Awesome Games Done Quick 2018 wrapped up late last night, but not before setting a record for charitable donations.
The speedrunning event raised over $2.2 million dollars for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, $40,000 dollars more than the previous year. Over 40,000 people donated to the cause over the course of the week-long event, with a handful donating more than $1000 each.
The event focuses on top players completing speedruns of various games. Speedrunning is a sport based entirely around beating the game as fast as possible—often faster than the developers ever intended or thought possible. AGDQ uses this set up to create questions and polls that viewers can vote in by making a donation. For example, during a Metroid run, those watching can donate to vote for which suit the player will put Samus in.
The event, which started on January 7, comprised 150 speedruns of a number of last year’s favorite releases. and a few old classics. The week saw a two-hour all-bosses completion of Bloodborne, a 22-and-a-half-minute run of Metroid, and a brand new run of the third game in the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy. The grand finale was a five-hour run of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (all main quests, no amiibo assists).
To see more stats from this year’s event, as well as a list of all completed runs, you can head over to the Games Done Quick website.