The Summer Games Done Quick speedruns we don’t want to miss

For some gamers, the best part of the summer is about to begin.

That’s because Summer Games Done Quick begins  Sunday. The event is a marathon of speedruns broadcasted on Twitch. Viewers can donate, and the money goes to the charity Doctors Without Borders. You can check out the massive schedule of games that the speedrunners will tackle here.

We’re excited for the festivities to begin, but we’re especially looking forward to following speedruns:

Jeff Grubb, GamesBeat staff writer

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island

11 a.m. on Sunday, July 26

This is a boring, obvious choice because everyone knows how awesome the Yoshi’s Island speedrun is. That’s why it’s kicking off the whole event. And speedrunner Trihex, who you might’ve seen on the stage at the Nintendo World Championships, is the one giving the game a go.

Octodad: Dadliest Catch co-op run

4:55 p.m. on Monday, July 27

Octodad: Dadliest Catch is purposefully obtuse, difficult game. It’s controls are inscrutable even when you’re the only one playing. But it also has a co-op mode where two people can work together to control the Octodad character — it’s impossible, and I would never play it with any of my friends for fear that we would kill each other. But a pair of speedrunners are going to show everyone that it is doable, and I can’t wait to see it.

Tetris: The Grand Master block

5:40 p.m. on Monday, July 27

Few games are as immediately understandable as Tetris. And even fewer have a skill ceiling as high as the block-falling puzzler does. If you want to see what the Michael Jordans of Tetris look like, you need to watch this whole section of Summer Games Done Quick.

Donkey Kong  64

2:05 a.m. on Friday, July 31

This was a notoriously massive platformer collect-a-thon for the Nintendo 64 that developer Rare made back at the height of its power. I never ever beat it (even after playing for 30 hours) because it had you constantly retreading the same areas over and over. So I cannot wait to watch a pro speedrunner take this sucker down in less than three hours.

Super Mario 64 120-star race

3:10 p.m. on Saturday, August 1

Finally, the races are always my favorite part of the Games Done Quick events. I’m looking forward to the Donkey Kong Country, Super Metroid, and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night races, but I’ll definitely tune in to watch three of the best Mario speedrunners race to 100 percent this classic.

Mike Minotti, GamesBeat community manager’s picks.

Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric

1:10 p.m. Pacific on Sunday, July 26

I didn’t play Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric, but it looked awful. Like, awful even by modern Sonic standards. So, the thought of watching someone actually perfect this garbage is kind of hilarious. I have a feeling glitches are gonna play a big part in this speedrun.

Mickey Mania

8:30 a.m. Pacific on Monday, July 27

Most people would think of Mickey’s Magical Quest or Castle of Illusion when remembering 2D platformers starring the Disney mascot, but Mickey Mania always held a special place in my heart. Each stage is based on a classic Mickey cartoon, so it’ll be a big treat for a Disney-holic like me to watch.

StarTropics

6:20 a.m. Pacific on Tuesday, July 28

StarTropics is one of the few Nintendo games released on the NES that didn’t really spawn a successful franchise, but it’s just weird and wonderful. It’s kind of like a tropical version of The Legend of Zelda. It’s been a long time since I played it, and I never did actually manage to beat it.

Ori and the Blind Forest

9:55 p.m. Tuesday, July 28

Ori is my favorite game this year so far, so I’m excited to what a speedrun of it looks like live. It’ll almost be a shame to see someone skip all those gorgeous cutscenes and run past those beautiful environments, though.

Kirby Super Star

7:05 a.m. Wednesday, July 29

This was one of my favorite Super Nintendo games, so it’ll be great to relive it and watch someone perfect each of the side-scrolling campaigns. I’m especially excited to see the Great Cave Offensive segment get the 100 percent treatment.

Mega Man 10

3:20 p.m. on Thursday, July 30

I love the classic Mega Man games, and it seems like a series that was just made for speedrunning. Mega Man 10 is actually the newest entry in the franchise, but it retained the classic look of the NES Mega Man games. It’s also one of the few Mega Man games I haven’t seen anyone speedrun yet.