AGDQ 2025 Surpasses $2.5M in Charity Donations

Summary

• Awesome Games Done Quick 2025 raised over $2.5 million for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, surpassing the 2024 total by $100,000.
• The organization's mission is focused on early cancer detection and prevention, along with funding research and outreach programs.
• The 18-minute Crazy Taxi run stole the show, raising over $24,000 in donations.

From January 5 to January 13, the Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ) 2025 event raised an impressive $2.5 million for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, surpassing the 2024 event's total by more than $100,000. This annual winter event showcased thrilling speedruns of games such as Crazy Taxi, Super Metroid, and a variety of other titles across multiple genres.

Held every January, Awesome Games Done Quick is one of the two flagship events hosted by Games Done Quick (GDQ), with Summer Games Done Quick taking place in July. GDQ also organizes smaller events like Frame Fatales and GDQ Express to bridge the gaps between the main marathons. In October 2024, GDQ responded to Hurricane Helene's devastation in the Southeastern US with an impromptu Disaster Relief Done Quick event, raising over $45,000 in just over two days for Direct Relief, a charity dedicated to providing emergency supplies, transportation, and medical support to disaster-stricken areas.

As the new year commenced, Awesome Games Done Quick 2025 made significant strides in supporting cancer research. From January 5 to January 13, the event amassed over $2.5 million for the Prevent Cancer Foundation, exceeding the previous year's total by over $100,000. The Prevent Cancer Foundation's mission centers on early cancer detection and prevention, as well as funding research and outreach programs. This collaboration between GDQ and PCF has been fruitful over the years, contributing over $26 million to the foundation across various GDQ events. AGDQ 2025 took place in Pittsburgh and was inaugurated with a swift run of the Switch version of Pikmin by speedrunner Ray0ken, completed within an hour.

Awesome Games Done Quick 2025 Raises Over $2.5 Million for the Prevent Cancer Foundation

One of the standout moments of AGDQ 2025 was the run of Crazy Taxi, a beloved Dreamcast title. The game's quick-paced nature makes it ideal for speedruns, but its copyrighted music poses streaming challenges. At AGDQ, speedrunner Chuckles825 ingeniously overcame this issue by being accompanied by a live band that played covers of Crazy Taxi's music in sync with the gameplay. This innovative 18-minute run of Crazy Taxi raised over $24,000 in donations.

The final event of AGDQ 2025 featured a randomized, four-player race of the SNES classic Super Metroid, where runners Eddie and Andy finished within a mere second of each other. GDQ is set to return with Summer Games Done Quick 2025, scheduled for July 6 in Minneapolis, where they will raise funds for Doctors Without Borders.