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I'd think breaking three million bucks at the end of the event is Awesome, wouldn't you?
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* At the end of it all, SGDQ 2019 utterly '''shattered''' every GDQ record total to date-- in the ending cutscenes of the closing ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'' run, the total broke '''''three million dollars''''' for Medécins Sans Frontières. When the big $3M threshold was passed, the crowd was on its feet, roaring in ecstatic applause and cheering. Supplemental awesome comes from the fact that this run alone pulled in at least ''$800K'', since the total at the previous run's conclusion was hovering around $2.2M-- still nothing to sneeze at.
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* Dowolf [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wC5R61Avbrc plays]] ''VideoGame/HalfMinuteHero'', an extremely fast game, while giving [[MotorMouth extremely-fast commentary]].
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* Keizaron's run of ''VideoGame/PokemonCrystal'' alone had $101,776 raised on top of seven incentives met.
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* Keizaron's run of ''VideoGame/PokemonCrystal'' alone had $101,776 raised on top of seven incentives met.met, partly because of a donation train based on the Pokédex numbers of donators' favorite Pokémon, leading to a lot of relatively large donations.
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* In Keizaron's run of ''VideoGame/PokemonCrystal'' alone had $101,776 raised on top of over four incentives met.
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* In Keizaron's run of ''VideoGame/PokemonCrystal'' alone had $101,776 raised on top of over four seven incentives met.
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* In Keizaron's run of Pokemon Crystal alone had $101,776 raised on top of over four incentives met.
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* In Keizaron's run of Pokemon Crystal ''VideoGame/PokemonCrystal'' alone had $101,776 raised on top of over four incentives met.
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* In Keizaron's run of Pokemon Crystal alone had $101,776 raised on top of over four incentives met.
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* Following up from his past blindfolded ''VideoGame/PunchOut'' runs, Zallard1 obliterated his PB of ''Punch Out Wii'' blindfolded, never going beyond round 1 of any of the bouts.
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* Following up from his past blindfolded ''VideoGame/PunchOut'' runs, Zallard1 [=Zallard1=] obliterated his PB of ''Punch Out Wii'' blindfolded, never going beyond round 1 of any of the bouts.
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* Following up from his past blindfolded ''Punch-Out'' runs, Zallard1 obliterated his PB of ''VideoGame/PunchOutWii'' blindfolded, never going beyond round 1 of any of the bouts.
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* Following up from his past blindfolded ''Punch-Out'' ''VideoGame/PunchOut'' runs, Zallard1 obliterated his PB of ''VideoGame/PunchOutWii'' ''Punch Out Wii'' blindfolded, never going beyond round 1 of any of the bouts.
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[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2019]]
* Following up from his past blindfolded ''Punch-Out'' runs, Zallard1 obliterated his PB of ''VideoGame/PunchOutWii'' blindfolded, never going beyond round 1 of any of the bouts.
[[folder:SGDQ 2019]]
* Following up from his past blindfolded ''Punch-Out'' runs, Zallard1 obliterated his PB of ''VideoGame/PunchOutWii'' blindfolded, never going beyond round 1 of any of the bouts.
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** Studio MDHR even gave him a shoutout with new [[https://twitter.com/StudioMDHR/status/1010241978980855815 promotional]] [[https://twitter.com/StudioMDHR/status/1011715733146030081 artwork]].
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* The [=TASbot=] run of ''VideoGame/{{Celeste}}'' stunned viewers and commentators alike (one of the latter was part of the dev team)...and then it made the [[BrutalBonusLevel C-Side levels]] look like child's play.
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* The [=TASbot=] run [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEcv7BD1q9o run]] of ''VideoGame/{{Celeste}}'' stunned viewers and commentators alike (one of the latter was part of the dev team)...and then it made the [[BrutalBonusLevel C-Side levels]] look like child's play.
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* The co-op run of ''[[VideoGame/{{N}} N++]]'' by [=AND4H=] and Krankdud turned out to be a surprise hit, both for the sheer amount of coordination and synergy between the runners, as well as the non-stop, yet incredibly concise and engaging commentary by [=Mithical9=] on the couch, impressively [[MotorMouth commentating for nearly the entire 26.5 minutes]] with no need for donations or dead air. To cap it all off, the duo end up setting a world record, incidentally marking Krankdud's ''second'' WR in the same event (the other being for ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'').
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* The co-op run of ''[[VideoGame/{{N}} N++]]'' by [=AND4H=] and Krankdud turned out to be a surprise hit, both for the sheer amount of coordination and synergy between the runners, as well as the non-stop, yet incredibly concise and engaging commentary by [=Mithical9=] on the couch, impressively [[MotorMouth commentating for nearly the entire 26.5 minutes]] with no need for donations or dead air. To cap it all off, the duo end up setting a world record, incidentally marking Krankdud's ''second'' WR in the same event (the other being for ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'').''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'', which was ''also'' commentated on by [=Mitchical9=]).
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** The game itself gets one. Most games in Awful Block are notoriously shoddy in quality and programming, and even most of the big-budget titles have a lot of exploitable glaring flaws. But as is noted multiple times by the runner and the couch, ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'' is legitimately well-programmed and has few glitches or skips, especially since PJ has been known for breaking games in half.
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** The game itself gets one. Most games in Awful Block are notoriously shoddy in quality and programming, and even most of the big-budget titles have a lot of exploitable glaring flaws. But as is noted multiple times by the runner and the couch, ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'' is legitimately well-programmed and has few glitches or skips, especially notable since PJ has been known for breaking games in half.
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Sinister did Punch Out blindfolded starting in 2012, not 2013.
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** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvzIb53Lcno Sinister1 reprised his 2013 attempt]] at completing the original ''Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!'' for the NES while blindfolded. In 2013, he was bested by Bald Bull. In 2014, he finally defeats Bald Bull[[spoiler: and eventually makes it ''all the way to Tyson himself'']].
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** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvzIb53Lcno Sinister1 reprised his 2013 attempt]] at completing the original ''Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!'' for the NES while blindfolded. blindfolded, which he started attempting in 2012. In 2013, 2012, he was bested by Bald Bull. In 2014, 2013, he finally defeats Bald Bull[[spoiler: and Bull, but gets bested by the Piston Honda rematch. In 2014, he beats the second Honda fight [[spoiler:and eventually makes it ''all the way to Tyson himself'']].
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** The game itself gets one. Most games in Awful Block are notoriously shoddy in quality and programming, and even most of the big-budget titles have a lot of exploitable glaring flaws. But as is noted multiple times by the runner and the couch, ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'' is legitimately well-programmed and has few glitches or skips.
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** The game itself gets one. Most games in Awful Block are notoriously shoddy in quality and programming, and even most of the big-budget titles have a lot of exploitable glaring flaws. But as is noted multiple times by the runner and the couch, ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'' is legitimately well-programmed and has few glitches or skips.skips, especially since PJ has been known for breaking games in half.
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The current link leads to a removed/unavailable video; replacing with a new link.
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* The entirety of CGN's ''F-Zero GX'' run [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZhczLwJ3IY must be seen to be believed]]. When a room full of speedrunners call you "a human TAS", you know you're good. The entire run strikes a flawless balance between [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome the skill of CGN's masterful performance]] and [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments the hilarity of Naegleria's increasingly high blood pressure]], making it easily one of the best runs of AGDQ 2014.
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* The entirety of CGN's ''F-Zero ''VideoGame/FZero GX'' run [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZhczLwJ3IY must be seen to be believed]]. When a room full of speedrunners call you "a human TAS", you know you're good. The entire run strikes a flawless balance between [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome the skill of CGN's masterful performance]] and [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments the hilarity of Naegleria's increasingly high blood pressure]], making it easily one of the best runs of AGDQ 2014.
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* Sumichu's [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic brilliant rendition]] of [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater Snake Eater]]. Even the most [[{{Troll}} mischievous members]] of Twitch Chat were [[PetTheDog willing to praise it]]. Listen to it [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKLJjRQy754 here.]]
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* Sumichu's [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic brilliant rendition]] of [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater Snake Eater]]."Snake Eater"]]. Even the most [[{{Troll}} mischievous members]] of Twitch Chat were [[PetTheDog willing to praise it]]. Listen to it [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKLJjRQy754 com/watch?v=qHSOIBdqPjQ here.]]
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* The ''[[Videogame/DragonQuestI Dragon Warrior I]]'' run, which was accomplished in 27 minutes.
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* The ''[[Videogame/DragonQuestI ''[[VideoGame/DragonQuestI Dragon Warrior I]]'' run, which was accomplished in 27 minutes.
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* The co-op run of ''[[VideoGame/{{N}} N++]]'' by [=AND4H=] and Krankdud turned out to be a surprise hit, both for the sheer amount of coordination and synergy between the runners, as well as the non-stop, yet incredibly concise and engaging commentary by [=Mithical9=] on the couch, impressively [[MotorMouth commentating for nearly the entire 26.5 minutes]] with no need for donations or filler. To cap it all off, the duo end up setting a world record, incidentally marking Krankdud's ''second'' WR in the same event (the other being for ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'').
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* The co-op run of ''[[VideoGame/{{N}} N++]]'' by [=AND4H=] and Krankdud turned out to be a surprise hit, both for the sheer amount of coordination and synergy between the runners, as well as the non-stop, yet incredibly concise and engaging commentary by [=Mithical9=] on the couch, impressively [[MotorMouth commentating for nearly the entire 26.5 minutes]] with no need for donations or filler.dead air. To cap it all off, the duo end up setting a world record, incidentally marking Krankdud's ''second'' WR in the same event (the other being for ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'').
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* The co-op run of ''[[VideoGame/{{N}} N++]]'' by [=AND4H=] and Krankdud turned out to be a surprise hit, both for the sheer amount of coordination and synergy between the runners, as well as the non-stop, yet incredibly concise and engaging commentary by Mithical9 on the couch, impressively [[MotorMouth commentating for nearly the entire 26.5 minutes]] with no need for donations. To cap it all off, the duo end up setting a world record, incidentally marking Krankdud's ''second'' WR in the same event (the other being for ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'').
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* The co-op run of ''[[VideoGame/{{N}} N++]]'' by [=AND4H=] and Krankdud turned out to be a surprise hit, both for the sheer amount of coordination and synergy between the runners, as well as the non-stop, yet incredibly concise and engaging commentary by Mithical9 [=Mithical9=] on the couch, impressively [[MotorMouth commentating for nearly the entire 26.5 minutes]] with no need for donations.donations or filler. To cap it all off, the duo end up setting a world record, incidentally marking Krankdud's ''second'' WR in the same event (the other being for ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'').
