Speedrunning has long been a part of gaming culture, but getting into it can be intimidating. In order to become a speedrunner, there are plenty of rules, terms, and glitches to learn about in order to make it official. Even just watching can be difficult as countless videos make it hard to sift through. Still, finding a really good speedrun is worth the effort. Speedrun World Records makes the process even easier.
To ensure that each speedrun is a current world record, the website pulls its selections randomly from the Speedrun website’s API. Each video links to a game’s Speedrun page so viewers can easily see where it ranks on the leaderboard. From here, viewers can easily find other playthroughs for that game or find additional details.
What makes Speedrun World Records even better is that it comes up with videos beyond mainstream games like Super Mario 64.
“We’ve seen our fair share of Super Mario 64, Ocarina of Time and Super Mario Sunshine runs (if you haven’t, you should). But we might not have given enough attention to some of the less well-known speedrunners or communities,” the website states on its homepage. “This site provides you with a world record from a random game and random category in hopes that: you will be entertained, you will follow the runners on twitch/youtube, or even find a new speedgame and compete for a world record!”
Upon testing the website out, the videos that came up were true to their mission. Sometimes games come up that are so underground that most people likely have not heard of it.
Super Hook Girl is likely not on the top of anyone’s radar, but that doesn’t stop this speedrun from being impressive. How often are games beaten in just over two minutes?
Other titles show up that you would not even think of having a speedrun. Mario Party 2 is beloved by many, but no one would ever call this game fast. That does not stop this player from completing the mini-game coaster in about 11 minutes.
There is no better time to get into speedruns than now with Summer Games Done Quick 2017 starting on July 2. This series of charity video game marathons feature high-level speedrunners as they raise money for charity. In the past six years, Games Done Quick has teamed up with charities like Doctors Without Borders and the Prevent Cancer Foundation. To date, more than $10 million has been raised.
