13 per cent of China's 20 million Internet users under 18 are classed as addicts.