"Final Fantasy 14" is not a typical game for speedruns. While some parts of the game have a history of speedruns, and there is a dedicated community that runs the game, it still usually takes hours to complete in record time. These cut-scene-skipping blitzes, while certainly impressive, are not worth watching unless you are really interested in the heart and soul of the game.

If, like the gamers at this week's European Speedrunners Assembly (ESA), you want to speedrun for charity, you may be stuck on how to keep watching Square Enix's flagship MMO for hours on end. After all, all you have to do is give viewers the power to screw you over for $20.

Speedrunners Nashlax, Metako, Leonis, and HabKeineName took on the grueling Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn marathon to raise money for the Swedish Alzheimer's Association. The only catch is that the run, nicknamed "$20%," can be derailed at any time by a $20 donation.

As long as they put up the money, viewers could give the game's poor runners new rules they had to follow. Of course, all donations were pre-screened according to ESA guidelines, but each time a new donation was read out, it became law. It took 23 hours to complete the race.

I've only scratched the surface of this fine self-punishment marathon, but here are some of my favorite moments from the VOD, although I'm a little worried about what 23 hours at the mercy of Twitch chatter might have done to the hearts of these brave soldiers.

ESC Summer 2023 closes tomorrow, July 29.