S1mple gave an interview with HLTV journalist Danish "Nohte" Allan. Here are the highlights.
A few months ago, S1mple announced an educational project on CS. The launch is happening very soon, in early May. The course is paid, but the first two lessons can be accessed for free. S1mple assures that working on the project won't distract him from the pro scene when he returns:
"My inactive period and the project work coincided in timing, and it's good. We've done a tremendous amount of work. When I get back to the pro scene, I think I'll be able to dedicate time to the project in my free time. The most important thing we're doing right now is recording my lessons. I don't think it will distract me from official matches."
What has S1mple been doing during his inactive period, and how did the match for the Falcons go?
S1mple has been inactive since October. Since then, he has been devoting much less time to CS:
"I watch every tier-1 tournament match just to stay in the loop. But, of course, I took a break from playing CS specifically. I still play, but not as much. I don't stream as frequently as before."
S1mple's only official match in CS 2 took place in March. He played for the Falcons at BLAST Premier Showdown:
"I was a bit nervous because it was my first official match since October. We had four days to prepare, and I think we made a mistake with the map pool – picking Overpass. To be in shape, you have to play consistently, not just practice for four days."
The most important question: when will S1mple return?
Naturally, the main question that concerns everyone is when S1mple will return. He revealed some details, but of course, did not specify a date:
"As Blade said, it's a secret. Nobody knows. It all depends on who is willing to pay the buyouts, on the details and results. NAVI won the Major, so some plans have changed. I think we need to wait for the summer break. Previously, roster shuffles happened right after the Major, but now we have to wait until the end of the season."
"[...] I had 3-4 invitations from teams. Some were not good enough, others didn't have enough money."
The summer break will begin on June 17, the day after the end of the BLAST Premier Spring Final, and will last for a month.
How did S1mple watch the Major final: rooting for NAVI, but there were doubts!
S1mple was at the Major in Copenhagen. In the final, he was rooting for NAVI, which seems obvious. But Kostylev had doubts:
"In the final, my ego was for FaZe, but my heart was for NAVI. Before the start of the first map, I decided to root for NAVI. I knew how much this victory meant to Aleksib. I was proud of them – they were the first players (and Blade was the first coach) to win the first Major in CS 2. It's history.
"[Was your ego for FaZe because you wanted to see how they would beat NAVI without you?] They won't beat them but won't let NAVI win the Major without me. That was ego. But I'm glad I crushed it before the match."
Plus, S1mple recalled NAVI's switch to English and the strengths of Aleksib:
"It was easy to communicate in English. I didn't know iM, jL, and Aleksib, and I was interested in getting to know them better. As you can see, jL likes to say 'Hi' to the camera and die during the round. I don't approve of that, and I told him so.
Aleksib is a true captain. He's a leader not only in CS, a smart, energetic guy. Even when things go wrong on or off the server, he always finds the right, non-aggressive words to explain."