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* The co-op run of ''[[VideoGame/{{N}} N++]]'' by [=AND4H=] and Krankdud turned out to be a surprise hit, both for the sheer amount of coordination and synergy between the runners, as well as the non-stop, yet incredibly concise and engaging commentary by Mithical9 on the couch, impressively [[MotorMouth commentating for nearly the entire 26.5 minutes]] with no need for donations. To cap it all off, the duo end up setting a world record, incidentally marking Krankdud's ''second'' WR in the same event (the other being for ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'').
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* Crossing over with SugarWiki/FunnyMoments, early on in the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TnkzkgEBv8 race between Kruncha, michael_goldfish, and Spikevegeta]], a couple of donations come in containing [[MemeticMutation lyrics of]] [[VideoGame/DonkeyKong64 the DK Rap]], with Spike asking for people to just submit the entire thing for Punchy (the announcer) to recite, though it's hindered due to him admitting to not be familiar with it. However, after about 40 minutes and some cursory Google searches to get the rhythm, [[https://youtu.be/8TnkzkgEBv8?t=3236 he manages to get most of it down]], [[AudienceParticipation much to the delight of everyone]].
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* Crossing over with SugarWiki/FunnyMoments, early on in the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TnkzkgEBv8 race between Kruncha, michael_goldfish, and Spikevegeta]], a couple of donations come in containing [[MemeticMutation lyrics of]] [[VideoGame/DonkeyKong64 the DK Rap]], with Spike asking for people to just submit the entire thing for Punchy (the announcer) to recite, though it's hindered due to him he puts it off after admitting to not be familiar with it. However, after about 40 minutes and some cursory Google searches to get the rhythm, [[https://youtu.be/8TnkzkgEBv8?t=3236 he Punchy manages to get most of it down]], [[AudienceParticipation much to the delight of everyone]].everyone in the crowd]].
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* As if [=TheMexicanRunner's=] previous 100% run of ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'' at SGDQ 2018 wasn't amazing enough, this marathon saw him complete an "All S+P Grades" run of the game -- a category that requires {{Pacifist Run}}s on all of the Run & Gun levels and destroying every boss while parrying three attacks, finishing with a maxed out super meter, ''without getting hit''. The standing ovation and cheers, well-deserved for so utterly conquering one of the hardest games in recent memory, lasted a good long while.
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* Similarly to the ''Final Fantasy VI'' run at SGDQ 2018, at the 3-hour mark of Bayleef's run of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioOdyssey''[='=]s Darker Side category, a donation train started, with the intent of getting as many people in Twitch chat as possible to donate $5. It began at roughly $1.85 million, and within ''twenty minutes,'' right before the end of the run, they smashed through the milestone of ''$2 million'', with the donation counter ticking up at an incredibly fast rate the entire time. This was also enough to utterly smash the donation incentive of getting Bayleef to run the Dark Side BossRush [[SelfImposedChallenge (while wearing the Invisibility Hat)]], which was less than 50% of the way to its goal before the train started.
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* Late in the run of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', there is a complicated menuing sequence involving unequipping and selling off a lot of old equipment, buying new equipment and items, equipping it all, and equipping a proper ability loadout for most of the rest of the game. Speedrun menuing sequences are usually already impressive due to the speed at which they are done, but runner Luzbelheim knows the game so well that there was a donation incentive for him to do this entire sequence of preparations ''blindfolded''. [[https://youtu.be/0qJyrQzW2SE Needless to say, it was well worth the money raised.]]
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* Crossing over with SugarWiki/FunnyMoments, early on in the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TnkzkgEBv8 race between Kruncha, michael_goldfish, and Spikevegeta]], a couple of donations come in containing [[MemeticMutation lyrics of]] [[VideoGame/DonkeyKong64 the DK Rap]], with Spike asking for people to just submit the entire thing, though it's hindered when Punchy (the announcer) admits to not knowing the rhythm. However, after about 40 minutes and some cursory Google searches, [[https://youtu.be/8TnkzkgEBv8?t=3236 he manages to get most of it down]], [[AudienceParticipation much to the delight of everyone]].
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* Crossing over with SugarWiki/FunnyMoments, early on in the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TnkzkgEBv8 race between Kruncha, michael_goldfish, and Spikevegeta]], a couple of donations come in containing [[MemeticMutation lyrics of]] [[VideoGame/DonkeyKong64 the DK Rap]], with Spike asking for people to just submit the entire thing, thing for Punchy (the announcer) to recite, though it's hindered when Punchy (the announcer) admits due to him admitting to not knowing the rhythm. be familiar with it. However, after about 40 minutes and some cursory Google searches, searches to get the rhythm, [[https://youtu.be/8TnkzkgEBv8?t=3236 he manages to get most of it down]], [[AudienceParticipation much to the delight of everyone]].
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* Crossing over with SugarWiki/FunnyMoments, early on in the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TnkzkgEBv8 race between Kruncha, michael_goldfish, and Spikevegeta]], a couple of donations come in containing [[MemeticMutation lyrics of]] [[VideoGame/DonkeyKong64 the DK Rap]], with Spike asking for people to just submit the entire thing, though it's hindered when Punchy (the announcer) admits to not knowing the rhythm. However, after about 40 minutes and some cursory Google searches, [[https://youtu.be/8TnkzkgEBv8?t=3236 he manages to get most of it down]], [[AudienceParticipation much to the delight of everyone]].
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** The game itself gets one. Most games in Awful Block are notoriously shoddy in quality and programming, and even most of the big-budget titles have a lot of exploitable glaring flaws. But as is noted multiple times by the runner and the couch, ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'' is legitimately well-programmed and has few glitches or skips.
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* The fortitude PJ had to complete a run of ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'', a game that moves so fast, at least $2000 was donated because of viewers who promised to donate $50 every time they threw up from motion sickness. That's at least 40 instances of vomiting. It's not an easy game to watch, so being able to run it is quite an achievement.
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* The fortitude PJ had to complete a run of ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'', a game that moves so fast, uses the Super Nintendo's Mode 7 to nauseating proportions, at least $2000 was donated because of viewers who promised to donate $50 every time they threw up from motion sickness. That's at least 40 instances of vomiting. It's not an easy game to watch, so being able to run it is quite an achievement.achievement.
** Not to mention, due to the above and how poorly the game drops in quality on video sites like Twitch or [=YouTube=], a speedrun of the game had been rejected by GDQ staff at least '''thirteen times'''. The fact staff finally allowed the game on the schedule was nothing short of a miracle.
** Not to mention, due to the above and how poorly the game drops in quality on video sites like Twitch or [=YouTube=], a speedrun of the game had been rejected by GDQ staff at least '''thirteen times'''. The fact staff finally allowed the game on the schedule was nothing short of a miracle.
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* The fortitude PJ had to complete a run of ''Mohawk and Headphone Jack'', a game that moves so fast, at least $2000 was donated because of viewers who promised to donate $50 every time they threw up from motion sickness. That's at least 40 instances of vomiting. It's not an easy game to watch, so being able to run it is quite an achievement.
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* [=Linkus7=]'s run of Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Wind Waker HD was a perfect storm of awesome, with a skilled runner, a hyped crowd, and excellent commentators. What truly elevated it, though, was the runner inventing his own donation incentive mid-run - The total funds raised had just crossed $900K, and he said he'd have Link take a selfie with Ganondorf during the final boss fight if they broke $1m. Donations began pouring in to try to meet this; while they didn't break $1m Linkus saw the enthusiasm and lowered the bar to $50,000, which was easily surpassed by the end of the run. Then, even after he was exhausted by completing a six-hour run and going over-estimate due to bad luck, he still put on a glitch demonstration to keep the crowd entertained because the next runner on the schedule was running late.
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* [=Linkus7=]'s run of Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Wind Waker HD HD'' was a perfect storm of awesome, awesome: with a skilled runner, a hyped crowd, and excellent commentators. What truly elevated it, though, was the runner inventing his own donation incentive mid-run - The total funds raised had just crossed $900K, and he said he'd have Link take a selfie with Ganondorf during the final boss fight if they broke $1m. Donations began pouring in to try to meet this; while they didn't break $1m Linkus saw the enthusiasm and lowered the bar to $50,000, which was easily surpassed by the end of the run. Then, even after he was exhausted by completing a six-hour run and going over-estimate due to bad luck, he still put on a glitch demonstration to keep the crowd entertained because the next runner on the schedule was running late.
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* [=Linkus7=]'s run of Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Wind Waker HD was a perfect storm of awesome, with a skilled runner, a hyped crowd, and excellent commentators. What truly elevated it, though, was the runner inventing his own donation incentive mid-run - The total funds raised had just crossed $900K, and he said he'd have Link take a selfie with Ganondorf during the final boss fight if they broke $1m. Donations began pouring in to try to meet this; while they didn't break $1m Linkus saw the enthusiasm and lowered the bar to $50,000, which was easily surpassed by the end of the run. Then, even after he was exhausted by completing a six-hour run and going over-estimate due to bad luck, he still put on a glitch demonstration to keep the crowd entertained because the next runner on the schedule was running late.
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added GDQ 2019 folder
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[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2019]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2019]]
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Moved in content from Awesome.Awesome Games Done Quick with edits.
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It's called '''Awesome''' WebVideo/GamesDoneQuick for a reason, folks.
----
* Let's get the obvious one out of the way: Over the course of eight years and seventeen marathons, Speed Demos Archive and Speedruns Live have collected a grand total of over ''$15,000,000'' in donations to four different charities. That alone deserves a round of applause and tons of respect.
* Hearing the room erupt in applause after a runner [[GoodBadBug pulls off a difficult glitch]], [[CurbStompBattle a boss gets beat before it even has a chance to fight]], or a large donation comes in is always a highlight of a run.
* Any time someone beats their personal best time[=/=]sets a World Record during a run counts, too.
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2011]]
* [=UltraJMan=] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knqJ4KqaDyY#t=537 pulling off a clutch fight]] against [[{{VideoGame/Metroid}} Mother Brain]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2014]]
* AGDQ 2014 had two fantastic ''VideoGame/PunchOut'' achievements:
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvzIb53Lcno Sinister1 reprised his 2013 attempt]] at completing the original ''Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!'' for the NES while blindfolded. In 2013, he was bested by Bald Bull. In 2014, he finally defeats Bald Bull[[spoiler: and eventually makes it ''all the way to Tyson himself'']].
