Last year's Fanfest was our first. It was an insanely awesome and incredibly busy first time filled with meetings, dinners, player presentations, autograph sessions, first-time meetings with people I've known in-game for years, lots of beer, lots of "hey you're Rixx!" moments, snow, ice, amazing sights, tours, volcanos and stress. We couldn't wait to go back. It was also a very transformative trip in many ways. My wife became an Eve player during our trip and signed up shortly after we got back. And she has embraced the game and the "community" in the months since. If anything, she is just as excited about returning as I am.
Luckily my wife is my secret weapon. She is a dedicated value shopper and has spent an incredible amount of time finding us the perfect and most cost-effective ways to return. There cannot be many people that know everything there is to know about Iceland, but you can easily count my wife among their number. She has done incredible work to make this return trip work for us. So extreme kudos to her.
It is a strange thing. I miss it and can't wait to go back. The first trip was such a newbie whirlwind and went by in such a blur, I'm hoping that this trip will benefit from us having already experienced it once. Maybe things will be more "normal" this time around. I miss my friends and can't wait to see familiar faces once more and new faces for the first time. I miss everyone at CCP and look forward to hanging out with them again and meeting many of the new people that have arrived since the last Fanfest. And getting another chance to make Hilmar laugh. I will not fail this time!
We learned a lot the first time. So one change we've made based on our previous experience is time. We're going for a few more days this time around. The trip out and back is exhausting. And it isn't the best idea to be awake for over 24 hours when you land, arrive at the hotel, rush over to CCP HQ to meet with CCP Spitfire for a tour, then have dinner with him, CCP Seagull and her husband and then walk back to the hotel in an ice storm to finally crash. And then wake up and have a player presentation, autograph session and roundtable to attend the same day. Not doing that again. So we learned and will be arriving a day earlier and staying two days longer. So we can see more Iceland after Fanfest is over.
I hope to have some new projects in my pocket again this year. It is still early and I can't officially announce anything yet, but there are some exciting things in the works. So finger's are officially crossed that everything works out and I can bring even more things to light for the players next year.
So for anyone considering attending Fanfest in Iceland in April I encourage you to come. It is an amazing experience and one you will not regret. And I hope to see you there.
And then you can be the one that yells, "Hey Rixx!!" on the street in an ice storm at midnight. lolz.