PSA: Summer Games Done Quick 2025 Charity Marathon Is Live Right Now

By Elijah Gonzalez  |  July 7, 2025 | 5:30pm
Video Games News Games Done Quick
PSA: Summer Games Done Quick 2025 Charity Marathon Is Live Right Now

In case you hadn’t seen the news, the Summer Games Done Quick charity marathon is currently in progress, delivering speedrunning antics for a good cause. For those who’ve never caught the event (which is probably an increasingly small chunk of those who play games), it’s a Twitch stream that showcases highly skilled players dashing through games at a breakneck pace, as it encourages viewers to donate to charity. As per usual, all proceeds from this summer marathon will go to Doctors Without Borders (also known as Médecins Sans Frontières), and the event has already raised approximately $288,520 since it started this Sunday.

As for some exciting speedruns from this year’s schedule, there’s going to be a Mega Man Maker “Kaizo Showcase” at 7:10 PM ET later today (Monday, July 7). Mega Man Maker is a fan-made game that, much like Super Mario Maker, allows players to create custom levels. In general, “Kaizo” levels are extremely challenging fan-made challenges that require near-perfect play. When you combine Mega Man, an already difficult platformer, with these Kaizo levels, chaos is sure to ensue.

Another one to look out for will be the Cuphead “Any% Race” on Tuesday at 5:22 PM ET. Cuphead, a boss rush shoot ‘em up from 2017 known for its hand animation and imposing challenges, is the kind of precise game that works perfectly for speedrunning. The fact that the event will have two top players, SBDWolf and Kirthar, jockeying for the best time makes it even more exciting.

The Titanfall 2 “All Helmets Race” should be entertaining for similar reasons, as Respawn’s 2016 shooter has fast-paced first-person platforming and a tight single-player campaign that should make for great racing material.

Lastly, it will be very interesting to see what a Balatro speedrun looks like, because this roguelike deckbuilder that won hearts and minds last year is one that most people don’t associate with going fast. It will be a “7 Deck (Random Seed, Skips)” showcase, which, to my knowledge, means beating the game with seven different decks starting deck types (ie, Red Deck, Blue Deck, Nebula Deck, etc.), all within roughly an hour and 10 minutes.

All in all, Games Done Quick has raised over $54 million for charity since the organization was founded in 2010, raising over $2.5 million during 2024’s Summer Games Done Quick. And considering the numerous types of bad news surrounding the video game industry these days, it will be nice to take some time to appreciate the good that can come from the medium. You can donate to Doctors Without Borders through Sumer Games Done Quick here.

Doctors Without Borders is a humanitarian aid organization that assists those in conflict zones and those affected by endemic diseases, like tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, COVID-19, and more. In a moment where the United States has largely abandoned its government-supported foreign aid programs, potentially leading to as many as 14 million lives lost globally, it’s more relevant than ever to contribute to non-government funded aid programs like Doctors Without Borders.

 
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