Games Done Quick

"GDQ" redirects here. For other uses, see GDQ (disambiguation).

Games Done Quick (GDQ) is a semiannual video game speedrun charity marathon held in the United States, originally organized by the Speed Demos Archive and SpeedRunsLive communities. Since 2015, it has been handled by Games Done Quick, LLC.^[2] Held since 2010, the events have raised money for several charities.

Games Done Quick
Status	Active
Genre	Video game speedruns Video games and charity
Venue	Various
Location(s)	Various
Country	United States
Inaugurated	January 1, 2010; 15 years ago (2010-01-01)
Founder	Mike Uyama[1]
Most recent	January 5, 2025; 3 months ago (2025-01-05)
Organized by	Games Done Quick, LLC
Website	gamesdonequick.com

The two flagship events held by Games Done Quick are Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ), held in early January every year, which raises money for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, and Summer Games Done Quick (SGDQ), usually held in late June or early July every year, which raises money for Doctors Without Borders. Both events last for seven days. In addition to these events, GDQ hosts several other broadcasts throughout the year, including smaller marathons supporting different charities, one-off events for special occasions, and regular GDQ Hotfix programming throughout the year.

The events are broadcast live on Twitch. Viewers are encouraged to donate for incentives during the stream such as selecting the file name or main character's name in a run, having the runners attempt more difficult challenges, and entering sweepstakes for the chance of winning prizes.^[3] As of January 2025, over $54.4 million has been raised across 47 marathons through almost a million individual donations.^[4]

Format

Attendees at Summer Games Done Quick 2019

Speedrunners take turns demonstrating their prowess at beating various video games in the quickest possible time, done in front of an audience as well as a livestream through Twitch.^[5][6][7] Sometimes these runs may be executed in an unusual or specific way, such as fully completing every level, completing a game blindfolded,^[8] or featuring multiple runners racing against one another to complete a game first.^[9] Video games run in Games Done Quick events include both retro and modern titles. The runs typically feature commentary from the runner(s) or experienced commentators, as well as donation messages read by an announcer.

Most of the popular runs feature video game glitches^[10] and discussion between the runner and the commentators, most frequently describing techniques or using observational humor and banter.^[11] Humor and banter is especially used for non-interactive or repetitive sequences that don't require the runner to use much or any skill. Donations from viewers may feature humorous comments that contain inside jokes among the speedrunning community, as well as more personal acknowledgments concerning the charity donated to. Because of the live broadcast and wider audience, runners and commentators are encouraged to refrain from using strong profanity and offensive behavior.^[12]

When donating, donors have the option to put their money towards a particular incentive. These incentives can be in the form of bonus speedruns, showcases of additional tricks or glitches, or an in-game decision such as naming the player character.

History

Games Done Quick's former logo, used until 2018

Writer and speedrunner Eric Koziel identifies two important precursors to Games Done Quick: the "Desert Bus for Hope" donation drive organized by LoadingReadyRun in November 2007, and a series of charity speedrun marathons held by TheSpeedGamers starting in March 2008.^[13]

Users of the site Speed Demos Archive decided to hold a charity marathon in January 2010,^[14] during MAGFest 8. It was themed around 8-bit and 16-bit video games and thus dubbed "Classic Games Done Quick" (after the 1990s speedrunning project Quake Done Quick). Internet connectivity problems at the MAGFest hotel forced SDA administrator Mike Uyama to relocate the event to his mother's residence, but it raised over $10,000 for CARE.^[13][15]

Following that initial success, the first Awesome Games Done Quick marathon was held in January 2011, expanding from two days to five days, incorporating newer games such as Halo and Portal, and raising more than $50,000 for the Prevent Cancer Foundation.^[16] The first Summer Games Done Quick was held in August 2011, raising $20,000 for the Organization for Autism Research.^[17][18] Since then, both Awesome Games Done Quick and Summer Games Done Quick have recurred annually, soon raising significantly larger amounts than these early marathons.