** Along the way, Sinister attempts to exploit a frame-perfect counterpunch against Don Flamenco. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvzIb53Lcno#t=845 Practice makes... well, you get the picture.]]
* Immediately after this run, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSr3aXd4XuQ Zallard1]] tackles ''Super Punch-Out!!'' for the SNES (again, blindfolded). [[spoiler: He finishes the game with only a single KO against Narcis Prince]]. The donation tracker sums it up quite succinctly:
---> [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments "Y'know, we can't make entire runs the highlight reel. You know that, right?"]]
** [=Zallard1=]'s fight against Gabby Jay definitely counts--not because of any particular difficulty, but because [=Zallard1=] sets the stage beautifully for the upcoming fights ''by perfectly stating the time it took him to win the match'' '''down to the hundredth of a second'''.
---> ''[Gabby Jay drops onto the canvas at 0'07"49 seconds.]''
---> '''[=Zallard1=]''': So that should be like, a 0'07"49, I think.
* During [=DNTN31=]'s ''VideoGame/MarioKart64'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIIzE_H7D2g speedrun at AGDQ 2014]], a donation incentive to play Toad's Turnpike from Extra GP went unmet by the end... or so the runners thought. [[spoiler: During the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMc0OIjb36Q#t=481 F-Zero speedrun]] that began immediately after, it was announced the donation incentive ''was'' met at the very last minute, with a donation of ''$10,000.'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czLvz00Bu3M DNTN31 came back and blew it away.]]]]
* The entirety of CGN's ''F-Zero GX'' run [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZhczLwJ3IY must be seen to be believed]]. When a room full of speedrunners call you "a human TAS", you know you're good. The entire run strikes a flawless balance between [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome the skill of CGN's masterful performance]] and [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments the hilarity of Naegleria's increasingly high blood pressure]], making it easily one of the best runs of AGDQ 2014.
** The moment that really stands out is in his playthrough of Chapter 8, [[SelfImposedChallenge where he gives Deathborn a twenty-six second head start]] and still wins. [[CurbStompBattle Handily.]]
** 2013's ''F-Zero'' runner Yoshifan wasn't kidding when he said CGN would blow his record (and everyone else) away...
** During Chapter 5, one couch member says that he will donate $40 if CGN skips one of the capsules in the chapter (thus making it borderline impossible to complete due to the time limit and lack of energy). CGN says he'll give it a try. The time limit is 40 seconds, after which he blows up and fails. What was his finish time? ''0'39"159''. He completed the level with ''less than a second to spare''.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRX_ZVKIHN0 The ending of Bizmuth's run of Minecraft]]. Not only did he slay the Ender Dragon, his character died shortly after--and Bizmuth got the World Record, to boot.
* The ToolAssistedSpeedrun block ends with Masterjun's ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhgSSmBwNf8#t=44m51s run]]. It goes into the Yoshi's Island 2 level, glitches out the game a bit, and then...well, two [=YouTubers=] said it best:
-->"People say that some runners "break games". Nonono, that's not breaking a game. THIS is breaking a game."
-->"I think you meant rewrite the fabric of existence within the game."
** Essentially, he was able to program two simple games (with a menu and ending screen) into memory via the '''controller ports''' [[note]]by simulating 2 [=MultiTaps=] (8 controllers)[[/note]]. [[http://tasvideos.org/4156S.html His post on tasvideos.org]] and [[http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2014/01/how-an-emulator-fueled-robot-reprogrammed-super-mario-world-on-the-fly/ this article]] have more information.
** The best part is he didn't have time to explain to everyone what was about to happen. The run had just been completed the previous day and hadn't even been posted on tasvideos.org yet.
* The ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmfV8IhsHq0 race]] between Garrison, Ivan, Krauser, and Zoast. The drama ''starts'' with Garrison's run ending halfway through the race and doesn't let up much afterwards. Ivan and Zoast are neck-and-neck for much of the race, Krauser tries to mount a fierce comeback by being the only player to nail an extremely difficult trick, and in the end, Ivan beats Zoast ''by just shy of one second.'' The race is still considered to this day to be the bar by which all other GDQ races are judged.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RseGrqEmdNA&t The final game of AGDQ 2014]] is ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger''. The donation total stands at just under $850,000. The marathon has already surpassed expectations--almost double the previous AGDQ--but they decide to aim for [[MemeticMutation one]] ''[[Film/AustinPowers meeeeeeelion]]'' [[MemeticMutation dollars]] anyway "because why not". Can the community pull together and make it in the 5 and a half hours remaining? [[spoiler:[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RseGrqEmdNA&t=5h56m35s They do.]] And the crowd goes '''wild''']].
-->''[[CallingYourAttacks WONDERSHOT!!]]''
* Molotov's bonus stream run of ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade'' after the disappointing run of [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones the other Fire Emblem run]] where [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6So666eZwg he easily manipulates the]] RandomNumberGod to his bidding.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2015]]
* In the [[ToolAssistedSpeedrun TAS]] block, the mystery game is revealed to be ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld''. Considering what happened a year ago, there's no way anyone could top that, right? [[spoiler:[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjmxmPwmfOk&t=26m21s Wrong]]. They fulfilled last year's goal of coding a perfectly playable ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros'' -- a few graphical glitches and recycled music notwithstanding -- and played through the first stage.]]
** ''Super Mario World'' was followed by ''[[VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue Pokemon Red]]'', which was plugged into a Super Game Boy that was itself plugged into the same SNES. A memory corruption glitch is set up, memory is manipulated, the bot ASSUMES DIRECT CONTROL...and then [[spoiler:the game screen turns into a chat window. After some fiddling, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjmxmPwmfOk&t=43m10s it turns out to be the live Twitch chat feed]]--complete with emoticons. Yes, you read that right: [[MemeticMutation "Pokémon Plays Twitch."]] ''HilarityEnsues'']].
--->'''[=DwangoAC=]:''' We took over Pokémon Red. Then we took over the Super Game Boy. Then we took over the entire Super Nintendo. ''Then'' we started streaming Twitch chat directly through the controller cables.
--->'''Announcer:''' I just got, like, 20 donations going, "What?" ...and that, ladies and gentlemen, is how [=TASBot=] wins the Internet.
** You can read an article about both of these [=TASBot=] runs [[http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2015/01/pokemon-plays-twitch-how-a-robot-got-irc-running-on-an-unmodified-snes/ here]].
** They set it up ''again'' before the last three runs of the marathon. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWa5GPb9fw8 Even more hilarity ensued.]]
--->''Do what Twitch chat wants.''\\
'''[=TASbot=]:''' "[-NO.-]"
* Jackafur [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Cu3rBKoKmA&t=1h13m50s proposes to his girlfriend on-stream]], with 76,000 people watching, during the ''VideoGame/MischiefMakers'' credits roll. '''She said yes!!'''
* During the VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII "New Game+" category run, they exploit a disc swap glitch, to move from an early game point straight to the Northern Crater sequence, completely skipping Aerith's canon death scene, and having her be there as one of the characters that manages to help Cloud defeat Sephiroth. [[EverybodyLives Nobody dies today...]]
* Kitaru, [=KevinDDR=], colour_thief, and Qlex '''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=11m35s destroy]]''' the ''VideoGame/TetrisTheGrandMaster'' series, known as ''the'' test of ''Tetris'' ability amongst many who have heard of[=/=]played it. Viewers who hadn't were completely mindblown by just how far the four runners pushed the limits of tetromino-stacking. Among their highlights:
** Kitaru [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=34m10s nearly tops out]] in an early section in [=TGM2=] Master Mode, and not only makes a recovery, but also gets the RE(covery) medal[[note]]Obtained by having at least 150 blocks in the 10x20 playing field, then clearing out blocks until 70 or less remain.[[/note]] and goes on to finish with an S9 rank. As one viewer put it:
---> "the thing that makes AGDQ more fun to watch than youtube is exactly what just happened, people can choke away runs and do the opposite"
** Kitaru, again, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=1h0m5s completing the "Secret Grade" challenge in [=TGM3=]]]--that is, forming a ">" sign with holes in a stack that covers the entire playfield.[[note]]The ">" challenge is an AscendedMeme in Japan; in the earlier days of arcade ''Tetris'' (specifically [[NoExportForYou Sega's 1988 version]]), bored players who capped it out would try various challenges, the ">" sign being one of them.[[/note]]
** [=KevinDDR=] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=1h4m30s in [=TGM3=] Master mode performing a Master M]] (the second highest rank) run live and demonstrating the infamous "invisible Tetris" credits section.[[note]]Master M is the highest rank that can be rewarded without first getting and passing the Grand Master Promotional Exam, which requires 4 prior [=GM=] level performances within the previous 7 runs. The requirements for the [=GM=] rank include a perfect run until the "invisible roll" and then obtaining 6 additional rank increases during the invisible roll. To put the difficulty of gaining ranks in invisible roll in perspective, If [=KevinDDR=] had cleared even one line fewer in the staff roll, he would've only obtained a Master O rank.[[/note]]
** Kevin, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=1h18m30s again]], getting to the level 1100[[note]]Levels in ''TGM'' are done differently than in other ''Tetris'' games; the level counter increases by 1 with each piece, and also increases with each line cleared, with ''TGM 3'' adding 4 levels for a triple and 6 levels for a Tetris. Each section comprises 100 levels; when the player reaches ''x''99, they must clear a line to level up.[[/note]] section of Shirase in [=TGM3=], showing how ridiculously fast the mode gets once the level counter hits four digits, to say nothing of the game dishing out [[CallBack bracket]] [[InterfaceScrew blocks]].
** CT and Kitaru [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=1h29m5s playing [=TGM2=] Doubles mode]] to top things off. Notably, one of the two is behind by about 40 levels when the other hits the goal of level 300[[note]]In Doubles, if one player reaches 300 but the other hasn't, the player who has gets stuck at instant-drop speeds, as the game's way of urging the other player to finish and both players to synchronize their finishes as closely as possible.[[/note]]. They still make it.
