Last year, the friends of late voice actor Billy Kametz organized a charity video game stream in his honor. They ultimately raised $16,000 for the Colon Cancer Coalition, beating their fundraising goal over the course of a 12-hour Super Mario 64 stream. Since last year’s Billy Kametz 120 Star Challenge was such a success, Billy’s friends decided to make it an annual event. Playing Super Mario 64 all day can take a lot out of a player, though, so this year they’re mixing it up with more of Billy’s favorite games. The event will run from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Saturday, May 25, 2024, and will be available to stream on YouTube. It all starts with a competitive speedrun of the original Super Mario Bros. on NES, as each player attempts to beat the game the fastest—with warps allowed—or get the farthest in 10 minutes. After that it’s on to a six-Cup game of Mario Kart, followed by a round-robin-style Mario Party competition before closing out with a big Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament. Each game has a Star value attached to it, and the player who earns the most overall Stars will be crowned the winner. You can learn more about the concept, schedule and scoring system at the official website. Donations will be accepted through Billy Kametz’s memorial page.
After sharing news of his stage IV colon cancer diagnosis in April 2022, Kametz passed on June 9, 2022 at the age of 35. You can join in the now-annual charity event for a good cause and the remembrance of a beloved person and voice actor on Saturday, May 25 starting at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Source: Email correspondence
