The Impact of Grobbo’s Speedrun Fraud on the Diablo Community
For a decade and a half, Diablo fans and speedrunners admired Maciej "Grobbo" Maselewski’s world record, Diablo 4 Items believing it to be a pinnacle of skill and good fortune. But when the truth about his run was uncovered, it shook the very foundation of the Diablo speedrunning community. Grobbo’s manipulation of the game’s seeds and his use of spliced footage not only tarnished his reputation but also had a chilling effect on the entire community.
The speedrunning community had initially accepted Grobbo’s record without question. It wasn’t until a group of dedicated sleuths began investigating his run that the truth emerged. The team had originally sought to recreate Grobbo’s “luck” by searching through billions of valid Diablo seeds. What they found was alarming—his world record seed didn’t exist. The investigation revealed that Grobbo had used a combination of game manipulation, luck, and multiple runs spliced together to achieve his impossible time.
The discovery of this fraud had a far-reaching impact. Allan "DwangoAC" Cecil, one of the investigators, noted that Grobbo’s actions caused lasting harm to the community. For years, players stopped attempting runs in the same category, feeling disheartened by the thought that the record might not be attainable without resorting to manipulation. This sense of disillusionment dampened the spirit of competition and innovation that had fueled the Diablo speedrunning community.
In the wake of the controversy, the Speed Demos Archive removed Grobbo’s world record, Diablo 4 Items but the damage had already been done. The fallout from his actions left many wondering if the integrity of the Diablo speedrunning scene could ever be fully restored.