A one-off additional marathon was held in March 2011 to support victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan; Japan Relief Done Quick raised over $25,000. In addition, a one-off promotional event was held on March 20, 2015, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the God of War franchise. Over the course of five hours, God of War Done Quick ended up raising $3,500 for The AbleGamers Foundation.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Summer 2020 marathon, both 2021 marathons, and the Winter 2022 marathon were held as virtual events. In-person attendance returned for SGDQ 2022 under strict social distancing, masking, and vaccine mandate protocol, with all attendees required to have a full series of COVID-19 vaccine and booster dose,^[19] while also continuing to intersperse remote runners alongside those present on-stage.^[20] The Winter AGDQ 2023 event was intended to be an in-person event held in Orlando, Florida, but was moved to a virtual event after controversies due to the Florida state government's stances on LGBT rights and COVID-19 (the state strictly prohibits vaccine mandates).^[21][22] Ahead of the event, Uyama announced that he would be stepping down from his role in GDQ after 13 years "to take care of my health and kind of focus on different activities".^[23] In February 2023, it was announced he had postponed his departure to cover for his successor's illness.^[24]

Speedrunning records have been set at various GDQ marathons in games including Super Mario Galaxy 2,^[25] Superman 64 and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3.^[26]

List of marathons

Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ)

Originally called Classic Games Done Quick (CGDQ), this annual marathon is held every year in early January. It raises money for the Prevent Cancer Foundation.

Dates	Venue	Amount raised	Notes
January 1–3, 2010	(planned) Hilton Alexandria Mark Center, Alexandria, Virginia, during MAGFest 8[a] (actual) private residence	$10,532[27]	Charity fundraised for was CARE.
January 6–11, 2011	National 4-H Youth Conference Center, Chevy Chase, Maryland	$52,520[28]	First event to be called Awesome Games Done Quick. Raised money for the Prevent Cancer Foundation.
January 4–9, 2012		$149,045[29]
January 6–12, 2013		$448,425[30]
January 5–11, 2014	Crowne Plaza Dulles, Herndon, Virginia	$1,031,666[31]	First GDQ event to raise over $1 million
January 4–10, 2015	Hilton Washington Dulles, Herndon, Virginia	$1,576,085[32]
January 3–10, 2016		$1,216,309[33]
January 8–15, 2017[34]		$2,222,791[35]	First GDQ event to raise over $2 million, as well as the first GDQ event to raise over $1 million in a single day
January 7–14, 2018[36]		$2,295,191[37]
January 6–13, 2019[38]	Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center, Rockville, Maryland	$2,425,791[39]
January 5–12, 2020[40]	DoubleTree Hilton, Orlando, Florida	$3,164,002[41]	Second GDQ event to raise over $3 million
January 3–10, 2021	No in-person venue	$2,739,612[42]	Conducted as a virtual event with no central venue due to the COVID-19 pandemic
January 9–16, 2022		$3,442,033[43]	Conducted as a virtual event due to COVID-19. Current donation record set at a GDQ event.[43]
January 8–15, 2023		$2,672,553[44]	Conducted as a virtual event due to COVID-19 and the cancellation of its venue contract.[45]
January 14–21, 2024	Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	$2,539,832[46]
January 5–12, 2025		$2,583,405[47]

Summer Games Done Quick (SGDQ)

Introduced in 2011 as a companion to AGDQ, this marathon is usually held in late June or early July and raises money for Doctors Without Borders. Since 2015, the event has typically been held in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul region.