* The ''Ninja Gaiden Trilogy'' relay race at AGDQ 2015 may be one of the best video game races of all time. Both teams prove their complete knowledge of all three NES ''Ninja Gaiden'' titles and remain neck-and-neck through the whole thing, and the winning team finishes less than two seconds ahead.
* AGDQ 2015's "Save/Kill the Animals" incentive in ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'', per usual, got a ton of money poured into it--over '''$200,000''', in fact. Each option garnered over $100,000 through the course of the marathon, and in the last 40 seconds before cutoff, [[spoiler:Save]] got a single, anonymous donation of $10,000, stealing the win with a comment of "Get Rekt--[[spoiler:Save]] the Animals".
* The fact that ''VideoGame/KaizoMarioWorld'' was ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkMuNRjodCQs speedrunned]]'' for the event. Granted, it was an Any% run, but the guy did it in ''24 minutes 36 seconds''.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Vanquish}}'' speedrun was done using only one hand.[[note]]The runner, halfcoordinated, has a disease which weakens part of his body, which forces him to play one-handed.[[/note]]
* That $1.03 million raised in AGDQ 2014 was surpassed in AGDQ 2015 by the grand total of ''$1.55 million''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2015]]
* The ''TGM'' crew is back!
** This time, they brought along SQR and KAN, two of the best ''TGM'' players from Japan who took the time and money to travel all the way to the United States to be featured in front of thousands of viewers.
** Normally, when it comes to Japan-released games, Japanese players are typically of higher skill than Western ones, resulting in the stereotype that Japanese players are automatically superior to Western players. However, this stereotype was ''defied'' for three segments: The Doubles round ([=KevinDDR=] and TWF vs. KAN and SQR) ''Shirase'' of all game modes ([=KevinDDR=] vs. KAN; although KAN got to where he topped out quicker, Kevin managed to get about 30-40 levels above him), and ''TGM 3'' Versus ([=KevinDDR=] vs. KAN).
** Kitaru and SQR playing Doubles...''[[DoublePlay solo]]'', against each other. SQR finishes, but unfortunately Kitaru [[NegatedMomentOfAwesome comes up one level short on both sides from completion]].
** KAN demonstrating a Master M run on ''TGM 3''.
** Ichiro Mihara, vice president of Arika and executive producer of the ''TGM'' series, [[ApprovalOfGod donating during the TGM segment]].
** It says something about the popularity of this segment when the live audience room reached ''standing room only.''
* Near the end of the ''VideoGame/MetroidPrimeHunters'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPSJdOGaHKQ run]], Shasta ends up at extremely low health while fighting the final boss. He jumps from the top of the arena to get the last shot with the Omega Cannon, killing Gorea [[MutualKill and himself]], and the win is still counted.
* For a non-speedrun example, the staff somehow managed to get good video out of an actual ''UsefulNotes/AppleII'' for the sake of a joke 5-minute ''VideoGame/OregonTrail'' speedrun.
* Awesome and a bit of heartwarming: Henneko's speedrun of ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersiaTheSandsOfTime'' was going very poorly, but the runner kept powering through it, cracking jokes and trying to keep a positive attitude going. A lot of people donated out of pity for the run, but it was still all very good-natured; in the end, everybody around him gave him a massive group hug for getting through a clearly stressing speedrun.
* ''VideoGame/IWannaBeTheBoshy'' runner Witwix said he'd donate $30 per death (and $50 per boss death) with Creator/RayNarvaezJr and the Yetee agreeing to match it. They ended up having to donate over $7,500 from that agreement, with Witwix even dying on purpose so they'd donate more.
* For the ''Chrono Trigger'' run at the end of SGDQ 2015, donators could put their money towards a "Wondershot" incentive. When the goal was met for the incentive, runners Essentia and Puwexil had to try landing the final blow on Lavos's final form with Lucca's Wondershot (a weapon that deals out a random amount of damage with every hit) to complete the game. After getting Lavos's final form down to the necessary point, the runners pray that their attack isn't a "Blundershot". Their prayers are answered.
-->''[[MemeticMutation WONDERSHOT!!]]''
* The ''VideoGame/{{Earthbound}}'' speedrun by Aurilliux, even despite one mistake during the FinalBoss, was a masterclass in RNG manipulation and could feasibly be called "How to make the RandomNumberGod your bitch" instead.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2016]]
* The Super Mario Kart race between MD_Neo and KVD, in which the winner was decided by 12 frames (1/5th of a second)
* The three-way Super Mario 64 race, between the three top speedrunners of the game in the world: Puncayshun, [=Cheese05=], and Simply. In the end, the difference between first and last place is ''less than five minutes.''
** Despite flubbing at the start, messing up several glitches and noticeably lagging behind, Simply takes the lead back for quite some time.
* The couch singing Disney songs during Kingdom Hearts. Each of the five winning songs had raised over $1,000 in the bid war!
* Returning from [=AGDQ2014=] was blindfolded ''Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!'', except this time it was a race between [=Sinister1=] and [=Zallard1=]. [[spoiler: It ended up with both of them ''managing to beat Mike Tyson'']].
* The Majora's Mask 100% run. It lasted five and a half hours, and had four different runners - [=MajinPhil=], fullgrowngaming, thiefbug, and Trevperson - alternating controls for each quarter of the run, showing off all sorts of crazy glitches and skips. It results in them almost fully hundred-percenting the game in ''one three-day cycle''.
** One particularly amazing moment: in an almost sixteen-year-old game, with a ''very'' heavily dedicated speedrunning and glitch-finding community, these four '''accidentally discovered a brand new glitch''' (rolling as Goron Link into a bridge post at one part of Snowhead caused them to bounce into the side wall, go out of bounds, and void back to the entrance). The glitch itself wasn't helpful and cost them a couple seconds, but they made it pretty clear they didn't care, because ''it was awesome.''
** After suffering some bad RNG[[labelnote:*]]Random number generation; basically, random stuff that's out of their control, such as movement of some [=NPCs=][[/labelnote]], they get particularly good RNG at the dog race. They pick up a dog, who has a positive thought, and enter him into the race, which he wins. This is their first time attempting it, by the way, when they had expected to be at it for a while due to it being ThatOneSidequest.
** And how does the run end? With them facing the final boss, Majora... all together, holding the same controller, each one operating one button or the analog stick... [[UpToEleven and blindfolded]]. [[spoiler: They did it flawlessly, barring getting hit a couple times which didn't matter.]]
* [=TASbot=] managing to outdo itself once again by turning ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' into [[spoiler:'''''VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker'''''. And if this wasn't enough, he allowed Twitch chat to control it à la ''LetsPlay/TwitchPlaysPokemon''.]] And [[UpToEleven then]] it broke the game, because the cursor scrolled too far up, causing the game to write garbage data to itself when an object is placed.
* During the ''VideoGame/StepMania'' showcase, one of the songs played, [[spoiler:"300"]], is introduced by the commentators with a DramaticPause:
-->[[https://youtu.be/bdLeqNguK1c?t=29m14s Now this is]]... [{{beat}}] ...[[https://soundcloud.com/alex311360/detach-m-style-300 a speed song]]...
* The ''Super Mario Maker'' blind race showcase was quite impressive overall, but one particular moment is one player clearing a NSMB-style level requiring a series of 1-block wall jumps on the first try.
-->Dram runs Kaizo. He's like, "3-frame window? [[BringIt Feh!]]"
[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2016]]
* The ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'' run. Already a phenomenal speed game on it own, six of its top speedrunners split into two teams (Team Canada and Team USA) to do a relay race. Aside from a few mistakes, the runners perform fantastically, and in the end, [[spoiler:Team Canada wins by a mere ''30 seconds'' after lagging behind during World 5]]. Highlights:
** Michael_Goldfish doing his "Bad Manners" strat; taking an early hit on Blurry Flurry (a rocketbarrel level) and proceeding to finish the level without a scratch. Note that there is no reason to do this [[DifficultButAwesome aside from showing that you have the balls to do so]]. [=MooMooAkai=] is no slouch either, managing to nab just about every collectible during the rocketbarrel section.
** At the end, [[spoiler:both runners manage to defeat [[FinalBoss Lord Fredrik]] in the least amount of cycles possible.]]
* The ''VideoGame/{{Catherine}}'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTsqOqthkPU&index=9&list=PLz8YL4HVC87WhzH2-56QXDOwoKNYkdCEV speedrun]] by [=Ghoul02=], in which he runs through [[BrutalBonusLevel Babel]] while controlling two characters at once. He manages to do nearly flawlessly [[ExcuseMeWhileIMultitask while providing active commentary]]. Note that the second controller he used was a ''fightstick''. [[CrazyEnoughToWork It works]].
* The [[SelfImposedChallenge blind]][[SugarWiki/SoCoolItsAwesome folded]] ''[[Videogame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight Symphony of the Night]]'' run. Re-read that again, just in case you failed to understand; [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0H4atoATpNE THE BLINDFOLDED SYMPHONY OF THE NIGHT RUN.]] As if that wasn't enough, before doing his blindfolded Symphony run, [=Romscout=] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlt7l82bW3Y performed]] a Low% ''Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow'' run [[spoiler:that ended in a way that could very well be called the new definition of "clench."]]
* ''[[VideoGame/{{Momodora}} Momodora: Reverie]]''. [[SelfImposedChallenge Halfcoord]][[HandicappedBadass inated]]. ''[[HarderThanHard Insane difficulty]].'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXtUwIW7cL8 'Nuff said.]]
* A ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' speedrun? ''Yawn.'' [[MinimalistRun Low percent?]] Alright. [[SerialEscalation Low percent small Mario only, meaning no powerups or Yoshi?]] Intrigued. The person running it is, as of the event, ''[[KidHero 15]]'' years old? Holy shit. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvjzLvfRziA He got it in 16 minutes 19 seconds.]]
* The usual ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFI0a-uMD_U race]] took a turn for a dramatic when not one, not two, but ''three'' of the four contestants died during the race, and the leader dying to Mother Brain at that. This left the underdog runner [=Behemoth87=] a chance to shine and take the win when he was previously trailing behind by over a solid 30 seconds from the second runner-up!
* Right before the last run of the event started, they announced one last donation incentive: surpass the final donation total from SGDQ 2015 and they'd set up a bonus 4-player 70 star race of ''Super Mario 64''. '''[[https://youtu.be/dQBnXxBwwOo?t=3h16m12s And they surpassed it with flying colors!]]'''
