Swicon News: Aiming for another Guinness World Record!

Introducing our colleague, Imre Molnár, who is preparing to break another Guinness World Record

Imre Molnár, an outstanding IT specialist at Swicongroup, has been passionate about computer games since childhood. The idea for another Guinness World Record attempt came up in a friendly gathering, and now Imre's goal is to stay in the game for 69 hours, more than 3 days.

Swicongroup fully supports Imre's endeavors, as we believe it's important for our colleagues to achieve both their personal and professional goals.

Imre Molnár's Guinness World Record attempt will start on July 27 at 08:00, and it can be followed live at: https://www.twitch.tv/traitorpc.

• When and how did your passion for computer games begin?

I first encountered a computer in primary school, around eight years old. According to my parents, I could hardly be dragged away from the computer; I would rather stay longer at school just to play on it. Then I got a computer at home, and the problem was solved. It didn't matter what I played; it completely captured my attention, and I felt good while playing. Perhaps the environment where we lived also contributed to this; the local kids were more into smoking on the streets and doing worse things, which didn't appeal to me.

• Did you have real friends besides the knights, elves, shadows, demons, and pandas?

Of course, I had and still have several friends alongside the computer. I owe them a lot! For example, in sixth grade, I attended a bilingual school, and I met one of them there. Looking back, he was like a character from the anime Dragon Ball. He taught me proper English using computer characters and stories, mainly from World of Warcraft and Prince of Persia. As a result, I gained a vast vocabulary and knowledge in the field of games. Additionally, I learned about money management and financial awareness from games. For example, World of Warcraft is a very versatile game where one of the goals is to get better equipment and weapons for the warriors. To do this, you need to learn how to navigate a game auction house, make deals, and invest money. Of course, I lost a lot of "money" at first, as it's much more appealing for a child to gamble. Maybe that's why I'm against gambling now.

• You currently work as an IT specialist at Swicongroup. Was your career choice influenced by your love of games?

I'm a system administrator, which means I deal with everything from the smallest IT problems to the most specific software issues. Yes, my love of games absolutely influenced my career choice, and I was even interested in programming for a while, but I don't have much time for it these days.

• You also have your own YouTube channel (https://www.twitch.tv/traitorpc). Can you tell us a bit about it?

My channel has existed for about 10 years, but I've been more active on it for the past 4 years. I have nearly 12,000 subscribers and have created almost 100 videos. My goal is to reach 15,000 subscribers this year. The channel mainly deals with anime games and explaining their rules. Whether it's an FPS game, fighting game, or battle royale, if I find the anime game entertaining, I'll make a video about it. The only games I don't like are gacha games, which are money pits.

• Let's talk about the Guinness World Record. You were a record holder a few years ago. How did the idea come about?

The idea came from my group of friends; some of them broke a record in another challenge. That's when I thought of checking what Guinness records exist in the genres I like. There were more complicated ones, but the most interesting to me was the 54-hour time record, which I managed to beat by two hours. I wanted to beat it by more, but unfortunately, the master stopwatch broke, and the result was averaged based on all the clocks. Additionally, I slept very little before the competition and started with the most boring parts of World of Warcraft, like gathering materials, and soon got sleepy. Despite this, I still managed to break the record.

• How did it feel to win?

I was very happy, but also very tired.

• Can you describe this game, what it's about, and what the hero's goal is? What happens if the character dies, does everything restart from the beginning?

The main thing I do is level up the hero character starting at level one to the maximum level, which is probably level 80. There are always some additional stories connected to the base game, and they can influence many things. You can play as orcs, dwarves, blood elves, night elves, ghosts, minotaurs, or humans; there are good and bad characters, but the main goal is to defeat the final boss. Luckily, if the character dies, it respawns.

• Your first record was 56 hours, and this was later broken by a new record of 59 hours. How many hours are you aiming for now to reclaim your position?

I plan to exceed it by 10 hours, so 69 hours.

• Is there a break during the attempt?

Yes, if I stay awake for a whole hour, I get a 10-minute break, which can be accumulated.

• What does winning entail?

The winner receives a certificate, and their name and result are eventually written in the Guinness World Records book.

• The new record attempt starts on July 27. How are you preparing for it?

Adhering to the Guinness rules is very important, so I need to ensure the conditions for this with my computer, the witnesses—who will rotate every 4 hours—and the venue. Since I haven't played World of Warcraft for almost a year, my preparation starts from the beginning. I'll install World of Warcraft Dragonflight, World of Warcraft Classic, and World of Warcraft Classic Cataclysm, and create my character in advance on the Classic Hardcore server. Additionally, I'll make two separate Spotify playlists with music to keep me awake. It's also important to get a good night's sleep beforehand.

My workplace, Swicongroup, supports me in many ways during the preparation; they provided me with an uninterruptible power supply, various tools, and I can count on my colleagues for recruiting witnesses.

Imre Molnár's Guinness World Record attempt starts on July 27 at 08:00, and it can be followed live at: https://www.twitch.tv/traitorpc.

We are cheering for you!