Video game charity marathon
Zeldathon Genre Video game charity marathonsFrequency Annual Location(s) United States Inaugurated December 27, 2009; 15 years ago (2009-12-27 ) Founder Matthew "MC" Moffit Most recent December 29, 2024–January 2, 2025 Next event TBD Participants 100+ Organized by Kinstone, LLC Website zeldathon .net
Zeldathon is an annual video game charity marathon, broadcast live on Twitch . Traditionally, every major video game in The Legend of Zelda series is completed back-to-back throughout the event, over the course of several days. Viewers are encouraged to donate directly to a selected charity in order to reach various goals and motivate the attendees to perform various challenges, such as playing the game upside down, or dressing up as a recurring video game character.[ 1] [ 2]
As of 2024, more than 100 people from across the world have participated in the event, with the most recent instances featuring over 70 attendees each. Over the course of 30 marathons, the team has raised more than $3 million for various charitable causes.[ 3]
At the conclusion of the 22nd marathon, a documentary on the event's history, Money Making Game , was announced with a projected release of December 2019 to celebrate Zeldathon's 10th anniversary.[ 4] The documentary was premiered at the 25th marathon, Zeldathon Forces. On August 28, 2024, Matthew "MC" Moffit announced he was stepping down as Director of Zeldathon.[ 5]
Founding
Zeldathon was first organized in late 2009 between Matthew "MC" Moffit and Zak Ondish, having taken inspiration from other charity gaming marathons such as TheSpeedGamers .
Following the first marathon, motivation was low to continue to create another event. However, another attendee of the initial event wanted to do a second as a high school senior project. Moffit agreed to help, and they planned and executed a second summer event. Following this, the marathon continued to return twice annually, in the summer and winter, with occasional mini-marathons being held as needed.[ 3]
Honors
In September 2016, the Zeldathon Team was awarded the "Help Award" by Help Hope Live , for excellence in fund-raising following their fifteenth marathon, Zeldathon Hope. The award was given as a direct result of their effort in raising more than $250,000 for Help Hope Live in the 150-hour event.[ 6]
List of marathons
There have been 30 mainline marathons to date.[ 7]
#
Title
Start Date
End Date
Charity
Total Raised
Duration
Notes
1
Zeldathon for Charity
December 27, 2009
December 30, 2009
Child's Play
$301
72 Hours
2
Zeldathon for the American Cancer Society
June 19, 2010
June 22, 2010
American Cancer Society
$3,322
72 Hours
a.k.a. Zeldathon ACS
3
Zeldathon for the American Diabetes Association
December 27, 2010
January 1, 2011
American Diabetes Association
$4,001
120 Hours
a.k.a. Zeldathon ADA
4
Zeldathon Quest
June 22, 2011
June 24, 2011
RJ's College Fund
$2,672
48 Hours
Mini-Marathon[ 8]
5
Zeldathon for the American Red Cross
July 19, 2011
July 23, 2011
American Red Cross
$13,280
96 Hours
a.k.a. Zeldathon ARC
6
Zeldathon Child's Play
December 29, 2011
January 5, 2012
Child's Play
$15,473
170 Hours
[ 9] [ 10]
7
Ultimate Zeldathon
July 7, 2012
July 12, 2012
Child's Play
$27,176
120 Hours
8
Zeldathon Water
December 27, 2012
January 1, 2013
charity: water
$45,874
120 Hours
[ 11]
9
Zeldathon Lives
July 5, 2013
July 10, 2013
National Foundation for Transplants
$53,039
120 Hours
[ 12]
10
Zeldathon: Headstone for a Hero
October 4, 2013
October 6, 2013
Zachary's Headstone
$10,202
48 Hours
Mini-Marathon
11
Zeldathon St. Jude
December 27, 2013
January 1, 2014
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$54,965
120 Hours
12
Zeldathon Adventure
July 10, 2014
July 17, 2014
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$97,251
156 Hours
[ 13] [ 14] [ 15] [ 16]
13
Zeldathon Relief
December 27, 2014
January 2, 2015
Direct Relief
$106,100
141 Hours
[ 17] [ 18]
14
Zeldathon Deluxe
June 19, 2015
June 25, 2015
charity: water
$196,097
140 Hours
[ 19]
15
Zeldathon Hope
December 27, 2015
January 2, 2016
Help Hope Live
$251,554
147 Hours
[ 20] [ 21]
16
Zeldathon Recovery
June 17, 2016
June 23, 2016
Direct Relief
$230,077
148 Hours
[ 22] [ 23] [ 24] [ 25] [ 26]
17
Zeldathon Classic
October 14, 2016
October 17, 2016
Child's Play
$27,546
72 Hours
Mini-Marathon
18
Zeldathon Cures
December 27, 2016
January 2, 2017
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$376,157
143 Hours
[ 27]
19
Zeldathon Wild
June 5, 2017
June 11, 2017
The WILD Foundation
$169,982
147 Hours
[ 28] [ 29] [ 30] [ 31]
20
Anything Other Than Zeldathon
September 29, 2017
October 2, 2017
Help Hope Live
$26,803
75 Hours
Mini-Marathon - Did not play Zelda titles [ 32] [ 33]
21
Zeldathon Mission
December 27, 2017
January 2, 2018
Direct Relief
$224,665
149 Hours
[ 34]
22
Zeldathon Champions
June 15, 2018
June 21, 2018
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$160,013
144 Hours
23
Zeldathon Response
December 27, 2018
January 2, 2019
Direct Relief
$165,000
145 Hours
24
Zeldathon Heals
June 13, 2019
June 20, 2019
Help Hope Live
$170,049
164 Hours
25
Zeldathon Forces
December 27, 2019
January 3, 2020
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$173,700
153 Hours
10 year anniversary
26
Zeldathon Ascent
December 27, 2021
January 2, 2022
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$176,843
147 Hours
27
Zeldathon Daybreak
August 2, 2022
August 8, 2022
Direct Relief
$125,800
145 Hours
28
Zeldathon Echoes
July 6, 2023
July 12, 2023
charity: water
$137,400
151 Hours
[ 35]
29
Zeldathon Dimensions
December 27, 2023
January 2, 2024
Make-A-Wish Foundation
$112,445
149 Hours
30
Zeldathon 1986
August 13th, 2024
August 20th, 2024
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$105,822
155 Hours
[ 36]
Piece of Heart
In addition to their primary marathons, in 2019 the Zeldathon Team announced Piece of Heart, a convention-based charity event featuring Zeldathon participants.[ 37]
#
Title
Start Date
End Date
Venue
Charity
Total Raised
Duration
Notes
1
Piece of Heart
May 24, 2019
May 26, 2019
MomoCon 2019
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$16,051
26 Hours
Final duration excludes breaks between days
2
Piece of Heart
May 26, 2022
May 29, 2022
MomoCon 2022
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
$20,122
42 Hours
Final duration excludes breaks between days
Side Quest
At the end of Zeldathon Forces, the Zeldathon Team announced Zeldathon Parallel Worlds, an event focusing on non-Zelda titles. The team has said that this is its own line of events, rather than part of the main list of Zeldathon marathons. While originally planned to begin on June 4, 2020, it was announced in March 2020 that the event would be delayed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.[ 38]
In the same March 2020 announcement as the delay of Parallel Worlds, it was revealed that an online-only event would be held in its place, scheduled to begin on June 5, in support of Direct Relief. The event was later given the title of Side Quest.[ 39] On June 3, it was announced that Side Quest would be delayed in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement following the George Floyd protests ,[ 40] with a new starting date of August 7 announced in July.[ 41]
#
Title
Start Date
End Date
Charity
Total Raised
Duration
Notes
1
Side Quest
August 7, 2020
August 12, 2020
Direct Relief
$72,127
127 Hours
Online-only Event
2
Take to the Seas!
December 26, 2020
January 2, 2021
charity: water
$87,887
172 Hours
Online-only Event
3
A Fantastic Journey!
June 11, 2021
June 18, 2021
Direct Relief
$78,250
157 Hours
Online-only Event
4
Banana Slamma!
September 17, 2021
September 19, 2021
Starlight Children's Foundation
$8,045
48 Hours
Online-only Event
5
Dampe's Twilight Tour![ 42]
October 28, 2022
October 31, 2022
Gamers Outreach Foundation
$12,600
42 Hours
Online-only Event, Final duration excludes breaks between days
6
Waluigi's Arcade Heist![ 43]
October 27, 2023
October 30, 2023
Starlight Children's Foundation
$8,300
43 Hours
Online-only Event, Final duration excludes breaks between days
7
Winter Masquerade
December 29, 2024
January 2, 2025
Starlight Children's Foundation
$28,788+
70 Hours
Final duration excludes breaks between days
References
^ Myers, Valerie. "Zeldathon to benefit children's cancer research" . GoErie.com . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Fekos, Konstantine (July 12, 2014). "Charity marathon featuring Zelda gaming to benefit St. Jude's" . Meadville Tribune . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ a b "About Zeldathon" . zeldathon.net . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Money Making Game" . kickstarter.com . Retrieved August 13, 2018 .
^ https://x.com/Zeldathon/status/1828840010692599841
^ "6 People Who Inspire Us With Courage, Strength and Selflessness" . Help Hope Live . September 14, 2016. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Zeldathon Timeline" . zeldathon.net . Retrieved April 28, 2018 .