* During the ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006'' run by tripl3ag3nt, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJxXBDJhyEw#t=54m45s he accidentally discovered]] an ''entirely new glitch'': [[spoiler:using the cinematic camera during a wall-hopping sequence got Sonic softlocked into a permanent spinning animation ''in mid-air''.]] tripl3ag3nt does note that the glitch cost him a sub-one hour time, but he doesn't care, because it was ''awesome''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2017]]
* The ''VideoGame/ShovelKnight'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgg7TS3MWwk race]] between Smaugy and Munchakoopas, in which both runners show off new techniques and use incredibly dangerous skips, ended with both runners finishing the game within six seconds of each other.
* The ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'' '''pacifist''' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vluA13Rcj78 run race]], which required both players to not swing their sword at all outside of boss fights, meaning no killing any enemy {{Mook}} or picking up a single power up. Instead they had to utilize precision jumps and damage boosts to make it through the game. Both players in the race of the first title ended up beating the game while one of the racers went on to do a pacifist run of the second game immediately after.
* The ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'' race between [=PangaeaPanga=], [=StrongmanLin=], [=AverageTrey=], and [=BounceyBoy=] is one for the books as, for the most part, everyone remained within 1 Shine of each other. 1st place won with a time of 1:17:55 with last place just over a minute behind at 1:19:12! It would have been even closer had 4th not taken a death against Bowser, but the crowd rallied to cheer him on.
* During the Awful Games block, authorblues achieved a world record in ''The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends''. His time was 17:50, over 12 minutes better than the estimate.
* Right before ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'', the commentators table decides to showcase the prizes for the final bidwar, featuring an ''insane'' amount of cool, exclusive stuff supplied by Bandai Namco themselves in exchange for a hefty minimum bid of $125. The cost did not deter people, and over the course of 10 minutes over '''$50000''' was raised, and bids were being placed so fast that the donation tracker ''crashed''.
* SHATTERING AGDQ 2015's donation record by amassing over ''two million'' dollars for the Prevent Cancer Foundation just before the ''Videogame/{{Undertale}}'' run. The moment the tracker started getting close, the entire live audience got up and began cheering the donations on, leading to uproarious applause when the tracker ticked over to $2 million.
** Everdraed, the man who created [[spoiler: Photoshop Flowey]] arrived on Skype right after the battle ended, expressing both admiration for the speedrun community, and shocked disbelief at the glitches used in the run. He then tells everyone to enjoy the game however they like, to let no one tell you how to play.
** Everdraed mentioned that in the last few days before the game came out, he found a glitch that he nearly left in, because it would be an absolute GameBreaker in a speedrun. Then he decided to take it out anyway, knowing that future speedrunners would find something else that the devs never considered. He was ''completely'' right.
** The ''Undertale'' run itself came after the intense ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' Race, where the audience was forced to stay quiet near the end, possibly due to the race being very close between Behemoth and Zoasty. Here, TGH manages to make the game exciting to watch and gets the crowd cheering during each of the final bosses of the game, such as: [[spoiler: copying Omega Flowey's distorted hitsounds whenever he gets hit, chanting [[VideoGameCaringPotential "HUG THE GOAT!"]] after the fight with Asriel, [[https://clips.twitch.tv/gamesdonequick/PowerfulBeePeteZarollTie the tracker hitting $2.2 million right as the hug happens]], and finally the buttclenching battle against [[ThatOneBoss Sans]], which he does ''almost flawlessly'', only taking 2 hits during the whole fight.]]
* Along with AGDQ 2017 breaking the $2 million mark, nearly $1.4 million of it was raised all ''on the final day''. Plus the fact that the ''Super Metroid'' "Save or Kill the Animals" bidwar raised about a third of the whole donations!
[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2017]]
* The ''VideoGame/FreedomPlanet'' run, where Fladervy pulls off several pixel-precise cycles speeding across warping platforms, showing off frame-perfect divekicks to fly over things he shouldn't be able to, and several times impressed commentator Succinct and Punchy, a technical player in his own right that's rarely impressed by much. In a few places Fladervy even improvises a few tricks nobody even knew could be done, coming in a minute-and-a-half above the world record on a marathon run, and got through [[MemeticMutation the Dreadbox]].
* The Low% Ice Race of ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' quickly fell apart when two of the runners died twelve minutes in, leaving Zoast to have to carry the run solo. Despite having to use mainly the Ice Beam, which is fairly weak as a beam upgrade by itself even with charged shots, and only having a handful of missiles and three energy tanks due to being allowed to pick up 14 items overall, he manages to clear the entire rest of the game without death. It especially hits the tension when his fight with Mother Brain comes down to a hair's breadth, where a single hit would cause him to be killed by the cutscene rather than get saved, and ultimately survives by a sliver to deliver some CatharsisFactor handily.
* The ''Super Panga World'' RomHack run, which Dodechehedron did in less than half the time estimate, beating his pre-marathon personal best by five minutes.[[note]]He set a new World Record of 26 minutes in the practice room the night before the run, too.[[/note]]
* Halfcoordinated beat the A route of ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'', something that takes about 10 hours, in two hours--with only one usable hand!
[[/folder]]
[[folder:HRDQ]]
* Meta-awesome: The GDQ gang set up Harvey Relief Done Quick, a two-and-a-half day GDQ marathon to raise funds for charity in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, in just around a day.
* Kanis nailed all but one wrong warp in ''Donkey Kong Country 2'' on the first try; the only mistake came in Parrot Chute Panic. He finished the game in 40 minutes, 44 seconds.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2018]]
* [=Skavenger216=] returns to be the debut runner for ''[[VideoGame/BlasterMaster Blaster Master Zero]]'' for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch.[[note]]The first run on the Nintendo Switch for Games Done Quick[[/note]]
* Sumichu's [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic brilliant rendition]] of [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater Snake Eater]]. Even the most [[{{Troll}} mischievous members]] of Twitch Chat were [[PetTheDog willing to praise it]]. Listen to it [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKLJjRQy754 here.]]
* During the final minutes of the ''VideoGame/SuperMario3DWorld'' run, one bidder bid $4,000 literally in the last seconds of the incentive bids for [[UnexpectedCharacter Toad]] to win, when they were just about to use Luigi, who was the winner until that bid came in, surprising the runner and the entire commentary team.
* The ''[[Videogame/DragonQuestI Dragon Warrior I]]'' run, which was accomplished in 27 minutes.
** Notably, the run largely relied on RNG manipulation, which normally is done in Tool Assisted Speedruns, with a real person doing it, knowing practically the exact moment to move in order to actually make random encounters ''predictable''.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Strider}}'' tutorial, featuring an experienced player teaching a newbie how to effectively speedrun the original NES game, inspired several viewers to try themselves. One, Aldriel, discovered a major new skip. As a direct result of the tutorial, [[https://twitter.com/coolkidBIGBOY/status/951279100009656320 a new Any% world record was set.]] As of January 12, 2018, the top 5 times all come from the days after the tutorial, a stunning success.
* dwangoAC officially quit GDQ after AGDQ 2017, only for an incentive bid to be done for [=TASbot=] to return to do a session with VideoGame/SuperMonkeyBall, making it effectively akin to a TenMinuteRetirement.
* [=Zallard1=] plays ''Punch-Out'' and ''Super Punch-Out'' at the same time. With one controller. Beats them both in less than 25 minutes, and gets a first round TKO on Tyson after a 1.19 first knockdown; thought to be nearly impossible.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2018]]
* Mr. Shasta's run of ''VideoGame/MetroidSamusReturns'' saw him try to achieve a floor glitch that shaves 45 minutes off of the run time. But he had trouble getting it due to not playing on his own 3DS. He remains persistent & humble, however, and eventually wins the crowd over to his side. And when [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eDpztEmCYY&t=6m38s he finally gets it]] nearly 7 minutes later, the response is euphoric.
* [=TheMexicanRunner=]'s OneHundredPercentCompletion run of ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'' showcasing how one of the most difficult games in recent memory being utterly destroyed while TMR himself suffered only one death. He got a well-deserved standing ovation after completing the run.
* In the ''VideoGame/BioMiracleBokutteUpa'' run, [=EnchantressOfNumbers=] established a new World Record.
* Kosmic completed ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros1'' in less than seven minutes. Not a big deal for a speedrunner, right? Well, Kosmic did that run ''with one hand''.
* [=Linkus7=] ran ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker [[UpdatedRerelease HD]]'' with a large number of skips and item slides that allowed him to essentially go zooming past large portions of the game, but the largest was a GDQ first: the Barrier Skip. The barrier at the sunken Hyrule is ''meant'' to be opened through upwards to about three extra hours of run time, but recent discoveries allowed those running the HD version of the game to skip it and jump straight to endgame with a run time hitting just over an hour now. Even better, despite running on a TV he wasn't familiar with, Linkus managed to accomplish this on his ''first try'' with no hang-up.
* [=MONTYvsTHEWORLD=]'s run of the [[TrialAndErrorGameplay notoriously]] [[NintendoHard challenging]] ''VideoGame/GettingOverItWithBennettFoddy'', done in less than ''three minutes''. It's so under the estimate that MONTY attempts a second run using the remaining dedicated time he still has ([[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments emphasis on "attempts"]]).
* Sumichu returned to the mic for another singing performance, this time delivering a beautiful rendition of "Aria de Mezzo Caraterre" (the opera song) during the event-ending ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' run.
** Near the end of the run, a donation train started at the 6:15:00 mark where everyone on Twitch would donate five dollars. Within twenty minutes ''they broke two million.''
* The [=TASbot=] run of ''VideoGame/{{Celeste}}'' stunned viewers and commentators alike (one of the latter was part of the dev team)...and then it made the [[BrutalBonusLevel C-Side levels]] look like child's play.
-->'''[=CovertMuffin=]''': ''[Repeatedly throughout the run]'' No way!
* In a email addressed to all donators, Doctors Without Borders has announced SGDQ is ''their biggest fundraiser of the year''.
[[/folder]]
----
* Let's get the obvious one out of the way: Over the course of eight years and seventeen marathons, Speed Demos Archive and Speedruns Live have collected a grand total of over ''$15,000,000'' in donations to four different charities. That alone deserves a round of applause and tons of respect.
* Hearing the room erupt in applause after a runner [[GoodBadBug pulls off a difficult glitch]], [[CurbStompBattle a boss gets beat before it even has a chance to fight]], or a large donation comes in is always a highlight of a run.
