A Hong Kong computer game enthusiast has been found slumped dead at a terminal in a game centre after playing non-stop for hours, police said yesterday.

The 28-year-old was found slumped at his screen early on Saturday after he apparently had played the online game Diablo II since early Friday evening.

A policeman found him in the game centre shortly after 1am, five hours after he began playing the popular game, according to reports yesterday.

His death at a game centre in Hong Kong's Yuen Long district came eight months after a 17-year-old game centre employee was found dead after playing Diablo II through the night.

Warnings were posted in cyber cafes around Hong Kong advising customers not to spend too long playing games uninterrupted after the death of the teenager last May.