Gamers speed-run for charity
A group of gamers will be coming together on July 25 to raise money for the Doctors Without Borders charity.
A total of 76 games will be played over a period of four days, with each game set to be a speed-run, meaning the players will intend on completing the games in the fastest way possible.
The event, Summer Games Done Quick 2013, is the latest in a line of marathons held by Speed Demos Archive. Their previous marathon in January, Awesome Games Done Quick, raised over $448,000 for the Prevent Cancer Foundation.
Speed Demos Archive has held the marathons since 2010, including an online only event in 2011 to assist in the relief efforts of the earthquake in Japan.
The speed-runs are staged within three different categories, any%, 100%, and low%. Any% is where the runner gets to the end of the game by whatever means necessary, 100% is finishing the game to its maximum capacity, and low% involves completing the game by collecting the least possible upgrades and items.
Popular runs from years gone by include Cosmo Wright’s Ocarina of Time which has almost 500,000 views on YouTube, and Mark McKenzie’s Pokemon Gold run. Both were conducted at Awesome Games Done Quick 2013.
Other popular speed-running games include Super Mario 64, Portal, and Quake.
Nintendo games are especially well represented, with Zelda games generally drawing many viewers and a large crowd on camera. This event a 3DS XL will be given away as part of the prizes for anyone donating.
