Summer Games Done Quick Online 2020 Schedule Revealed

After a delay from its original planned week due to needing to move online, Summer Games Done Quick’s new schedule has been unveiled.

Games Done Quick is a biannual speedrunning marathon in which highly trained “runners” beat a wide variety of videogames as quickly as possible, usually using glitches and other exploits to shave down every possible second. Summer Games Done Quick benefits Doctors Without Borders, a humanitarian organization that provides critical medical care and resources to people in countries suffering from conflict, disease or famine.

The event typically takes place in or around the Twin Cities in Minnesota, but due to big crowds not being a great idea right now, the charity organization had to move the event to online. This means that the runners, along with tech crew, announcers and everyone else involved in making the event happen will volunteer from their own homes.

It makes complete sense why this needed to happen online, but it’s still a real bummer for those hoping to attend. When I attended Summer Games Done Quick 2019, being in the crowd of hundreds of spectators as these runners performed incredible tricks in these games was electrifying. There were also tons of arcade and pinball machines provided for the duration of the event and I got to meet some great people. A lot will definitely be lost from the event taking place online, but hopefully it will still be able to connect people, provide entertainment and most importantly raise lots of money for a good cause.

A shorter event, Corona Relief Done Quick, was held from April 17 through 19 to benefit Direct Relief, which provides resources for those affected by COVID-19. There were plenty of technical hiccups, but it proved that such an event could be done online.

This year’s schedule has a wide variety of games, with the longest planned run being Final Fantasy VII Remake at an estimated seven hours and 20 minutes and the shortest run being Pringles: The Video Game at an estimated five minutes. You can see the full schedule here.

Summer Games Done Quick Online 2020 kicks off Aug.16 at 11:30 a.m. EST with a pre-show followed by a run of Demon’s Souls, then keeps going 24/7 until the final run of Pokémon Shield ends at around 8:55 p.m. on Aug. 22 (Spoiler: it’s always much later than planned). You can watch it through Twitch and donate throughout the event for chances to win prizes, unlock bonus runs, influence runner’s decisions (such as the infamous “kill or save the animals” choice in Super Metroid) and more.