Sad news as author William C. Dietz, the author of the Dark Forces trilogy (Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire, Dark Forces: Rebel Agent, and Dark Forces: Jedi Knight), based on the videogame classics Dark Forces and Dark Forces II, passed away on Sunday 15th March. He was 80 years old, and well known in the realms of the Halo literary universe, as well as writing scripts for video games. Regarding his passing, Dietz’ family said, “As we mourn his passing, we will continue to hear his voice in the books he wrote and the lives of those touched through his writing and as a devoted family man.”
Dietz’s video game writing career began all the way back in the late 1990s when the author began writing tie-in novels to the Star Wars: Dark Forces series, beginning with 1997’s Star Wars: Dark Forces Soldier for the Empire.
Dietz went on to write two more Star Wars novels following the adventures of Stormtrooper turned Rebel turned Jedi Knight Kyle Katarn with 1998’s Rebel Agent and Jedi Knight, though these Star Wars stories, and the entire Dark Forces series in general, have since been classified as non-canon.
After expanding the galaxy far, far away, Dietz went on to expand a similar sci-fi galaxy with 2003’s Halo: The Flood, a novelization of Halo: Combat Evolved and the second Halo novel ever written.
Our condolences to Dietz’s family, colleagues and friends.
