SPEEDRUNNERS, ASSEMBLE! EE UNITES THE UK’S FASTEST BEDROOM GAMERS TO SMASH SPEEDRUN.COM WORLD RECORDS, AS NEW BROADBAND MADE FOR GAMERS BUNDLE LAUNCHES

• To mark today’s launch of EE’s new Broadband Made for Gamers bundle, EE joined forces with two of the UK’s fastest bedroom gamers to put the bundle to the ultimate test by smashing a series of speedrunning world records
• EE’s newly appointed speedrunners, Dan Riley (Undead_Dan) and Josh Edwards (Joshimuz) broke speedrun.com world records for the fastest lap on popular online racing game GRID™ Legends, powered by EE’s Broadband Made for Gamers
• The record follows new research identifying "lag-ra-vation” as the biggest frustration amongst UK gamers, as EE unveils its new bespoke gaming bundle with Game Mode, in a bid to help combat the issue
• EE’s Broadband Made for Gamers features 1.6Gbps download speeds, EE Game Mode, EE Smart WiFi and 24 months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, providing players with hundreds of top games to choose from, for next-level gaming

This week, EE joined forces with two bedroom gamers to smash speedrunning world records on hit racing video game, GRID™ Legends. EE’s speedrunners Dan Riley (from Devon) and Josh Edwards (from Bournemouth), used EE’s new Broadband Made for Gamers bundle that launches today, including its Game Mode feature and 1.6Gbps speeds, to set a total of four all-new speedrun.com records for GRID™ Legends’ Brands Hatch track.

The challenge was conducted using a residential EE broadband line, with the bedroom gamers being put to the test to achieve lightning-fast lap times on Codemasters’ car racing game GRID™ Legends. With EE’s Broadband Made for Gamers bundle and an Xbox Series X, the speedrunners hit new heights in terms of their performance, beating the previous speedrun.com records fuelled by EE’s lag-busting connectivity and Game Mode feature.

EE teamed up with speedrun.com, the official worldwide authority on speedrunning to facilitate the challenge. The aim of speedrunning is simple - players must share their quickest times for finishing a challenge and push for a ground-breaking record – which is where EE’s state-of-the-art bundle features come in handy.

Whilst most speedruns are completed offline, EE’s speedrunners accessed GRID™ Legends actually took place online via EE’s Broadband Made for Gamers bundle, using 24-months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate that comes with it to complete the challenge using cloud gaming.

The new official Speedrun.com Word Records:

Dan Riley:

Brands Hatch GP time: 1:11:070 (Previous Record: 1:11:502)

Brands Hatch GP B time: 1:12:538 (Previous Record: 1:12:751)

Josh Edwards:

Brands Hatch Indy time: 40.440 (Previous Record: 44.972)

Brands Hatch Indy B time: 39.956 (Previous Record: 40:133)

The challenge follows new research* that identified ‘lag-ra-vation,’ sparked from slow and unreliable broadband speeds, is the number one frustration for gamers in the UK, leading them to stress and poor performance. With EE’s Broadband Made for Gamers, players can combat their lag-fuelled frustrations with ultrafast WiFi speeds and EE Game Mode, which enhances WiFi and specifically turbocharges their gaming experience.

Sam Kemp, Director of Gaming at EE, commented: “Our new broadband made for gamers bundle has been designed exclusively to give gamers the very best experience - for when milliseconds can make the difference between winning and losing in an online game. And what better way to put it to the ultimate test, than to give Dan and Josh the edge by using it with an Xbox Series X console – helping them to smash four speedrun world records in less than two hours” 

Spokesperson from speedrun.com commented: “Lightning-fast broadband speed is crucial when it comes to gaming online at a high level, and it’s incredible to see that more gamers can now access this simply through EE’s residential broadband lines. As we’ve shown this week, EE’s Broadband Made for Gamers really does give gamers the extra edge when it comes to performing at the next level – and the fact it’s so accessible to gamers of all levels is even better."

EE speedrunner Josh Edwards added: “It honestly felt like my performance was on another level using the EE Broadband Made for Gamers bundle – it was a huge help in shaving off those crucial seconds so that we could smash the records,” . Dan Riley also said: “There’s no question that I’ll be using the bundle at home from now on – I can’t wait to add it to my set-up and give myself that extra boost when I’m competing online”.

Matthew Battison, Creative Director at Codemasters said: “We applaud Dan and Joshimuz for breaking the record on GRID Legends. We are continually in awe of the skill, dedication, and speed demonstrated by our racing community. We look forward to seeing more of our players find ways to break new records within our games”.

The game-changing bundle is the UK’s only broadband made exclusively with gamers in mind and is ideal for those who are looking for that cutting edge next-level gaming experience. With a range of features including ultrafast broadband speeds with Full Fibre 1.6Gbps, lag reduction with EE Game Mode, Smart WiFi that provides connectivity in the hard-to-reach places in the home as well as access to tons of games with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate – EE’s Broadband Made for Gamers is a no-brainer for those looking to boost their skillset.

Customers can take out the Broadband Made for Gamers bundle for £79.99 per month and a £x up-front fee – including a 24-month Xbox Game Pass Ultimate worth a total of £200 RRP, with 100s of top games to choose from.

For video footage of Dan Riley and Josh Edwards’ record-breaking laps – please visit the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWfFZLpewnE