Speedrun

A speedrun is a play-through (or a recording thereof) of a video game performed with the intention of completing a goal as fast as possible, most often to complete the game. Speedruns may cover a whole game or a selected part (such as a single level) and may impose additional requirements beyond quick completion. They are mainly attempted for the purposes of entertainment and competition.

Commonly, speedruns are recorded by the players who make them. Players use these recordings for entertainment and to verify the completion time (or to spot opportunities to improve it). The use of speedruns as entertainment stems from their conception by game enthusiasts, who would often compare each other's playing skills via videos exchanged over the Internet. As speedruns grew more competitive, however, enthusiasts often demanded more proper speedrun recordings, so that anyone could verify that a play-through went by the implicit or specific speedrun rules it claimed to follow. This verifiability is needed to count a speedrun as an official attempt to beat any previous records.