2 Quick 2 Charitable
That’s a wrap on the 2023 edition of Summer Game Done Quick. It’s been a full week of playing video games way faster than the Gods of Gameplay intended. Speedrunners gathered in Minneapolis, MN, and awed us with their speedy thumbs for a solid week. Now that the dust has settled, the Summer Games Done Quick organizers have revealed that this year netted a total of $2,239,204 for Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières).
Doctors Without Borders is a charity that puts trained professionals where they’re needed. They provide medical care, support, and relief to wartorn areas and locations affected by disease. They also collect statistics in these areas, on top of other humanitarian work.
🏁TIME🏁 #SGDQ2023 has raised a total of $2,239,204 for @MSF_USA!
Thank you to everyone who made this marathon possible, and to all of you for your amazing generosity & support. See you all next time at #AGDQ2024!! ❤️
Thank you, Chef 🧑🍳✨ pic.twitter.com/SVtxMqB9ZK
— Games Done Quick @ #SGDQ2024 (@GamesDoneQuick) June 4, 2023
In case you missed it
If you missed the Summer Games Done Quick festivities, here are some highlights:
EoDTexSR tackled Pocky & Rocky: Reshrined. This is a bit of an odd choice since a lot of the game is auto-scrolling sections. However, it’s pretty interesting to see them place optimize their power-ups and place their character exactly where they need to be to keep the screen moving.
Want some kusoge? I should probably add this to my list of games to cover in my weekly(ish) column. It’s Cat in the Hat, released on PlayStation in 2004!? Speedrunner Mildew completes the dubious game in a short 10:49. Damn! That is efficient.
How about the hidden NES gem (that I’m not a huge fan of) Shatterhand? I get bored after maybe two levels, but Amad finishes it in 21:55. Wow! I think even my short attention span could handle that.
There were also some awesome attempts at The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild while blindfolded and Tony Hawk’s Underground at Summer Games Done Quick. A really interesting event was around Super Mario Maker 2 being played competitively in a team-based relay style. Team members played levels they had never seen before and competed to see who could do them quicker.
To put this into context, Summer Games Done Quick 2022 raised over $3 million. While this year’s number is lower, it’s still a massively impressive number and something to be proud of. Breaking games to see the credits faster is a terrific way to get gamers to open their wallets for charity, as Games Done Quick proves year after year. Good job to everyone involved, the gamers, the hosts, and, of course, the organizers.
