TheSpeedGamers
The Speed Gamers are a group of gamers based in Texas that play video games for charity. As of June 2014, they have raised $433262.62 for eighteen charities.
Pokémon marathons
December 2008
The Speed Gamers began their first Pokémon Marathon on December 19, 2008, starting at 5:00 PM CST and lasting until December 22, 2008 at 6:00 PM CST. Their goal was to capture every single Pokémon possibly obtainable outside of Japan at the time, which meant catching 491 Pokémon (up to Darkrai in the National Pokédex) among the core series games from Ruby and Sapphire up to Diamond and Pearl, including Pokémon Colosseum and XD. Running on time with everything going smoothly, their Pokémon Ruby cartridge's battery ran out, meaning that by the end they had 429 Pokémon. The marathon was scheduled to be 72 hours long, although it ran slightly longer due to technical difficulties.
The marathon raised a total of $5,923.69 for ACT Today (Autism Care and Treatment).
December 2009
Running between December 18, 2009 and December 21, 2009 was The Speed Gamers' second Pokémon marathon. This time, they were aiming for all 493 officially released Pokémon in the 72 hours they gave themselves. They had the support of well known Let's Player, Chuggaaconroy. This time, the two side series GameCube games were replaced with Japanese versions of the then new HeartGold and SoulSilver. Starting 20 minutes late on December 18, The Speed Gamers finished on December 21, 2009 at 6:07 PM CST, thus completing their goal of catching all Pokémon in 72 hours.
The marathon raised a total $18,358.96 for Ally's House.
March 2011 (Retro)
On March 11 2011, The Speed Gamers started a 72 hour marathon attempting to get all 251 available in the first two generations of Pokémon games. They completed this feat with help from the Mew and Celebi glitches in the time allotted, with Celebi being the final Pokémon obtained.
The marathon raised a total of $15,394.03 for ALS Association.
June 2012
Running between June 15, 2012 and June 22, 2012 was The Speed Gamers' fourth Pokémon marathon in aid of ACT Today, a charity dedicated to raising awareness and providing treatment services and support to families of children with autism. The gamers aimed to catch all 646 currently available Pokémon during the seven-day event, which also featured playthroughs of numerous side games such as Pokémon Stadium, battles in Pokémon Battle Revolution and gameplay from the then newly-released Pokémon Conquest. Viewers making donations were entered into a series of prize draws and contests throughout the week to win prizes such as games, merchandise and hand-made artwork. This was the first charity marathon to be live streamed by Bulbagarden.
Toxicroak was the final Pokémon to be obtained. The gamers also found and successfully caught one Shiny Pokémon, a Ledyba, during the event.
The marathon raised a total of $59,111.00 for ACT Today.
June 2014
Running between June 20, 2014 and June 27, 2014, this was The Speed Gamers' fifth Pokémon marathon in aid of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Like the previous marathon, the goal was to catch all 718 currently available Pokémon during the seven-day event, while viewers were able to participate throughout the week to win prizes such as games, merchandise and hand-made artwork. The gamers obtained their last Pokémon, Dragonite, just 17 minutes before the end of the 168-hour long marathon.
Though the goal was $50,000, the marathon raised a total of $32,071.33 for St. Jude during the event.
Previous marathons
Below is a table with all of the marathons The Speed Gamers have done. Entries in italics were not for charity.
Marathon | Month/Year | Length | Charity | Money Raised |
---|---|---|---|---|
Zelda | March 2008 | 72 hours | St. Jude Children's Research Hospital | $1,090.00 |
Zelda | June 2008 | 72 hours | Giggles Therapy (Autism) | $1,450.75 |
Mario | July 2008 | 48 hours | No Charity | N/A |
Metroid | August 2008 | 72 hours | St. Jude Children's Research Hospital | $6,123.79 |
Mother/Earthbound | August 2008 | 55 hours | No Charity - "PK Call In" | N/A |
Halo | September 2008 | 24 hours | No Charity | N/A |
"Hallowe'en" | October 2008 | 48 hours | Lupus Foundation of America | $1,060.00 |
Pokémon - Catch 491 Pokémon | December 2008 | 72 hours | ACT Today (Autism Care and Treatment) | $5,923.69 |
Zelda | March 2009 | 72 hours | Ally's House | $6,235.39 |
Mother/Earthbound | May 2009 | 72 hours | Susan G. Komen | $10,586.00 |
Metal Gear | June 2009 | 72 hours | No Charity | N/A |
Final Fantasy | July 2009 | 168 hours | ACT Today (Autism Care and Treatment) | $50,734.63 |
Mega Man | August 2009 | 72 hours | Earth Day Network | $7,188.06 |
Resident Evil | October 2009 | 49 hours | The Diabetes Research and Wellness Foundation | $8,349.54 |
Pokémon - Catch 493 Pokémon | December 2009 | 72 hours | Ally's House | $18,358.96 |
Metroid | March 2010 | 72 hours | Halton Autistic Family Support Group | $11,616.50 |
Mother/Earthbound | May 2010 | 48 hours | Susan G. Komen | $10,749.32 |
Mario | June 2010 | 189 hours* | ACT Today! | $57,399 |
Assassin’s Creed/Prince of Persia | August 2010 | 72 Hours | Gulf Restoration Network | $10,550.04 |
Castlevania | October 2010 | 48 Hours | Rocking H Ranch | $6,926.50* |
Kingdom Hearts | December 2010 | 72 Hours | Best Friends Animal Society | $10,624.65 |
Pokémon Retro - Catch 251 Pokémon | March 2011 | 72 hours | ALS Association | $15,394.03 |
Metroid | May 2011 | 72 Hours | Civic Force | $8,251.85 |
Star Wars | July 2011 | 168 Hours | Direct Relief International | $11,254.09 |
Pokémon - catch 646 Pokémon | June 2012 | 168 Hours | ACT Today | $59,111.00 |
Mario | December 2012 | 72 hours | Make-a-Wish Foundation | $12,056 |
Mega Man | March 2013 | 96 Hours* | Rockin’ H Ranch | $11,880.50 |
Final Fantasy | March 2013 | 168 Hours | ACT Today | $32,753 |
Halloween | June 2013 | 72 Hours | Heifer International | $14,598.50 |
Zelda | December 2013 | 96 Hours* | Mercy Corps | $17,852.00 |
Pokémon - Catch 718 Pokémon | June 2014 | 168 Hours | St. Jude Children's Research Hospital | $32,071.33 |
In addition, during "The Summer of Zelda" (July 2010), the Speed Gamers helped ACT Today win $20,000 through the Chase Community Giving contest by streaming a Zelda game most nights of the month and encouraging people to vote for ACT Today in the contest. They also held a Community Stream month in October 2010, raising a further $2,075 for ACT Today.
External links
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