Hi my name is Chloe and I'm working with Game Life to share my experiences and interests within gaming. Check out more posts on our website or on our Facebook for more information and varied experiences with relation to gaming!
If you're looking to learn more about speedrunning, or simply curious about what it is, read on as I explain what speedrunning is, as well as how it has become much more popular over the recent years.
What is speedrunning?
A speedrun is a play through, typically recorded or streamed, of a whole video game or a selected level or part of it, performed with the intention of completing it as fast as possible. There are also many sub-categories within speedrunning, such as pacifist runs, where the aim is to complete the game or level as fast as possible whilst also not killing or attacking any enemies.
If a speedrun breaks a current record, as long as it is verified by appropriate officials, it will be publicized on a website such as www.speedrun.com which has leader boards for many different games and categories. Speedrun.com is a site that compiles verified speedruns for a wide variety of both games and different types of speedruns, whilst also offering forums, guides, streams where people are attempting speedruns, speedrunning news and knowledge and a great deal more. This specific site is one of the main, most widely used sites dedicated to speedrunning, and it is the standard within the community for speedrunning leader boards, and offers a wealth of resources to people wanting to learn more about speedrunning and how to get into it or attempt a speedrun.
Speedrunning Content
Games Done Quick
Games Done Quick is a series of semi-annual video game speedrun charity marathons that have been held in the US since 2010. These events usually consist of high level speedrunners playing to raise money for charity, having raised over 34 million dollars for several charities in the past, including charities such as Doctors Without Borders and Prevent Cancer Foundation. The events put on by Games Done Quick, both of which are seven days long, are held by Awesome Games Done Quick in early January every year, which raises money for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, and by Summer Games Done Quick in late June or early July every year, which raises money for Doctors Without Borders. As well as this, Games Done Quick also hosts several other events throughout the year including smaller marathons supporting different charities and events for special occasions.
The first Awesome Games Done Quick event was held in January 2011, raising more than 50 thousand dollars for the Prevent Cancer Foundation. Following this the first Summer Games Done Quick event was held in August 2011, raising 20 thousand dollars for the Organisation for Autism Research. All of these speedrunning events are broadcast on Twitch, where viewers are encouraged to donate for incentives during the stream, for example, selecting the file name or choosing the character’s name in a run, having the runners do more difficult challenges, bonus speedruns, showcases of glitches, and entering raffles to win different prizes.
Different speedrunners attempt various runs in front of both the live stream and an in-person audience, with some of these runs being particularly hard challenges, including things such as trying to fully complete every level, completing a game blindfolded, or having multiple runners play against each other to complete a game first. The events put on over the years by Games Done Quick has helped to popularize speedrunning as a whole, whilst also working towards a good cause and brought communities together.
YouTube
Another way to view speedrunning content is on YouTube. There are many different videos about many different things on YouTube, and there’s recently been a rapid increase in the viewership of speedrunning related videos. Some speedrunning content creators, including people such as Summoning Salt (with 1.14 million subscribers on YouTube) and Karl Jobst (with 587 thousand subscribers on YouTube), have helped to popularize speedrunning with the general public over the recent few years.
Their many videos on different speedrunning topics within a variety of different games have gained masses of views, with some of Summoning Salts videos getting as many as 11 million views, and some of Karl Jobst’s videos getting as many as 1.3 million views. Some speedrunning YouTubers may post their own attempted runs, and some may just provide commentary on the community, records and speedrunning as a whole. Some may post about a wide variety of different games being speedrun, whereas others may focus on a few specific games, going into detail about many different aspects within these games.
Speedrunning Games
Minecraft
There are many different games that can be speedrun, but there are definitely a few more preferred options, including games such as Minecraft. Over the past few years, the popularity of Minecraft as a whole has seen a great resurgence. Because of this, Minecraft has risen to becoming a much more popular speedrunning choice, with many different categories available to play in, such as any% glitch less, any%, set seed, random seed, as well as the version of the game. The recent popularity of Minecraft speedrunning has also come from content creators such as Dream (25.8 million subscribers on YouTube) attempting Minecraft speedruns, as well as the general popularity him and his friends have gained from their Minecraft SMP server.
DOOM
One game that can be seen as an almost vital part to speedrunning as a whole is the game DOOM (1993). The general play of the game already feels as though it is set up optimally for speedrunning, providing an in-game timer, and having fast paced levels. Doom also allowed for demo recording and playback, which helped greatly when trying to find and share optimal routes or game play. Official speedrunning competition for Doom was hosted by Compet-N from 1994-2005, and despite Doom being released in 1993, Doom speedrunning is still greatly alive and well today. I believe the fast pace of Doom’s levels combines with the in-game timer as well as time to try and beat make it a perfect candidate for speedrunning. It has been said that the speedrun culture we see today owes a lot to Doom.
Super Mario
Another particularly prominent game within the speedrunning community, aside from the Legend of Zelda games, would be the Super Mario games. Super Mario 64 specifically is the most speedrun game of all time, with 14,009 speedruns logged as of the 19th of March 2020. As with other games, there are many different categories, including things such as the console (N64, emulation, Wii), different level options depending on game, for example; 120 star (100%), 70 star, 16 star, 1 star and 0 star, or if it was a Mario Kart game there may be categories based on different tracks, as well as 100% and more. The previously mentioned YouTuber Summoning Salt has done many videos about some of the various Super Mario/Mario Kart games, explaining different glitches and how different records were obtained. Some of his most popular videos are about Super Mario/Mario Kart games, such as; The History of Rainbow Road World Records (6 million views), World Record Progression: Super Mario 64 any % (4 million views), Mario Kart Wii: The History of the Ultra Shortcut (11 million views). Many of the Super Mario and Mario Kart games are by far the most popular and most speedrun games, with some records being held for years at a time.
Speedrunning as a whole
Speedrunning as a whole, no matter what game or platform, may very well be at the peak of its popularity at this point in time, with a much wider audience now aware of and partaking in speedrunning many different games in many different categories. With many content creators providing more insight to speedrunning and the skills and abilities behind many of the best world record runs, more and more people are beginning to take an interest in speedrunning, which can not only be positive for the speedrunning community as a whole, but also positive for helping to re-surge popularity to older games that become popular candidates within the speedrunning community.
Comments