Dates	Venue	Amount raised	Notes
August 4–6, 2011	A participant's residence in West Bountiful, Utah	$21,397[48]	Charity fundraised for was the Organization for Autism Research.[49]
May 24–28, 2012		$46,279[50]	Charity fundraised for was the Organization for Autism Research.
July 25–30, 2013	Sheraton Denver Tech Center, Greenwood Village, Colorado	$257,181[51]	Raised money for Doctors Without Borders (as have subsequent SGDQs).
June 22–28, 2014	Crowne Plaza Denver International Airport, Denver, Colorado	$718,235[52]	$82,985 of the funds were raised through the SGDQ 2014 Bundle.[53]
July 26–August 2, 2015	Crowne Plaza St. Paul Riverfront, Saint Paul, Minnesota	$1,215,601[54]
July 3–9, 2016[55]	Hilton Minneapolis Downtown, Minneapolis, Minnesota	$1,294,140[56]	First SGDQ to raise more than the AGDQ of the same year
July 2–9, 2017[57]	Minneapolis Marriott City Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota	$1,792,342[58]
June 24–July 1, 2018[59]	DoubleTree Hilton, Bloomington, Minnesota	$2,168,914[60]
June 23–30, 2019[61]		$3,039,596[62]	First GDQ event to raise over $3 million,[63] and first time an all-time GDQ donation record was set at SGDQ[64]
August 16–23, 2020	No in-person venue	$2,345,786[65]	Delayed from the original date, and conducted as a virtual event due to COVID-19[66]
July 4–11, 2021[67]		$2,938,715[68]	Conducted as a virtual event due to COVID-19
June 26–July 3, 2022[69]	DoubleTree Hilton, Bloomington, Minnesota	$3,053,827[70]	First in-person GDQ event since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic
May 28–June 4, 2023[71]	Hilton Minneapolis Downtown, Minneapolis, Minnesota	$2,268,302[72]
June 30–July 7, 2024		$2,576,741[73]
July 6–13, 2025	Minneapolis, Minnesota

Special marathons

Games Done Quick Express (GDQx) is an annual three-day marathon held at TwitchCon since 2018. There was no Games Done Quick Express event held in 2020 or 2021 due to the cancellation of TwitchCon those years, nor was there a Games Done Quick Express event held during the 2022 TwitchCon.

Frame Fatales is a week-long marathon featuring only women and non-binary runners. It started in 2019 as a four-day event and started fundraising for the Malala Fund in 2020.^[74] As of 2022, the event has been held twice a year in February–March and August as Frost Fatales and Flame Fatales, respectively.

Marathon	Dates	Venue[b]	Charity	Amount raised	Notes
Japan Relief Done Quick	April 7–10, 2011	No in-person venue	Doctors Without Borders	$25,800[75]	A marathon to support victims of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
Speedrun Spooktacular	October 26–29, 2012		Lindsey King	$9,733[76]	A marathon to help medical bills for Lindsey King, an artist for Speed Demos Archive
God of War Done Quick	March 20, 2015[77]	Santa Monica Studio	AbleGamers	$3,500+[78]	A special event at Santa Monica Studio as part of the 10-year anniversary of the God of War franchise
Harvey Relief Done Quick	September 1–3, 2017[79]	No in-person venue	Houston Food Bank	$229,455[80]	A marathon to support victims of Hurricane Harvey in Texas
Games Done Quick Express 2018	October 26–28, 2018[81]	San Jose Convention Center	10 charities[c]	$139,879[83]
Games Done Quick Express 2019	September 27–29, 2019[84]	San Diego Convention Center	AbleGamers	$152,595[85]
Classic Games Done Quick 10th Anniversary	December 27–29, 2019[86]	No in-person venue	N/A	N/A	A marathon replicating the schedule of the first event held in January 2010 to celebrate 10 years of Games Done Quick
Frost Fatales 2020	February 23–29, 2020[87][88]		Malala Fund	$54,287[89]	A marathon dedicated to women in speedrunning, running 8 hours a day[90]
Corona Relief Done Quick	April 17–19, 2020		Direct Relief	$403,632[91]	A marathon to help improve the health and lives of people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic[92][93]
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 Launch Celebration	September 4, 2020[94]		The Trevor Project	$4,434[95]	A marathon celebrating the release of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2
Fleet Fatales 2020	November 15–21, 2020[96][97]		Malala Fund	$81,396[98]	An all-women speedrunning event[74]
Flame Fatales 2021	August 15–21, 2021[99]			$127,266[100]
Frost Fatales 2022	February 27–March 5, 2022[101]			$132,982[102]
Flame Fatales 2022	August 21–27, 2022[103]			$135,512[104]
Frost Fatales 2023	February 26–March 5, 2023[105]			$153,417[106]
Flame Fatales 2023	August 13–20, 2023[107]			$110,983[108]
Games Done Quick Express 2023	October 20–22, 2023	Las Vegas Convention Center	AbleGamers	$36,060[109]
Frost Fatales 2024	March 3–10, 2024[110]	No in-person venue	National Women's Law Center[111]	$155,267[112]	An all-women speedrunning event[74]
Flame Fatales 2024	August 18–25, 2024[113]		Malala Fund[114]	$118,792[115]
Speedrun Stage @ PAX West	August 30–September 2, 2024[116]	Seattle Convention Center	N/A	N/A	A marathon hosted by Games Done Quick at PAX West 2024, running daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.[116][117]
Games Done Quick Express 2024	September 20–22, 2024[118]	San Diego Convention Center	AbleGamers	$36,412[119]
Disaster Relief Done Quick 2024	October 11–13, 2024[120]	No in-person venue	Direct Relief	$45,466[121]	A marathon to support recovery efforts after Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton[120]
Back to Black 2025	February 6–10, 2025[122]		Race Forward	$44,025[123]
Frost Fatales 2025	March 9–16, 2025[124]		National Women's Law Center[124]		An all-women speedrunning event[74]

