Thought speedruns were just for the clinically insane?
Think again, because speedrunners in video games have been breaking video game world records for one of the best causes in the world – fighting against cancer.
Over the weekend, Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ) – a charitable annual speedrunning marathon based in the US – raised approximately US$2,394,668 for the Prevent Cancer Foundation. Prevent Cancer Foundation is one of the leading US health organisations dedicated to the early detection and prevention of cancer, thanks to the efforts of organisations such as AGDQ.
That's a wrap for #AGDQ2019 thank you everyone for supporting the event! We'll see you in Bloomington, MN for #SGDQ2019 from June 23 – 30! pic.twitter.com/IFE41xhfiS
— Games Done Quick (@GamesDoneQuick) January 13, 2019
According to the stat tracker on the AGDQ website, the speedrun marathon was held from January 6-13 in Rockville, Maryland, and was broadcast on Twitch, with view count peaking at over 210,000. The average donation amount was US$51.72, with the highest donor a one The Yetee56 with a whopping US$154,850 spread across 18 separate donations across the event.
The event, of course, wouldn’t be complete without the stellar runs of a multitude of speedrunners who came to try their hand at wowing Twitch viewers (and would-be donors) for the game they were attempting a speedrun at.
Notable speedruns included a Hollow Knight true ending, no glitch run by Vysuals, and Bloodborne by HeyZeusHeresToast.
Although this ACDQ event is over, people can still donate via the link here.
The next speedrun marathon will be the Summer Games Done Quick, held at Bloomington, Minnesota, from June 23-30.
Marion has a serious RPG addiction. Sometimes it bleeds into real life; he forgets to sleep because he thinks he has a Witcher’s body clock. Forgive him in advance if he suddenly blurts out terms such as “Mind Flayer” and “Magic Missile”, because never once does he stop thinking about his next Dungeons & Dragons game.
Jimmy Sho
Brandon Toh
