Speedrunning the 15 Wildest Things That Happened During AGDQ 2023
Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ) 2023 wrapped up over the weekend, following a week of incredible speedruns and raising just over$2.6 millionfor the Prevent Cancer Foundation during that time. Even though the event was held virtually this year, there were still plenty of moments that were stunning to watch. Here’s a little speedrun of our own that breaks down the 15 wildest moments at AGDQ 2023.
If we’re going to talk about speedrunning, then you have to mention the fastest character in video games,Sonic the Hedgehog. This skip by Speck in Sonic Unleashed looks outstanding. What makes it even more ridiculous is that it was a crucial part of beating the TAS run. For the uninitiated, this is essentially the equivalent of a human beating a chess supercomputer.
Speck is keeping pace with his gameplay on commentary! What’s more – this skip apparently helped him BEAT THE TAS?Sonic block at#AGDQ2023is off to a lightning-fast start!https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/r7jFdhyj15
You may have heard of rocket jumping, but how about dynamite jumping?
.@kaos_wulfis leaping his way through Cultic right now at#AGDQ2023. This first-try skip was… explosive!pic.twitter.com/gCYIaz63is
If that’s not enough speed for you, thenNeon Whitemost definitely will be. Anyone who has ever heard about this game or seen it played knows it’s one of the fastest games of the last year. Letting a group of speedrunners get their hands on the game is dangerous. The full thing is well worth the watch, but the fastest run is just under 13 and a half minutes. This watch is worth every frame.
It wouldn’t be an AGDQ without some classic runs. No matter how many times we see the wrong warp in SMB3, it never becomes any less impressive or wild.
We wrong warped straight to the end of Super Mario Bros. 3, as well as the end of#AGDQ2023.Even though this event is coming to an end, one thing stays unchanged. Were#HereTogether💙pic.twitter.com/xupQ4aeNDD
The caption on this one is perfect, but also, the movement in Breath of the Wild is just ludicrous.
Folks rushing to their PC after hearing there’s new “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” news#AGDQ2023https://t.co/x81FahevHcpic.twitter.com/DhlhaqMPcx
Buffet Time’sHalf-Life: Alyxrun from SGDQ 2020 showed off how wild VR speedruns can get with tons of wacky out-of-bounds antics.This time around, Buffet Time showed off even more fun-to-watch strats like this crouch movement.
The one and only@buffit_timhas been schmoving through Half-Life: Alyx with their impressive ✨crouching strats✨#AGDQ2023https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/0FbkTXE7k4
Adding inrhythm gamesto the GDQs was such a good idea.
Gamers you did it! You unlocked all of the Stepmania incentives.@bromideven did death runs 😲. Such a great showcase!#AGDQ2023https://t.co/x81FahevHcpic.twitter.com/Iz2vuqXZKG
Trackmania Turbois crazy enough without speedrunners getting their hands on the game.
WARNING: Professional drivers on an open course.#AGDQ2023https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/aHUlW0WZgN
The out-of-bounds movement and skips in theMetroid Primegames are always a sight to behold.
This Metroid Prime 1 and 2 co-op crossgame rando run with@UncleRoogieand@BashPrimehas been going on for over two hours, but that doesn’t make the skips any less complex!#AGDQ2023https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/Mj0xpHcR3x
You know it’s about to get wild when the speedrunner breaks out a blindfold. With how many visual queues are in theSkyward Swordfinal boss fight, being unable to see them didn’t seem to phase speedrunner gymnast86 in the least.
What a FINALE to Skyward Sword as@MrGymnast86beat the final fight BLINDFOLDED!But buckle in, we’re closing in on that $1MIL mark – are you ready?#AGDQ2023https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/P2ie7unXZ3
3D Legend of Zeldaspeedruns always have wild movement. Who needs Epona when you can run as fast as a horse?
This is a SPEEDRUN marathon, so Link needs SPEED#AGDQ2023https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/0az6BAVG2H
No, this is not someone speedrunningSonic Colors: Ultimateon two systems with one controller. This is in fact two people perfectly synced up in the middle of a race.
The Sonic Colors: Ultimate race at#AGDQ2023is as close as can be – look at these PERFECTLY SYNCED bossfights from@thebluemania_and@Subbaro_, with@NyuDergynot far behind!https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/Y96oqXO2mg
The long-awaitedResident Evil Village DLChas a terrifying final boss. However, it’s not really that terrifying when you consider how incredibly fast speedrunners are able to blow through this battle.
In case you were wondering how fast the final boss of Resident Evil Village’s DLC can be defeated,@7rayDdid it in less than a minute.#AGDQ2023https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/BZZ4BbQUXE
Super Mario Galaxy 2has some of the best 3D platformer level design and speedrunner jhay just skips it all with multiple frame-perfect jumps.
level?what level?who said anything about a level?@NotImJhay?#AGDQ2023https://t.co/umiMSaefOZpic.twitter.com/QFKhZjhRkB
The Hitman franchise is known for its ridiculous strategies, and threeballer97 showcased multiple in his Hitman: Bloodmoney run.
Even with a full list of 15 moments, there are many more speedruns worth watching from the past week. The full playlist of AGDQ 2023 can be foundright here. All in all, it was a memorable week filled with tons of highly talented people, incredible speedruns, and plenty of money raised for a great cause.
It’s a shame that we have to wait another six months for Summer Games Done Quick, but at least there are over 160 hours of content to watch on YouTube until then.
