Frequently Asked Questions

Q - So, why do you do it?

A - When I wrote my first guide, I thought the format restrictions placed on me were a complete pain in the ass, but I figured it was only because it was my first guide and I just wasn't used to doing things "their way". Several guides later, I still thought it was a pain in the ass and felt like we as the writers, deserved better. The readers deserve better as well. Scrolling yourself blind through line after line of plain text black on white pages is frustrating and creates headaches. I'm not a fan of "Ctrl+F'ing" my way through a guide. Why do that when the writer is given the ability to place you anywhere in his or her document that you need to be with just a click of the mouse? It's also no secret that sometimes even the best writers can't successfully describe something that everyone will understand, but a picture is universal and knows no language barrier.

Q - If you're only 1 guy, how come throughout the site you refer to candiedskull.com as "we"?

A - I am the owner of Candied Skull Publication, LLC. I'm also its only employee and its my only job. I do earn my living writing for other places in addition to this site, but for all my tax purposes, I am a loner. I refer to cs.com as "we" because in reviewing submissions, I have a small, select group of people that I trust implicitly to help me. They do it voluntarily and are free to tell me to "screw off" whenever they wish, but it nevertheless makes us "we".

Q - Your only job?! How the hell do you afford to eat?

A - Cheaply. My wife has a job also, so we're not entirely broke. We're not rich, by any means, but we eat, our kids eat and we're a pretty happy little house.

Q - So if you're not rich, how can you afford to keep the website up if you're posting these guides for free?

A- Quite simply, without the readers, I can't. The maintenance of the site takes a little bit of money and in order for it to keep working, I depend on the donations people make by clicking the donation link on the bottom of all the pages. The Google ads that appear everywhere help too, but it takes a LOT of those to add up to anything worthwhile. Basically, without the kindness of the readers who have shown their appreciation with donations, the site wouldn't be here, and if you think about it, why would you pay $20 for a game guide for ONE game at the store when you can come here and get what are probably more accurate guides for pretty much nothing. I'd donate $20 to keep something like that going.

Q- Wife? Kids? So you're not some 15 year old with too much time on his hands. How old are you?

A - I'm 38 and the coolest dad on the block.

Q- Is there any guide you will refuse to post?

A- At this time, I'll answer that with a "no". If it is well done, I don't care what game or what console it's for. I'm sure somebody, somewhere is looking for that guide.

Q - Will you be adding any more features to the site?

A - We'll just have to see how things go. candiedskull.com up to this point has had over 3 million hits since it went live back in June of 2006. Even with that it is merely self-sustaining considering the expense I've put into getting it together. It's not just the site, but the consoles themselves, the games and a big-ass TV, because it just wouldn't be right to play on anything else. It also doesn't help that Microsoft manages to suck more money out of your wallet every 15 minutes for the next great "accessory". God forbid they should give you everything you need all at once. All I can really say at this point is that IGN isn't looking too worried about me. . . . .yet.

Q - How come you haven't or aren't posting a guide for Oblivion?

A- Mostly because there isn't one out there that I feel meets the standards that I want to uphold for candiedskull.com. On advice taken from one of the most dedicated Oblivion players I know, there just isn't a good one out there, and any one that would be good would just be outrageously long. As for writing one myself, I really don't have the patience for RPG's, especially not one that long. Let me show you this:

On the left is the White Pages for Lansing, Michigan. On the right is the current Prima Guide for Oblivion. I think I'd rather do the phone book.

Q - What is that cool Gears of War thing in the background!

A - That is the Gears of War Collectors Edition counter display from *insert large game retailer name here*. My wife is a manager, and when the push for the game was over, she brought it home for me. I got most all of the Gears Collector stuff that way. The only thing I didn't get was the 360 faceplate.