We walked past this beautiful scenery every day in Iceland.

I’ll have a much longer piece on EVE Online next week, as I’m still processing Fanfest 2013. I’ve never spent so much time engrossed in a subculture that I have little personal context for, but it’s an experience I’d highly recommend. You probably don’t have to travel to Iceland to have a similar escapade, but if you have the chance? Go.

Drew is still chipping away at our hours of footage from that week, and it’s coming together. Both of us went to Iceland without doing much research about what we were going to cover, and while that sounds crazy, it paid off. We had booked a few interviews ahead of time, but the best stuff that came out of our six days abroad came from following our gut. Is this cool? Will our audience find this interesting? Do we find this interesting? Let’s follow the thread.

It’s similar to a piece of advice I gave in my coffee talk video from earlier this week. Someone asked about how to prepare for interviews, easily one of the most daunting parts of covering games, especially if you’re new. When I first started, I would meticulous prepare for my interviews by having a printed document with 20 questions or so. Little thought went into the interview itself. I would read the question, listen to the response, and then ask the next one on the list. As I became more confident in myself, I would rely on those questions less and less, until they became vague topics to fall back on if the conversation stalled. These days, I hop into the interview and figure the discussion itself will lead to something worthwhile. It’s no more of a calculated gamble than allowing a preconceived notion strangle where an interview goes.

I’m so glad the Interview Dumptruck exists now, too. Do you want the deep dive of people talking in what seems like a completely made up language? You got it. Do you want to see more about our escapades exploring Iceland, trying weird food, and get a contact high of EVE Online madness? We’ve got that.

There’s so much more to come. Hope you enjoy it. See you next week!

Hey, You Should Play This

• Candy Box by aniwey (Browser, Free) -- candies.aniwey.net

Another one of those games where I’m just going to ask you to trust me. Eat some candy, throw some on the ground. More importantly, be patient. Most importantly, wait as long as you can before looking up anything more about this game. If you enjoyed Frog Fractions, you’re going to fall in love with Candy Box, as well. This comes from someone who doesn’t eat much candy.

• no-one has to die by StuStutheBloo (Browser, Free) -- www.kongregate.com/games/stustuthebloo/no-one-has-to-die

If you’ve seen myself and other rambling about the Zero Escape series--999, VLR--and been intimidated by the amount of time it takes to see them to their conclusion and gain closure and understanding, consider out no-one has to die. It really is a condensed version of those games. This come with a warning: no-one has to die plays with very similar story concepts to the Zero Escape series. The revelations of both are part of the fun of playing both games. no-one has to die won’t ruin either game for you, but it’ll remove some of the guessing.

And You Should Read This, Too

• "*crag* Videogames" by Darius Kazemi

Designer Darius Kazemi makes a thoughtful argument about the reasons one tries to convey a message through a video game. I’d encourage you to read it first, but Kazemi supposes some creators try to cram their emotions, stories, thoughts into games as a form of validation that might very well be detrimental to what they’re trying to say. Another medium, perhaps art or writing, might be more appropriate. I sometimes wonder the same about my desire for games to become more emotional, more personally revealing. I still want them to do that, but am I spending my time effectively by spending so much energy searching for something that already flourishes in other mediums? Maybe I’m bummed I don’t read more books.

• "The quest for Shadow of the Colossus' last big secret" by Craig Owens for Eurogamer

Speaking of crazy gaming subcultures, Eurogamer highlights a series of truth seekers hoping to find the secrets buried away in Team ICO’s Shadow of the Colossus. It prompted me to wonder why I haven’t played it again after its HD release, but it also speaks to my fascination with players who invest far more into worlds and games than I ever have. I don’t regret having a thousand micro experience with games over a singular, concentrated experience, but one can’t help but be jealous at all the adventuring.

If You Click It, It Will Play

Crowdfunding Has Promise, Hopefully Developers Don't Screw It Up

• Surviving life as a young girl ain't easy, and SISSYFiGHT 2000 aims to prove that.
• Rex Rocket sure looks inspired by Mega Man, and you won't see me complaining.
• Anne sports some of the most gorgeous pixel art this side of Sword & Sworcery.

Missed the EVE Online Coverage We've Rolled Out So far?

• Gimme FTL Drives, Asteroid Mining, and Space Elevators
• Every Vote Counts in EVE Online
• What Drives a Man to Travel Thousands of Miles for a Game

Tweets That Make You Go "Hmmmmmm"

i really wish people would consider the game for what it is and stop talking about me for a second.

— PHIL FISH (@PHIL_FISH) May 3, 2013

I know. RT @qianbaou: come on man, I just wanted a kiss

— 神谷英樹 Hideki Kamiya (@PG_kamiya) May 3, 2013

Oh, And This Other Stuff

• Someone seems to have made game hacking accessible to the newb.
• As what it means to be a "game" splinters, are we forming regrettable cliques?
• Count on Wired's Chris Kohler to have the most poignant rip on modern Nintendo.
• Not everyone likes Phil Fish, but Phil Fish didn't make Fez by himself.
• I'm glad someone out there is playing history's terrible Star Trek games.
• A little history on the development of PlayStation 4, as we near the new Xbox reveal.
• Leaving the Internet for a year won't solve all of your problems, but it makes good reading.
• Kill Screen went looking for the game that designer Jason Rohrer buried in the desert.
• What happens when designers pull a prank on pirates. It's weird, depressing, and uplifting.
• Hideki Kamiya isn't afraid to make short games, and I expect more designers to follow.
• A designer says he'll never work on a first-person-shooter again.
• The Guardian has a wonderful graphic that breaks down violent content in games vs. sales.
• Some legitimate concerns about what it means to pluck players' stories for EVE Online's TV show.