* Any time someone beats their personal best time[=/=]sets a World Record during a run counts, too.
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2011]]
* [=UltraJMan=] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knqJ4KqaDyY#t=537 pulling off a clutch fight]] against [[{{VideoGame/Metroid}} Mother Brain]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2014]]
* AGDQ 2014 had two fantastic ''VideoGame/PunchOut'' achievements:
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvzIb53Lcno Sinister1 reprised his 2013 attempt]] at completing the original ''Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!'' for the NES while blindfolded. In 2013, he was bested by Bald Bull. In 2014, he finally defeats Bald Bull[[spoiler: and eventually makes it ''all the way to Tyson himself'']].
** Along the way, Sinister attempts to exploit a frame-perfect counterpunch against Don Flamenco. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvzIb53Lcno#t=845 Practice makes... well, you get the picture.]]
* Immediately after this run, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSr3aXd4XuQ Zallard1]] tackles ''Super Punch-Out!!'' for the SNES (again, blindfolded). [[spoiler: He finishes the game with only a single KO against Narcis Prince]]. The donation tracker sums it up quite succinctly:
---> [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments "Y'know, we can't make entire runs the highlight reel. You know that, right?"]]
** [=Zallard1=]'s fight against Gabby Jay definitely counts--not because of any particular difficulty, but because [=Zallard1=] sets the stage beautifully for the upcoming fights ''by perfectly stating the time it took him to win the match'' '''down to the hundredth of a second'''.
---> ''[Gabby Jay drops onto the canvas at 0'07"49 seconds.]''
---> '''[=Zallard1=]''': So that should be like, a 0'07"49, I think.
* During [=DNTN31=]'s ''VideoGame/MarioKart64'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIIzE_H7D2g speedrun at AGDQ 2014]], a donation incentive to play Toad's Turnpike from Extra GP went unmet by the end... or so the runners thought. [[spoiler: During the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMc0OIjb36Q#t=481 F-Zero speedrun]] that began immediately after, it was announced the donation incentive ''was'' met at the very last minute, with a donation of ''$10,000.'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czLvz00Bu3M DNTN31 came back and blew it away.]]]]
* The entirety of CGN's ''F-Zero GX'' run [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZhczLwJ3IY must be seen to be believed]]. When a room full of speedrunners call you "a human TAS", you know you're good. The entire run strikes a flawless balance between [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome the skill of CGN's masterful performance]] and [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments the hilarity of Naegleria's increasingly high blood pressure]], making it easily one of the best runs of AGDQ 2014.
** The moment that really stands out is in his playthrough of Chapter 8, [[SelfImposedChallenge where he gives Deathborn a twenty-six second head start]] and still wins. [[CurbStompBattle Handily.]]
** 2013's ''F-Zero'' runner Yoshifan wasn't kidding when he said CGN would blow his record (and everyone else) away...
** During Chapter 5, one couch member says that he will donate $40 if CGN skips one of the capsules in the chapter (thus making it borderline impossible to complete due to the time limit and lack of energy). CGN says he'll give it a try. The time limit is 40 seconds, after which he blows up and fails. What was his finish time? ''0'39"159''. He completed the level with ''less than a second to spare''.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRX_ZVKIHN0 The ending of Bizmuth's run of Minecraft]]. Not only did he slay the Ender Dragon, his character died shortly after--and Bizmuth got the World Record, to boot.
* The ToolAssistedSpeedrun block ends with Masterjun's ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhgSSmBwNf8#t=44m51s run]]. It goes into the Yoshi's Island 2 level, glitches out the game a bit, and then...well, two [=YouTubers=] said it best:
-->"People say that some runners "break games". Nonono, that's not breaking a game. THIS is breaking a game."
-->"I think you meant rewrite the fabric of existence within the game."
** Essentially, he was able to program two simple games (with a menu and ending screen) into memory via the '''controller ports''' [[note]]by simulating 2 [=MultiTaps=] (8 controllers)[[/note]]. [[http://tasvideos.org/4156S.html His post on tasvideos.org]] and [[http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2014/01/how-an-emulator-fueled-robot-reprogrammed-super-mario-world-on-the-fly/ this article]] have more information.
** The best part is he didn't have time to explain to everyone what was about to happen. The run had just been completed the previous day and hadn't even been posted on tasvideos.org yet.
* The ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmfV8IhsHq0 race]] between Garrison, Ivan, Krauser, and Zoast. The drama ''starts'' with Garrison's run ending halfway through the race and doesn't let up much afterwards. Ivan and Zoast are neck-and-neck for much of the race, Krauser tries to mount a fierce comeback by being the only player to nail an extremely difficult trick, and in the end, Ivan beats Zoast ''by just shy of one second.'' The race is still considered to this day to be the bar by which all other GDQ races are judged.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RseGrqEmdNA&t The final game of AGDQ 2014]] is ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger''. The donation total stands at just under $850,000. The marathon has already surpassed expectations--almost double the previous AGDQ--but they decide to aim for [[MemeticMutation one]] ''[[Film/AustinPowers meeeeeeelion]]'' [[MemeticMutation dollars]] anyway "because why not". Can the community pull together and make it in the 5 and a half hours remaining? [[spoiler:[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RseGrqEmdNA&t=5h56m35s They do.]] And the crowd goes '''wild''']].
-->''[[CallingYourAttacks WONDERSHOT!!]]''
* Molotov's bonus stream run of ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade'' after the disappointing run of [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones the other Fire Emblem run]] where [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6So666eZwg he easily manipulates the]] RandomNumberGod to his bidding.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2015]]
* In the [[ToolAssistedSpeedrun TAS]] block, the mystery game is revealed to be ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld''. Considering what happened a year ago, there's no way anyone could top that, right? [[spoiler:[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjmxmPwmfOk&t=26m21s Wrong]]. They fulfilled last year's goal of coding a perfectly playable ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros'' -- a few graphical glitches and recycled music notwithstanding -- and played through the first stage.]]
** ''Super Mario World'' was followed by ''[[VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue Pokemon Red]]'', which was plugged into a Super Game Boy that was itself plugged into the same SNES. A memory corruption glitch is set up, memory is manipulated, the bot ASSUMES DIRECT CONTROL...and then [[spoiler:the game screen turns into a chat window. After some fiddling, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjmxmPwmfOk&t=43m10s it turns out to be the live Twitch chat feed]]--complete with emoticons. Yes, you read that right: [[MemeticMutation "Pokémon Plays Twitch."]] ''HilarityEnsues'']].
--->'''[=DwangoAC=]:''' We took over Pokémon Red. Then we took over the Super Game Boy. Then we took over the entire Super Nintendo. ''Then'' we started streaming Twitch chat directly through the controller cables.
--->'''Announcer:''' I just got, like, 20 donations going, "What?" ...and that, ladies and gentlemen, is how [=TASBot=] wins the Internet.
** You can read an article about both of these [=TASBot=] runs [[http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2015/01/pokemon-plays-twitch-how-a-robot-got-irc-running-on-an-unmodified-snes/ here]].
** They set it up ''again'' before the last three runs of the marathon. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWa5GPb9fw8 Even more hilarity ensued.]]
--->''Do what Twitch chat wants.''\\
'''[=TASbot=]:''' "[-NO.-]"
* Jackafur [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Cu3rBKoKmA&t=1h13m50s proposes to his girlfriend on-stream]], with 76,000 people watching, during the ''VideoGame/MischiefMakers'' credits roll. '''She said yes!!'''
* During the VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII "New Game+" category run, they exploit a disc swap glitch, to move from an early game point straight to the Northern Crater sequence, completely skipping Aerith's canon death scene, and having her be there as one of the characters that manages to help Cloud defeat Sephiroth. [[EverybodyLives Nobody dies today...]]
* Kitaru, [=KevinDDR=], colour_thief, and Qlex '''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=11m35s destroy]]''' the ''VideoGame/TetrisTheGrandMaster'' series, known as ''the'' test of ''Tetris'' ability amongst many who have heard of[=/=]played it. Viewers who hadn't were completely mindblown by just how far the four runners pushed the limits of tetromino-stacking. Among their highlights:
** Kitaru [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=34m10s nearly tops out]] in an early section in [=TGM2=] Master Mode, and not only makes a recovery, but also gets the RE(covery) medal[[note]]Obtained by having at least 150 blocks in the 10x20 playing field, then clearing out blocks until 70 or less remain.[[/note]] and goes on to finish with an S9 rank. As one viewer put it:
---> "the thing that makes AGDQ more fun to watch than youtube is exactly what just happened, people can choke away runs and do the opposite"
** Kitaru, again, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=1h0m5s completing the "Secret Grade" challenge in [=TGM3=]]]--that is, forming a ">" sign with holes in a stack that covers the entire playfield.[[note]]The ">" challenge is an AscendedMeme in Japan; in the earlier days of arcade ''Tetris'' (specifically [[NoExportForYou Sega's 1988 version]]), bored players who capped it out would try various challenges, the ">" sign being one of them.[[/note]]
** [=KevinDDR=] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=1h4m30s in [=TGM3=] Master mode performing a Master M]] (the second highest rank) run live and demonstrating the infamous "invisible Tetris" credits section.[[note]]Master M is the highest rank that can be rewarded without first getting and passing the Grand Master Promotional Exam, which requires 4 prior [=GM=] level performances within the previous 7 runs. The requirements for the [=GM=] rank include a perfect run until the "invisible roll" and then obtaining 6 additional rank increases during the invisible roll. To put the difficulty of gaining ranks in invisible roll in perspective, If [=KevinDDR=] had cleared even one line fewer in the staff roll, he would've only obtained a Master O rank.[[/note]]
** Kevin, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=1h18m30s again]], getting to the level 1100[[note]]Levels in ''TGM'' are done differently than in other ''Tetris'' games; the level counter increases by 1 with each piece, and also increases with each line cleared, with ''TGM 3'' adding 4 levels for a triple and 6 levels for a Tetris. Each section comprises 100 levels; when the player reaches ''x''99, they must clear a line to level up.[[/note]] section of Shirase in [=TGM3=], showing how ridiculously fast the mode gets once the level counter hits four digits, to say nothing of the game dishing out [[CallBack bracket]] [[InterfaceScrew blocks]].
