It is a very sad news that we learned there: Benoît Sokal, author of comics, but also creator of video games such as Syberia or even Amerzone, died on May 28, 2021 at the age of 66 years. The man had been ill for a few years now and he leaves behind a remarkable legacy in Belgian comics. It is obviously The Investigations of Inspector Canardo that makes him known, a detective “duck” dressed in a slightly dirty trench coat, cigarette in his mouth, bottle of whiskey in his pocket, and phlegm à la Colombo. We will also remember the 3 volumes of Kraa, while on the video game side, it is Syberia which has earned it great popularity. But it was with L’Amerzone (1999) that he made himself known to players and which also allowed him to have a close relationship with the French publisher Microïds, with whom he produced the fourth episode of Syberia, subtitled “The World Before”. We don’t really know if Benoît Sokal had finished his work on the game, but one thing is certain, the release of this title will of course have a very special flavor. We have been able to meet Mr Sokal on numerous occasions, but it is undoubtedly his right of reply concerning L’Île Noyée in 2007 that we will keep in mind.
