Frequently Asked Questions

Who are you?

We are a group of people who love video games and wanted to use this love to give back. Throughout the event we are joined by our friends and family who have all shown great support of the event. The event is coordinated by Brian Brinegar, with a whole lot of help from those people listed on the right.

Where are you guys located?

Indiana, USA

Are you affiliated with Nintendo?

No, the Mario Marathon is an independent fan run event. We are in no way affiliated with any corporate entity. We do want to thank Nintendo for creating these great games!

Are you affiliated with Child's Play?

No, we have no formal connection to Child's Play Charity. The event is, however, recognized as a Platinum Sponsor of Child's Play for the past three years.

Do you have a press release I can distribute?

We will once we get closer to the event, check back.

Are you taking a cut of the donations?

No, we are not even collecting the donations. Donations made through our web site go directly to Child's Play. Our goal is only to raise awareness of Child's Play and prove that, "When gamers give back, it makes a difference!"

Is this appropriate for children?

The Mario Marathon team strives to keep the video feed as family friendly as possible. However, interaction in the chatroom, on Facebook and on Twitter are generally outside of our control and probably are not appropriate for young children. Read: We wouldn't let our young children hang out in any online chatrooms. Still, to help prevent excessive abuse, moderators have the authority to warn or ban inappropriate activity.

Are you planning anything different for this year?

Yes! We're moving to a new undisclosed location. We're also expecting to change the game line-up in some way to keep the event from growing out of control.

Where did this idea come from?

The concept was borrowed (with permission) from a guy named Cameron Banga and some of his friends, who attempted to complete Four 3D Zelda games in 48 hours. Watching how much fun they had, I couldn't help but want to attempt something similar. It started out with me asking a couple of my friends if they'd be down for a weekend of non-stop gaming, that turned into us deciding that we might as well make it official and document the whole thing online and see if we can raise some money for charity.

How will my donations get to Child's Play?

Donations are made directly to Child's Play via PayPal. We are using a PayPal service called Instant Payment Notification to track the donations made during our event. Be sure to use the Donate Now! button on our web site to ensure that your donation is attributed to the Mario Marathon.

Are you good at these games?

Not really, though we're getting better. Don't expect a speed run, but we should make it through everything, eventually.

What versions of these games will be played?

We intend to play all of the games on the Nintendo Wii via the Virtual Console, Gamecube, and Wii discs.

Is warping allowed?

Yes.

How do you benefit from this event?

Other than 15 minutes of Internet fame we see no direct benefit. In fact, the Mario Marathon team spends a lot of our own money making donations, buying prizes, mailing press releases, etc. The event is a hobby and a way to create a bigger charitable impact than we could afford ourselves.

Why aren't you playing XYZ?

Who knows, maybe we will play XYZ this year. We'll see.

How do you plan to stay awake?

The pure excitement of Mario saving all those princesses should keep us going.

Is there anything I can do to help?

At this point we're just trying to get the word out. Do what you can to promote the event. follow us on twitter.

How can I submit Fan Art for the web site?

We've setup a fanart submission process to assist us in getting the art up and to make it easier for everyone to browse the artwork. Use the Fan Art Submission Form to get started.

How do you plan to webcast the video?

Twitch.TV is being used to host our video stream. Equipment wise, we've upgraded to HD Canon Camcorders outfitted with wide-angle lenses, Dazzle video capture device, stage quality boundary microphones, and a high quality sound mixer hooked up to a powerful PC running Windows 7. The video is combined using the XSplit software.

I want to run my own gaming marathon, any suggestions?

We've put together some notes which you can read in the article, Notes on Running a Gaming Marathon.

Can I access past Mario Marathons?

Yes! Check out the links below for information on past marathons.

• 2012 Mario Marathon ($112,808 raised)
• 2011 Mario Marathon ($112,675 raised)
• 2010 Mario Marathon ($82,082 raised)
• 2009 Mario Marathon ($29,082 raised)
• 2008 Zelda Marathon ($2,477 raised)
• 2008 Mario Marathon ($11,767 raised)

How do I connect to the Mario Marathon IRC chat servers?

See the Mario Marathon IRC Guide

Got a question we haven't answered?

Send me an e-mail and I'll get you an answer.