Controversies

As GDQ events have become more popular, there have been several controversies, with players and commentators being banned, and with the stream chat having to be muted.^[125] GDQ has noted they advise attendees to avoid "topics of conversation that are polarizing or controversial in nature" as well as avoiding harassing other players. Some attendees have been banned^[126] for making inappropriate comments, although there are criticisms that some of the bans may be without merit.^[125]

In 2017, a commentator, PvtCinnamonBun, on a speedrun for the game Ape Escape 2 for AGDQ 2017, was banned from all future events for supposedly wearing a "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) hat on stream shortly after Donald Trump's election to the United States presidency. However, according to Kotaku, PvtCinnamonBun's ban was revoked since it was not actually a MAGA hat, but GDQ officials banned him again for supposedly unplugging a power strip cable. Another speedrunner, Cyberdemon531, was also banned from the event for owning the MAGA hat in the first place.^[125]

In 2018, speedrunner "BubblesDelFuego", who speedruns Dark Souls and Fallout 4, was banned from all future GDQ events after sharing edible medicinal cannabis with a friend, which resulted in that friend having a panic attack and being transported to the hospital by paramedics. Bubbles consumed edible cannabis for chronic pain resulting from complications with Hodgkin lymphoma. Bubbles told Kotaku that although he understood why he was banned, he believed that the GDQ "enforcement" staff abused their power and were misinformed about tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active chemical in cannabis.^[127]

At SGDQ 2019, speedrunner "QuinnAce" (formerly "ConnorAce") used a spliced run to illegitimately claim the world record on Clustertruck for the "NoAbility%" category, depriving the legitimate record holder from being invited. The run was treated with suspicion due to it not being submitted officially to speedrun.com, with the video being unlisted on YouTube prior to QuinnAce's acceptance into SGDQ. In October 2019, QuinnAce's run was exposed by the YouTuber documentarian Apollo Legend.^[128][129]

At AGDQ 2020, various runners, including "Luzbelheim" (or "Luz"), were scheduled to run a relay playthrough of Final Fantasy VIII. Hours before, however, Luz's Twitter bio went viral for his comment that he hates "feminazism", identifies as "deminonbinary", and he uses the pronouns "luz/luz".^[130] Other online news publications negatively reacted to GDQ organizers allowing Luz to play in the relay playthrough.^[131] Luz was given a ban without details about its length.^[130]

At SGDQ 2022, speedrunner "Mekarazium" admitted that he faked a run of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Blade Wolf DLC. The game was played remotely, unlike most of the other games at the event, and the DLC was a donation incentive. While the main game was played live by Mekarazium, the DLC was pre-recorded. Viewers quickly noted discrepancies with the run. Mekarazium admitted to faking the run and was banned from future GDQ events.^{[132][133][134]}

Notes

1. One speedrun was completed at the Hilton in 2010 before the venue was changed, due to poor Internet upload issues
2. No in-person venue refers to a virtual event where runners stream from their residences during the marathon.
3. Charities at Games Done Quick Express 2018 included: AbleGamers, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Call of Duty Endowment, Direct Relief, Doctors Without Borders, Extra Life, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Save the Children, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, and To Write Love on Her Arms.^[82]