^ Bissoon, Neranjan 'Venom' (June 23, 2011). "Streaming for a good cause: Zeldathon and Mario Marathon" . destructoid . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Zeldathon for Child's Play" . Child's Play. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Lien, Tracey (January 7, 2013). "Child's Play charity raised $5 million in 2012" . Polygon . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Tach, Dave (December 27, 2012). "Zeldathon offers five days of Zelda for charity, streamed live" . Polygon . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Zeldathon a Huge Success for NFT!" . www.transplants.org . National Foundation for Transplants. July 18, 2013. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Gamers virtually raise thousands of dollars for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital® patients battling cancer, other deadly diseases" (Press release). St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. June 6, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Fekos, Konstantine (July 18, 2014). "Zeldathon yields 'legendary' take of $101K for St. Jude's" . Meadville Tribune . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Whitehead, Thomas (July 8, 2014). "The Zeldathon Adventure Kicks Off This Week To Raise a Whole Lot of Rupees" . Nintendo Life . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Heraghty, Bryan (July 17, 2014). "Zeldathon Raises $100,000 in Donations" . techraptor.net . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Futter, Mike (December 29, 2014). "Thirty-Three Gamers Participating In Charity 'Zeldathon' This Week" . Retrieved May 4, 2018 . [dead link ]
^ "Zelda, The Legend, The Philanthropist" . Direct Relief . December 17, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "New Zeldathon Revealed for the Summer: Live Stream for Charity" . Zelda Dungeon . March 29, 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "One Year Later: The Legacy and Impact of Zeldathon Hope" . Help Hope Live . December 27, 2016. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Zeldathon Hope: How The $250,000 Raised For HelpHOPELive Will Change Lives" . Help Hope Live . January 8, 2016. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Zeldathon, World's Most Legendary Gaming Marathon, Blasts Off for Charity" (Press release). Direct Relief. Retrieved May 4, 2018 – via www.prnewswire.com.
^ Paynter, Ben (July 7, 2016). "At Zeldathon, The Charity Race Meets The Game Controller" . Fast Company . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Playing Zelda for Charity: Zeldathon" . Philanthropic People . June 23, 2016. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Lindquist, Joshua (June 22, 2016). "Annual Zeldathon event raising money for Direct Relief charity" . Zelda Universe . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Zeldathon Blasts Off for Charity" . Direct Relief . June 15, 2016. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Johnson, Shona (December 29, 2016). "Zeldathon Cures streaming now; playing Zelda for charity" . Zelda Universe . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Mejia, Ozzie (June 9, 2017). "Zeldathon Wild: The Best Moments So Far and What to Watch This Weekend" . Shacknews . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Rossignol, Derrick (June 8, 2017). "A Livestreaming ZELDA Marathon Is Raising Money for Charity Right Now" . Nerdist. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "Zeldathon gaming marathon put on by locals starts Monday" . Meadville Tribune . June 4, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ Etehad, Melissa (September 29, 2017). "When hurricanes hit, philanthropic video game enthusiasts came to the rescue" . Los Angeles Times . Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ SuperMCGamer. Anything Other Than Zeldathon - Part 1 . Luigi's Mansion. Retrieved May 4, 2018 – via Twitch .
^ SuperMCGamer. Anything Other Than Zeldathon - Part 2 . Octodad: Dadliest Catch. Retrieved May 4, 2018 – via Twitch .
^ "Zeldathon charity event to raise money for Direct Relief" . GamesIndustry.biz (Press release). December 21, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2018 .
^ "We're excited to announce our next Zeldathon will be July 2023, celebrating the release of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom" . Twitter . September 17, 2022.
^ "We're excited to announce our next event! Zeldathon 1986: beginning August 13, 2024" . Twitter . May 18, 2024.
^ "Piece of Heart - Trailer" . YouTube . April 19, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2019 .
^ "Zeldathon Update - 3.25.2020" . YouTube . March 25, 2020. Retrieved March 25, 2020 .
^ "Join The #Zeldathon Team on June 5th for #SideQuest!" . Twitter . April 13, 2020. Retrieved April 13, 2020 .
^ "#BlackLivesMatter" . Twitter . June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 6, 2020 .
^ "#Zeldathon #SideQuest, benefiting @DirectRelief, will start on August 7th at 4PM EST!" . Twitter . July 6, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2020 .
^ "Coming to you this Halloweekend: Side Quest: Dampe's Twilight Tour!" . Twitter . September 18, 2022.
^ "Coming to Twitch this October, Side Quest: Waluigi's Arcade Heist!" . Twitter . September 4, 2023.
External links