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Awesome Games Done Quick 2023 raises over $2.64 million for charity

While not at the levels of previous years, Awesome Games Done Quick's weeklong online speedrunning marathon has raised over $2.64 million for the Prevent Cancer Foundation.

Ozzie Mejia

January 15, 2023 12:33 AM

Games Done Quick

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This was an Awesome Games Done Quick unlike any other, for several reasons, but the week-long marathon has concluded. AGDQ 2023 has wrapped up and has raised more than $2.64 million for the Prevent Cancer Founation. While the $2,642,493 didn't quite hit the record set by last year's AGDQ, it's still a remarkable number given the return to virtual speedrunning that was caused by some logistical upheavel.

Awesome Games Done Quick 2023 Online wrapped up with an exciting pair of Super Mario Bros. 3 runs from GDQ staple Mitchflowerpower. Over the course of the last batch of runs and the event's finale, GDQ was able to reach its final total. The organization maintained a good pace throughout the week with exciting runs of games like Stray, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Shredder's Revenge, Super Mario Galaxy 2, and many more. The final day featured runs of recent hits like Metroid Dread, Half-Life: Alyx, and Pokemon Legends: Arceus before ending on the perennial Nintendo classic SMB3. The final AGDQ's donation total also includes all proceeds from Twitch Bits donated throughout the week, GDQ Twitch channel subscriptions, and purchases from AGDQ partners, such as The Yetee and Fangamer.

This week's marathon wasn't without a few dark clouds. The event was originally meant to be GDQ's second live speedrunning event since the COVID-19 pandemic. That did not happen, as Games Done Quick pulled out of its Florida venue citing the state's disregard for COVID safety protocols, as well as its escalating hostilities towards LGBTQ+ people, some of whom comprise both GDQ's community and labor force. On top of that, GDQ founder Mike Uyama announced he would exit the company just days before the marathon was set to begin. Uyama is the second high-profile GDQ departure in the last year, following Kasumi "Sumichu" Yogi's exit back at Summer Games Done Quick 2022. Uyama will be succeeded by GDQ Director of Operations Matt Merkle. You can revisit our conversation with Merkle from TwitchCon 2018 to learn more about his work with GDQ.

Despite all of this, GDQ's future is looking bright. In-person events are expected to return with Summer Games Done Quick. On top of that, Games Done Quick will continue to add regular content through GDQ Hotfix and side events like Frame Fatales. Frost Fatales 2023 already has its schedule posted and will run from February 26 through March 4. For more, you can visit Games Done Quick on YouTube and the Games Done Quick website.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?