Weddings? Birthdays? Pfft. This weekend is the start of Summer Games Done Quick 2026! These runs are worth missing your prior commitments for

Forget the Fourth of July — this weekend is all about the fifth of July, because it’s time for another Summer Games Done Quick! We Blizzard Watchers love Games Done Quick, but if you’ve never watched or just need a refresher: SGDQ is a week-long charity event that raises money for Doctors Without Borders (A.K.A. Médecins Sans Frontières) via video game speedruns.

It’s wholesome, fun, nerdy as heck, and supports an amazing cause. And when we say “week-long,” we mean it.

Summer Games Done Quick will be running nonstop from Sunday to Sunday on both Twitch and YouTube, which is why we’re here to help break down some of the runs we’re most excited about. Don’t worry if you can’t watch your favorite run live, though — you can watch anything you missed on YouTube, with runs usually posted during the marathon, a day or two after finishing.

Runs below are shared in central time, but the schedule is regularly updated with up-to-date timing adjustments, so be sure to check the Games Done Quick website for all the latest updates to the schedule. Games Done Quick’s schedule page will reflect your local time.

SGDQ favorites for Sunday, July 5

Kirby Air Riders — Air Ride – All Tracks by Bluekandy (9:13 p.m.)

I loved the original Air Rider game, and not having a Switch 2 to play the sequel has been felt like travesty my childhood self would not stand for. Thankfully, I can at least watch all of the tracks demolished on opening day.

Spyro: Year of the Dragon & Spyro Reignited Trilogy — Spyro 3 Race by Toronite and Dereklander (11:06 p.m.)

Another childhood favorite — and off the heels of an all-new Spyro title being announced just last month — a Spyro race on opening day sounds like a great time! Races at GDQ offer some of the most memorable moments, especially when things go unexpectedly. And it seems like we’ll be getting multiple platforms/versions of Spyro 3 for this. I can’t wait!

SGDQ favorites for Monday, July 6

Super Monkey Ball: Stardust — All Stunt Goals by Nambo (2:55 p.m.)

Super Monkey Ball titles are a quintessential speedrun watch, if you ask me. Every level feels like you’re watching someone play those arcade machines/old wooden toys where you have to move a marble by controlling vertical and horizontal tilt, except turned up to 11 and completed successfully like it’s nothing.

Super Mario Odyssey — All Story Moons by CheeseJay (7:12 p.m.)

Look, it’s hard for me to not pick an Mario platformer during these. Odyssey’s movement tech may offer some of the most potential for inhuman combos, and the fact that it’s an All Moons run means we’ll get to see a whole lot of incredible platforming.

SGDQ favorites for Tuesday, July 7

Gex: Enter the Gecko — Any% by Yoshipro (7:35 a.m.)

Gex is one of those series that instantly takes me back to the very first PS1 demo I ever had (and still have), which included Gex 2. I’ve always wanted to go back and play more of the games as an adult, but for now, I think a pre-8:00 a.m. speedrun is a good way to live that vicariously.

Stardew Valley — Mines vs. Crafts Room Race by Pr1nc3ssShortcake and MelMelMelCrochets (12:03 p.m.)

Stardew? Oddly specific race? Yes, count me in. I’m always interested to see how cozy games get turned into speedruns, and everything about this is right up my alley.

Hollow Knight: Silksong — Awoo% (All Fleas) by mathulu (6:33 p.m.)

I wasn’t going to include three picks this early in the week, but how could I not call out “Awoo%”?! Save those adorable fleas, mathulu!

SGDQ favorites for Wednesday, July 8

Pokémon FireRed — Elite Four Round 2 by Gunnermaniac and pokeguy (2:47 p.m.)

Super Mario and Luigi World: Brotherhood — First Playthrough — All Exits Race by GossipGreg, Hank_Sinatra, shovda, CircleFriendo, and Spirits (7:26 p.m.)

Okay, maybe this list is weighed a bit heavily toward races. But hey, they’re fun! And “First Playthrough” has me incredibly intrigued. Are we sight-reading speedruns? (Sight-running?)

SGDQ favorites for Thursday, July 9

Banjo-Tooie — Any% (No Bitclips) by TSR Stormed (12:40 a.m.)

I love this game, I love these characters. I’m sure I’ve picked this as a game in the past, but I don’t care. I’m excited to relive my childhood a little more.

The entire Thursday morning Silly Block

Every SGDQ has what we call the “Silly Block,” full of weird, whacky, weirder, and “what the heck?!” It starts early in the morning and runs through the early afternoon, but with games like these — not the full line-up, to be clear — the whole thing is worth tuning into. Plus, rolling right into Tears of the Kingdom after Wand of Gamelon? *chef’s kiss* to the scheduling crew.

• Snoopy (Commodore 64) — 9 Loops (6:50 a.m.) by Msushi
• Drywall Eating Simulator — Any% (8:06 a.m.) by chibicarrera
• Grandma, No! — All Main Tasks (8:33 a.m.) by Asuka424
• Randall The Grape Jelly Cube goes to Soda Valley for some reason — Any% (12:06 p.m.) by MatosMachine
• Sonic Schoolhouse — All Subjects (2:01 p.m.) by Katie4
• Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon — Any% (2:57 p.m.) by Brandino59

Elden Ring – All Bosses (4 Players) by Mitchriz, LilAggy, YoJosherino, and star0chris (9:57 p.m.)

This is Mitch bait, and I took it.

SGDQ favorites for Friday, July 10

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker — Randomizer — Co-op by Tomomodachi and gymnast86 (9:56 a.m.)

If you’ve never seen a Randomizer run (or even if you have), they’re regularly hilarious because the runners quite literally never know what’s going to happen in full. They can plan routes and plan as best as possible, but the random nature means on-the-fly route changes and adjustments, and it’s always fascinating to see how runners adapt so quickly.

SAROS — NG+ (All Bosses) by cavecavecave (12:54 p.m.)

This is currently my GOTY frontrunner, and having completed it top-to-bottom and then some, I want to see what how I could’ve been running this even faster. I could use a new personal challenge.

Super Mario Maker 2 — Troll Race by juzcook, Marble, and CarlSagan42 (6:42 p.m.)

I don’t know what “Troll Race” is but do I need to? Mario Maker runs are notoriously impressive and historically hilarious. With a category like “Troll Run,” I can’t imagine this one will miss either mark.

SGDQ favorites for Saturday, July 11

Yup, I’m recommending the whole dang day again

The final day of any GDQ event will always be packed with wall-to-wall bangers, and SGDQ 2026 is no exception. So, once again, I’m just gonna tell you to watch it all and show you the lineup for the last 12 or so hours of the event:

• Mass Effect 3 — Any% (Mod)  (12:25 p.m.) by MikeWave
• Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix — Randomizer — Hitlist Co-op (2:09 p.m.) by ZakTheRobot and SpikeVegeta
• Super Mario 64 — 120 Star TAS (5:45 p.m.) by Palix
• The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past — All Dungeons (Restricted Major Glitchless) (7:30 p.m.) by RequiemOfSpirit
• Super Dram World 3 (BONUS GAME) — Any% (9:16 p.m.) by revolug
• Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 — Any% (Restricted) (11:11 p.m.) by Z3R01337

As always, though, these are just some of the runs to watch out for. The best moments are rarely predictable, and it’s hard to ever find a block that doesn’t have something fun to watch.

Want to see more from SGDQ? This year’s speedruns can be found on GDQ’s YouTube page for your enjoyment!