Do some good this weekend and watch the special Games Done Quick hurricane relief fundraiser

Feel bad about your own gaming skills while feeling good about helping those in need. That’s the mentality driving Games Done Quick, a speedrunning showcase that routinely raises millions for charities twice a year. With the devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey in Texas this August, the team has pulled together a special online event running September 1-3.

Speedrunning is always an impressive spectacle, with clever gamers finding all sorts of shortcuts to shave hours off the usual play time. Some of the world record runs find optimizations that come down to a matter of frames and seconds. If this is the first you’re hearing of GDQ, check out our explainer on the event.

The broadcast begins on Friday, September 1 at 8:00 pm EST with a run of Mega Man X. Several recent games are already on the schedule with some impressive projected times, including a 15-minute run of Prey by CreeperHntr and Loloup destroying The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild in about two hours. Clearly I’ve been playing both games all wrong. TheMexicanRunner blasting through Battletoads and a race in Super Metroid should be highlights for the retro gaming bunch.

GDQ regularly works with Doctors Without Borders as its beneficiary, but the donations collected this weekend for Harvey Relief Done Quick will all go to the Houston Food Bank. Two of GDQ’s merchandise partners are also in on the action, with special wares up for sale from The Yetee and Fangamer.

This isn’t the first time Games Done Quick has mobilized for a special event in response to a natural disaster. In April 2011, an online event raised $25,800 for Doctors Without Borders specifically for the victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.

You can keep up with the GDQ Twitter account for any additional updates over the weekend. And of course, catch all the action on Twitch.

Anna is a freelance writer who has written for the likes of GamesRadar, Ars Technica, Blizzard Watch, and Mashable. She's also created games as part of various game jams. Anna likes games about solving puzzles and/or shooting things. She wishes she could trade zingers with GLaDOS and have beers with Garrus Vakarian in real life.