Awesome Games Done Quick 2013: 7 days of live streaming games!

[theGrue]

Streaming live right now at http://marathon.speeddemosarchive.com/!

[img width=700 height=164]http://marathon.speeddemosarchive.com/res/img/agdq2013logos/1.png[/img]

With 33,017 viewers right this moment, I can't be the only one watching this, can I? If you're not hip to the speedrunning scene, I thought we could use a thread to promote and talk about this awesome marathon. I'm a little late with the post as we're a bit over a day in at this point, but there's still six days left to go so better late than never.

SpeedDemosArchive runs this marathon every year for charity donations to the Prevent Cancer Foundation, broadcasting live feats of gaming for an entire week, around the clock. All donations go direct to the Prevent Cancer Foundation. No one from the event is taking money from the donations -- it is 100% charity. Everyone at the event is paying for their own travel and board. And these guys aren't just good at games, they're world record holders.

SDA has had a history of successful marathons. Last year's AGDQ raised a total of $149,000. The goal for 2013 is initially set at $100k. Various smaller marathons, including SDA's own Summer Games Done Quick, SRL/SDA events such as the Number SMW marathon (get people to AGDQ) and Hurricane Sandython have been very successful.

A schedule is located here: http://marathon.speeddemosarchive.com/schedule
And the prizes (incentives for donating during certain games) are listed here: http://sda.sorrowind.net/tracker/7
Also TheYetee is selling some awesome t-shirts and donating the profits: https://www.theyetee.com/...category.php?categoryid=7

The Super Meat Boy run starts tonight at 9, who's watching?

[Shadow Kisuragi]

I've already been watching. I meant to post it on the forum, but kept getting distracted. Thanks for posting!

[theGrue]

Via Keyboard Kid at the Something Awful forums, here's what to look for tomorrow

TUESDAY, JANUARY 8TH

Fallout 1 and 2 by Lee, 4:05AM EST
If you're into these games, be sure to give them a look.

Commander Keen 5 and 6 by CosmoWright, 5:05AM EST
And Commander Keen by Cosmo. I'll be sleeping at this time but it should be great.

Megaman Block starting at 7:45AM EST
Megamari by krimmydoodle (7:45) - touhou fangame, but it's pretty good.

Mega Man 4 by duckfist (8:30) - don't miss.

Mega Man 7 vs Mega Man 8 (9:20) - Donation war. I would strongly suggest gunning for MM7, it's a much more technical, difficult, and fun game to watch. I'm not a fan of MM8.

Rockman and Forte by PJ (10:25) - Donate for Rockman OR Forte for character selection. The favorite is Rockman (which PJ is gunning for). Forte is kind of a joke in this game, since you just jump and dash through every screen. There will be many cool zips and tricks. This is kind of a better Mega Man 8 on SNES.

Mega Man 9 (Superhero Mode) vs Mega Man 10 by romscout or Duckfist (11:35) - Donation war. I love MM10 and duckfist but I'm a bit interested in MM9's Superhero mode run. Should be great either way.

Mega Man X by Calebhart42 - Well, if you've never seen this game played by this man then you're in for a treat.

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Castlevania block starting at 1:15PM EST
Aria of Sorrow, Dawn of Sorrow, and SotN. All fun games, see schedule. Won't write too much about em but I know we've got fans.

Ninja Gaiden block starting at 3:25PM EST
1, 2, 3, and Jackal. Must watch.

Goof Troop by Cyghfer and Blechy (4:45 PM EST)
Two of the best speedrunners I know playing the best co-op game. This run is seriously on another level in terms of skill. If you think I'm joking then be sure to stick around for it.

Gimmick! by Cyghfer (5:10PM EST)
Kryssstal thinks this is the hardest 2D side-scrolling speedrun. That probably counts for something. Here is the best NES (Famicom) game, made late in the NES era by Sunsoft. The graphics and music are easily the best on the console, and the gameplay is fast-paced and technical.

Metroid Prime 1 and 2 by Miles (10PM EST)
Miles is one of those speedrunners who doesn't fuck around. Metroid Prime 1 and 2 have been broken in so many ways that I can't even begin to explain. Should be a great watch.

Meat Boy definitely delivered, the run wasn't the best I've ever seen but Edmund and Tommy (the developers) calling in for live commentary is always a treat.

[theGrue]

Highlights for the next two days!

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 9TH

Earthbound by Mickey_Mage and skateman222, 8:40AM EST

Not really a super exciting run, especially since it's Full Game which means no major glitches, but it's Earthbound. Always happy to watch the game.

Donkey Kong Country block starting at 4:15PM EST

DKC1 by tjp7154 and Tompa (race), all levels, 4:15. A much more action-packed run than the other two. I really enjoy the fast pace in this game, and all levels is the best category.

DKC2 by Twig, 5:00. There will be some fun warps in this game, and it's also a really great run. A fan favorite of the series. Solid level design and music!

DKC Returns by SMK, 6:00. Haven't seen a run of this yet so I'm curious.

Super Monkey Ball 1 and 2 by Miles, 8PM EST

The optimization in this game is insane. Miles will beast it and it'll be an exciting watch no matter what happens (expect deaths). Super fast pace and monkeys in balls what else needs to be said

F-Zero GX by Yoshifan, Naegleria, 10:30PM EST

GX is a very exciting game to watch. Yes, it is a racing game, but it is surprisingly deep.

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10TH

AWFUL GAMES DONE QUICK! from 2:25AM EST ~ 10:45AM EST

So here's a block of games that... aren't so awesome. Or are they? The full lineup is:

-Sonic 2006, Shadow the Hedgehog
-Sub-Terrania
-Earnest Evans (I suggest watching this one if you can)
-The Ren & Stimpy Show: Stimpy's Invention
-Timecop (also a good watch)
-Blaster Master 2
-Bio Force Ape
-Captain Comic
-Bad Dudes
-Bayou Billy
-Incredible Crash Dummies
-Metal Morph

Yup. Hitting that graveyard shift hard. Expect a lot of very broken video games.

Doom and Doom II by Kubelwagon, 7:40PM EST

Doom is one of those big games for speedrunning. I was never too into it but it's definitely worth a mention here. (Expect Doom 64 in the Bonus Stream)

Goldeneye (N64) by |34ss|3oost, 9PM EST

Another game I'm not terribly familiar with, but I know enough to say that it's a really interesting run with a ton of neat tricks. Definitely worth watching, especially if you were a fan of the game at some point.

SUPER METROID by Garrison, 10:30PM EST

WATCH THIS RUN. If you watch any run during this day, make it Super Metroid. The game has had quite the history of sequence breaking, movement tricks, and optimizations, including many things this last year that kept the competition hot for the world record. Super Metroid is just an amazing game for speedrunning, and easily one of the best games on the console. D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e FrankerZ D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e D e e R F o R C e

[The Metamorphosing Leon]

Neat.

[bombatomba]

Crap, there goes the plans for the evening.

[theGrue]

Yesssss. Monkey Ball runs never cease to amaze me.

Did anyone catch sinister1's blindfolded Punch-Out or pacifist Ninja Gaiden runs? That guy is a beast.

[Shadow Kisuragi]

Blindfolded Punch-Out was amazing. He made it to Piston Honda 2, and the Bald Bill fight was clutch. Highlight of the marathon for me.