** CT and Kitaru [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU&t=1h29m5s playing [=TGM2=] Doubles mode]] to top things off. Notably, one of the two is behind by about 40 levels when the other hits the goal of level 300[[note]]In Doubles, if one player reaches 300 but the other hasn't, the player who has gets stuck at instant-drop speeds, as the game's way of urging the other player to finish and both players to synchronize their finishes as closely as possible.[[/note]]. They still make it.
* The ''Ninja Gaiden Trilogy'' relay race at AGDQ 2015 may be one of the best video game races of all time. Both teams prove their complete knowledge of all three NES ''Ninja Gaiden'' titles and remain neck-and-neck through the whole thing, and the winning team finishes less than two seconds ahead.
* AGDQ 2015's "Save/Kill the Animals" incentive in ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'', per usual, got a ton of money poured into it--over '''$200,000''', in fact. Each option garnered over $100,000 through the course of the marathon, and in the last 40 seconds before cutoff, [[spoiler:Save]] got a single, anonymous donation of $10,000, stealing the win with a comment of "Get Rekt--[[spoiler:Save]] the Animals".
* The fact that ''VideoGame/KaizoMarioWorld'' was ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkMuNRjodCQs speedrunned]]'' for the event. Granted, it was an Any% run, but the guy did it in ''24 minutes 36 seconds''.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Vanquish}}'' speedrun was done using only one hand.[[note]]The runner, halfcoordinated, has a disease which weakens part of his body, which forces him to play one-handed.[[/note]]
* That $1.03 million raised in AGDQ 2014 was surpassed in AGDQ 2015 by the grand total of ''$1.55 million''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2015]]
* The ''TGM'' crew is back!
** This time, they brought along SQR and KAN, two of the best ''TGM'' players from Japan who took the time and money to travel all the way to the United States to be featured in front of thousands of viewers.
** Normally, when it comes to Japan-released games, Japanese players are typically of higher skill than Western ones, resulting in the stereotype that Japanese players are automatically superior to Western players. However, this stereotype was ''defied'' for three segments: The Doubles round ([=KevinDDR=] and TWF vs. KAN and SQR) ''Shirase'' of all game modes ([=KevinDDR=] vs. KAN; although KAN got to where he topped out quicker, Kevin managed to get about 30-40 levels above him), and ''TGM 3'' Versus ([=KevinDDR=] vs. KAN).
** Kitaru and SQR playing Doubles...''[[DoublePlay solo]]'', against each other. SQR finishes, but unfortunately Kitaru [[NegatedMomentOfAwesome comes up one level short on both sides from completion]].
** KAN demonstrating a Master M run on ''TGM 3''.
** Ichiro Mihara, vice president of Arika and executive producer of the ''TGM'' series, [[ApprovalOfGod donating during the TGM segment]].
** It says something about the popularity of this segment when the live audience room reached ''standing room only.''
* Near the end of the ''VideoGame/MetroidPrimeHunters'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPSJdOGaHKQ run]], Shasta ends up at extremely low health while fighting the final boss. He jumps from the top of the arena to get the last shot with the Omega Cannon, killing Gorea [[MutualKill and himself]], and the win is still counted.
* For a non-speedrun example, the staff somehow managed to get good video out of an actual ''UsefulNotes/AppleII'' for the sake of a joke 5-minute ''VideoGame/OregonTrail'' speedrun.
* Awesome and a bit of heartwarming: Henneko's speedrun of ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersiaTheSandsOfTime'' was going very poorly, but the runner kept powering through it, cracking jokes and trying to keep a positive attitude going. A lot of people donated out of pity for the run, but it was still all very good-natured; in the end, everybody around him gave him a massive group hug for getting through a clearly stressing speedrun.
* ''VideoGame/IWannaBeTheBoshy'' runner Witwix said he'd donate $30 per death (and $50 per boss death) with Creator/RayNarvaezJr and the Yetee agreeing to match it. They ended up having to donate over $7,500 from that agreement, with Witwix even dying on purpose so they'd donate more.
* For the ''Chrono Trigger'' run at the end of SGDQ 2015, donators could put their money towards a "Wondershot" incentive. When the goal was met for the incentive, runners Essentia and Puwexil had to try landing the final blow on Lavos's final form with Lucca's Wondershot (a weapon that deals out a random amount of damage with every hit) to complete the game. After getting Lavos's final form down to the necessary point, the runners pray that their attack isn't a "Blundershot". Their prayers are answered.
-->''[[MemeticMutation WONDERSHOT!!]]''
* The ''VideoGame/{{Earthbound}}'' speedrun by Aurilliux, even despite one mistake during the FinalBoss, was a masterclass in RNG manipulation and could feasibly be called "How to make the RandomNumberGod your bitch" instead.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2016]]
* The Super Mario Kart race between MD_Neo and KVD, in which the winner was decided by 12 frames (1/5th of a second)
* The three-way Super Mario 64 race, between the three top speedrunners of the game in the world: Puncayshun, [=Cheese05=], and Simply. In the end, the difference between first and last place is ''less than five minutes.''
** Despite flubbing at the start, messing up several glitches and noticeably lagging behind, Simply takes the lead back for quite some time.
* The couch singing Disney songs during Kingdom Hearts. Each of the five winning songs had raised over $1,000 in the bid war!
* Returning from [=AGDQ2014=] was blindfolded ''Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!'', except this time it was a race between [=Sinister1=] and [=Zallard1=]. [[spoiler: It ended up with both of them ''managing to beat Mike Tyson'']].
* The Majora's Mask 100% run. It lasted five and a half hours, and had four different runners - [=MajinPhil=], fullgrowngaming, thiefbug, and Trevperson - alternating controls for each quarter of the run, showing off all sorts of crazy glitches and skips. It results in them almost fully hundred-percenting the game in ''one three-day cycle''.
** One particularly amazing moment: in an almost sixteen-year-old game, with a ''very'' heavily dedicated speedrunning and glitch-finding community, these four '''accidentally discovered a brand new glitch''' (rolling as Goron Link into a bridge post at one part of Snowhead caused them to bounce into the side wall, go out of bounds, and void back to the entrance). The glitch itself wasn't helpful and cost them a couple seconds, but they made it pretty clear they didn't care, because ''it was awesome.''
** After suffering some bad RNG[[labelnote:*]]Random number generation; basically, random stuff that's out of their control, such as movement of some [=NPCs=][[/labelnote]], they get particularly good RNG at the dog race. They pick up a dog, who has a positive thought, and enter him into the race, which he wins. This is their first time attempting it, by the way, when they had expected to be at it for a while due to it being ThatOneSidequest.
** And how does the run end? With them facing the final boss, Majora... all together, holding the same controller, each one operating one button or the analog stick... [[UpToEleven and blindfolded]]. [[spoiler: They did it flawlessly, barring getting hit a couple times which didn't matter.]]
* [=TASbot=] managing to outdo itself once again by turning ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' into [[spoiler:'''''VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker'''''. And if this wasn't enough, he allowed Twitch chat to control it à la ''LetsPlay/TwitchPlaysPokemon''.]] And [[UpToEleven then]] it broke the game, because the cursor scrolled too far up, causing the game to write garbage data to itself when an object is placed.
* During the ''VideoGame/StepMania'' showcase, one of the songs played, [[spoiler:"300"]], is introduced by the commentators with a DramaticPause:
-->[[https://youtu.be/bdLeqNguK1c?t=29m14s Now this is]]... [{{beat}}] ...[[https://soundcloud.com/alex311360/detach-m-style-300 a speed song]]...
* The ''Super Mario Maker'' blind race showcase was quite impressive overall, but one particular moment is one player clearing a NSMB-style level requiring a series of 1-block wall jumps on the first try.
-->Dram runs Kaizo. He's like, "3-frame window? [[BringIt Feh!]]"
[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2016]]
* The ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryTropicalFreeze'' run. Already a phenomenal speed game on it own, six of its top speedrunners split into two teams (Team Canada and Team USA) to do a relay race. Aside from a few mistakes, the runners perform fantastically, and in the end, [[spoiler:Team Canada wins by a mere ''30 seconds'' after lagging behind during World 5]]. Highlights:
** Michael_Goldfish doing his "Bad Manners" strat; taking an early hit on Blurry Flurry (a rocketbarrel level) and proceeding to finish the level without a scratch. Note that there is no reason to do this [[DifficultButAwesome aside from showing that you have the balls to do so]]. [=MooMooAkai=] is no slouch either, managing to nab just about every collectible during the rocketbarrel section.
** At the end, [[spoiler:both runners manage to defeat [[FinalBoss Lord Fredrik]] in the least amount of cycles possible.]]
* The ''VideoGame/{{Catherine}}'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTsqOqthkPU&index=9&list=PLz8YL4HVC87WhzH2-56QXDOwoKNYkdCEV speedrun]] by [=Ghoul02=], in which he runs through [[BrutalBonusLevel Babel]] while controlling two characters at once. He manages to do nearly flawlessly [[ExcuseMeWhileIMultitask while providing active commentary]]. Note that the second controller he used was a ''fightstick''. [[CrazyEnoughToWork It works]].
* The [[SelfImposedChallenge blind]][[SugarWiki/SoCoolItsAwesome folded]] ''[[Videogame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight Symphony of the Night]]'' run. Re-read that again, just in case you failed to understand; [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0H4atoATpNE THE BLINDFOLDED SYMPHONY OF THE NIGHT RUN.]] As if that wasn't enough, before doing his blindfolded Symphony run, [=Romscout=] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlt7l82bW3Y performed]] a Low% ''Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow'' run [[spoiler:that ended in a way that could very well be called the new definition of "clench."]]
* ''[[VideoGame/{{Momodora}} Momodora: Reverie]]''. [[SelfImposedChallenge Halfcoord]][[HandicappedBadass inated]]. ''[[HarderThanHard Insane difficulty]].'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXtUwIW7cL8 'Nuff said.]]
* A ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'' speedrun? ''Yawn.'' [[MinimalistRun Low percent?]] Alright. [[SerialEscalation Low percent small Mario only, meaning no powerups or Yoshi?]] Intrigued. The person running it is, as of the event, ''[[KidHero 15]]'' years old? Holy shit. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvjzLvfRziA He got it in 16 minutes 19 seconds.]]
* The usual ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFI0a-uMD_U race]] took a turn for a dramatic when not one, not two, but ''three'' of the four contestants died during the race, and the leader dying to Mother Brain at that. This left the underdog runner [=Behemoth87=] a chance to shine and take the win when he was previously trailing behind by over a solid 30 seconds from the second runner-up!
