The speedrunning event has been a huge success this year, raking in nearly $1.78 million from 30,068 people. This was the seventh Summer Games Done Quick (SGDQ) speedrunning marathon event, and Sunday was the last day.
Increasing donations for SGDQ each year
The total donations for this year’s event included direct donations and partner donations from activities such as T-shirt sales and the Humble Bundle, which donated 100% of new monthly subscriptions. Compared to the previous year, donations this year were 35% higher, suggesting the growing size and stature of speedrunning.
However, the SGDQ was a tad behind its sister event, the Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ), which was conducted in January and raised over $2.22 million in the same length of time. The holidays could be one reason why the last event was more successful than the most recent one, notes GameRant.
With a current cash total $1,760,400 we absolutely destroyed our total from SGDQ of last year! Amazing job everyone! #SGDQ2017 pic.twitter.com/dyMPZhnbmF
— Games Done Quick ? #SGDQ2023 (@GamesDoneQuick) July 9, 2017
For SGDQ, the highest single donation made during the event amounted to $20,300, and a total of 139 speedruns were held, with games such as Titanfall 2, Final Fantasy VII, Nier: Automata and Super Mario 64. There were also races between various speedrunners for Tetris: The Grand Master, The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening DX and other titles. Further, a Portal 2 two-player cooperative run by only one person at the end of the marathon was a big attraction, notes Twinfinite.
The SGDQ has come far from its inception, when it raised merely $21,397 from the event seven years ago. However, the event which contributes towards the ‘Doctors Without Borders’ charity, has a long way to go, considering its achievements. Nevertheless, the SGDQ 2017 has been massive in every way, and has become the cultural touchstone for many in the gaming community.
“Book-ended by a new and old fan-favorite, NieR: Automata and Earthbound, the event included everything from expert runs through Super Monkey Ball and Super Mario 64 to multi-hour affairs as speedrunners tackled lengthy JRPGs while explaining their intricate inner workings,” Kotaku – a popular video game website and blog, said of the event.
Speedrunning event – what it is?
Games Done Quick is a speedrunning event conducted twice a year, where around 100,000 concurrent viewers watch the event online and donate million of dollars to charity. This could easily be said as the largest speedrunning events where the runners come across the globe. The Speedrun event lasts for seven days with no breaks, and therefore, players need to complete a total of 132 games as fast as possible.
The event brings hundreds of people together in a hotel conference room to play their favorite games at a very fast speed. The number of enthusiasts who watch them play these games is equal or more than the number of those playing.
“$2,740 was raised at the beginning of this year’s marathon simply to get speedrunner Halfcoordinated to hold an Emil plushie in one hand while he completed NieR: Automota with the other,” says Kotaku.
Since the event for 2017 is over, fans will wait for the next Games Done Quick event in 2018. The dates have already been announced: January 7-14.