* Right before the last run of the event started, they announced one last donation incentive: surpass the final donation total from SGDQ 2015 and they'd set up a bonus 4-player 70 star race of ''Super Mario 64''. '''[[https://youtu.be/dQBnXxBwwOo?t=3h16m12s And they surpassed it with flying colors!]]'''
* During the ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006'' run by tripl3ag3nt, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJxXBDJhyEw#t=54m45s he accidentally discovered]] an ''entirely new glitch'': [[spoiler:using the cinematic camera during a wall-hopping sequence got Sonic softlocked into a permanent spinning animation ''in mid-air''.]] tripl3ag3nt does note that the glitch cost him a sub-one hour time, but he doesn't care, because it was ''awesome''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2017]]
* The ''VideoGame/ShovelKnight'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgg7TS3MWwk race]] between Smaugy and Munchakoopas, in which both runners show off new techniques and use incredibly dangerous skips, ended with both runners finishing the game within six seconds of each other.
* The ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'' '''pacifist''' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vluA13Rcj78 run race]], which required both players to not swing their sword at all outside of boss fights, meaning no killing any enemy {{Mook}} or picking up a single power up. Instead they had to utilize precision jumps and damage boosts to make it through the game. Both players in the race of the first title ended up beating the game while one of the racers went on to do a pacifist run of the second game immediately after.
* The ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'' race between [=PangaeaPanga=], [=StrongmanLin=], [=AverageTrey=], and [=BounceyBoy=] is one for the books as, for the most part, everyone remained within 1 Shine of each other. 1st place won with a time of 1:17:55 with last place just over a minute behind at 1:19:12! It would have been even closer had 4th not taken a death against Bowser, but the crowd rallied to cheer him on.
* During the Awful Games block, authorblues achieved a world record in ''The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends''. His time was 17:50, over 12 minutes better than the estimate.
* Right before ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'', the commentators table decides to showcase the prizes for the final bidwar, featuring an ''insane'' amount of cool, exclusive stuff supplied by Bandai Namco themselves in exchange for a hefty minimum bid of $125. The cost did not deter people, and over the course of 10 minutes over '''$50000''' was raised, and bids were being placed so fast that the donation tracker ''crashed''.
* SHATTERING AGDQ 2015's donation record by amassing over ''two million'' dollars for the Prevent Cancer Foundation just before the ''Videogame/{{Undertale}}'' run. The moment the tracker started getting close, the entire live audience got up and began cheering the donations on, leading to uproarious applause when the tracker ticked over to $2 million.
** Everdraed, the man who created [[spoiler: Photoshop Flowey]] arrived on Skype right after the battle ended, expressing both admiration for the speedrun community, and shocked disbelief at the glitches used in the run. He then tells everyone to enjoy the game however they like, to let no one tell you how to play.
** Everdraed mentioned that in the last few days before the game came out, he found a glitch that he nearly left in, because it would be an absolute GameBreaker in a speedrun. Then he decided to take it out anyway, knowing that future speedrunners would find something else that the devs never considered. He was ''completely'' right.
** The ''Undertale'' run itself came after the intense ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' Race, where the audience was forced to stay quiet near the end, possibly due to the race being very close between Behemoth and Zoasty. Here, TGH manages to make the game exciting to watch and gets the crowd cheering during each of the final bosses of the game, such as: [[spoiler: copying Omega Flowey's distorted hitsounds whenever he gets hit, chanting [[VideoGameCaringPotential "HUG THE GOAT!"]] after the fight with Asriel, [[https://clips.twitch.tv/gamesdonequick/PowerfulBeePeteZarollTie the tracker hitting $2.2 million right as the hug happens]], and finally the buttclenching battle against [[ThatOneBoss Sans]], which he does ''almost flawlessly'', only taking 2 hits during the whole fight.]]
* Along with AGDQ 2017 breaking the $2 million mark, nearly $1.4 million of it was raised all ''on the final day''. Plus the fact that the ''Super Metroid'' "Save or Kill the Animals" bidwar raised about a third of the whole donations!
[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2017]]
* The ''VideoGame/FreedomPlanet'' run, where Fladervy pulls off several pixel-precise cycles speeding across warping platforms, showing off frame-perfect divekicks to fly over things he shouldn't be able to, and several times impressed commentator Succinct and Punchy, a technical player in his own right that's rarely impressed by much. In a few places Fladervy even improvises a few tricks nobody even knew could be done, coming in a minute-and-a-half above the world record on a marathon run, and got through [[MemeticMutation the Dreadbox]].
* The Low% Ice Race of ''VideoGame/SuperMetroid'' quickly fell apart when two of the runners died twelve minutes in, leaving Zoast to have to carry the run solo. Despite having to use mainly the Ice Beam, which is fairly weak as a beam upgrade by itself even with charged shots, and only having a handful of missiles and three energy tanks due to being allowed to pick up 14 items overall, he manages to clear the entire rest of the game without death. It especially hits the tension when his fight with Mother Brain comes down to a hair's breadth, where a single hit would cause him to be killed by the cutscene rather than get saved, and ultimately survives by a sliver to deliver some CatharsisFactor handily.
* The ''Super Panga World'' RomHack run, which Dodechehedron did in less than half the time estimate, beating his pre-marathon personal best by five minutes.[[note]]He set a new World Record of 26 minutes in the practice room the night before the run, too.[[/note]]
* Halfcoordinated beat the A route of ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'', something that takes about 10 hours, in two hours--with only one usable hand!
[[/folder]]
[[folder:HRDQ]]
* Meta-awesome: The GDQ gang set up Harvey Relief Done Quick, a two-and-a-half day GDQ marathon to raise funds for charity in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, in just around a day.
* Kanis nailed all but one wrong warp in ''Donkey Kong Country 2'' on the first try; the only mistake came in Parrot Chute Panic. He finished the game in 40 minutes, 44 seconds.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:AGDQ 2018]]
* [=Skavenger216=] returns to be the debut runner for ''[[VideoGame/BlasterMaster Blaster Master Zero]]'' for the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch.[[note]]The first run on the Nintendo Switch for Games Done Quick[[/note]]
* Sumichu's [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic brilliant rendition]] of [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater Snake Eater]]. Even the most [[{{Troll}} mischievous members]] of Twitch Chat were [[PetTheDog willing to praise it]]. Listen to it [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKLJjRQy754 here.]]
* During the final minutes of the ''VideoGame/SuperMario3DWorld'' run, one bidder bid $4,000 literally in the last seconds of the incentive bids for [[UnexpectedCharacter Toad]] to win, when they were just about to use Luigi, who was the winner until that bid came in, surprising the runner and the entire commentary team.
* The ''[[Videogame/DragonQuestI Dragon Warrior I]]'' run, which was accomplished in 27 minutes.
** Notably, the run largely relied on RNG manipulation, which normally is done in Tool Assisted Speedruns, with a real person doing it, knowing practically the exact moment to move in order to actually make random encounters ''predictable''.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Strider}}'' tutorial, featuring an experienced player teaching a newbie how to effectively speedrun the original NES game, inspired several viewers to try themselves. One, Aldriel, discovered a major new skip. As a direct result of the tutorial, [[https://twitter.com/coolkidBIGBOY/status/951279100009656320 a new Any% world record was set.]] As of January 12, 2018, the top 5 times all come from the days after the tutorial, a stunning success.
* dwangoAC officially quit GDQ after AGDQ 2017, only for an incentive bid to be done for [=TASbot=] to return to do a session with VideoGame/SuperMonkeyBall, making it effectively akin to a TenMinuteRetirement.
* [=Zallard1=] plays ''Punch-Out'' and ''Super Punch-Out'' at the same time. With one controller. Beats them both in less than 25 minutes, and gets a first round TKO on Tyson after a 1.19 first knockdown; thought to be nearly impossible.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:SGDQ 2018]]
* Mr. Shasta's run of ''VideoGame/MetroidSamusReturns'' saw him try to achieve a floor glitch that shaves 45 minutes off of the run time. But he had trouble getting it due to not playing on his own 3DS. He remains persistent & humble, however, and eventually wins the crowd over to his side. And when [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eDpztEmCYY&t=6m38s he finally gets it]] nearly 7 minutes later, the response is euphoric.
* [=TheMexicanRunner=]'s OneHundredPercentCompletion run of ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'' showcasing how one of the most difficult games in recent memory being utterly destroyed while TMR himself suffered only one death. He got a well-deserved standing ovation after completing the run.
* In the ''VideoGame/BioMiracleBokutteUpa'' run, [=EnchantressOfNumbers=] established a new World Record.
* Kosmic completed ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros1'' in less than seven minutes. Not a big deal for a speedrunner, right? Well, Kosmic did that run ''with one hand''.
* [=Linkus7=] ran ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker [[UpdatedRerelease HD]]'' with a large number of skips and item slides that allowed him to essentially go zooming past large portions of the game, but the largest was a GDQ first: the Barrier Skip. The barrier at the sunken Hyrule is ''meant'' to be opened through upwards to about three extra hours of run time, but recent discoveries allowed those running the HD version of the game to skip it and jump straight to endgame with a run time hitting just over an hour now. Even better, despite running on a TV he wasn't familiar with, Linkus managed to accomplish this on his ''first try'' with no hang-up.
* [=MONTYvsTHEWORLD=]'s run of the [[TrialAndErrorGameplay notoriously]] [[NintendoHard challenging]] ''VideoGame/GettingOverItWithBennettFoddy'', done in less than ''three minutes''. It's so under the estimate that MONTY attempts a second run using the remaining dedicated time he still has ([[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments emphasis on "attempts"]]).
* Sumichu returned to the mic for another singing performance, this time delivering a beautiful rendition of "Aria de Mezzo Caraterre" (the opera song) during the event-ending ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' run.
** Near the end of the run, a donation train started at the 6:15:00 mark where everyone on Twitch would donate five dollars. Within twenty minutes ''they broke two million.''
* The [=TASbot=] run of ''VideoGame/{{Celeste}}'' stunned viewers and commentators alike (one of the latter was part of the dev team)...and then it made the [[BrutalBonusLevel C-Side levels]] look like child's play.
-->'''[=CovertMuffin=]''': ''[Repeatedly throughout the run]'' No way!
* In a email addressed to all donators, Doctors Without Borders has announced SGDQ is ''their biggest fundraiser of the year''.
[[/folder]]
