Iconic speedrunning organization Games Done Quick quickly pulls Hurricane Helene disaster relief event together – and it's happening next week

The Sims 4 Lovestruck reveal trailer screenshot showing a young man with short brown hair and trimmed facial hair standing, smiling while holding his hands up in a heart shape
(Image credit: EA)

The iconic speedrunning organization Games Done Quick is hosting a charity event called Disaster Relief Done Quick to benefit those affected by Hurricane Helene.

GDQ says donations submitted during the event will go to Direct Relief, a nonprofit charity supporting people in poverty or emergency situations with medical resources. The event runs from Friday, October 11 to Sunday, October 13. If you want to submit a run for the event, you have from now until October 6 at 11:59pm ET. If it's accepted, it'll be streamed during the event.

If you just want to watch and/or donate, you can do so over on Twitch, where GDQ is hosting the event.

Several streamers and speedrunners have already submitted runs across a variety of categories and in games including Zelda: Four Swords, The Sims 4, Sonic 2, and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2.

This isn't the first time GDQ has pulled together a charity event in the wake of a catastrophic weather event. Back in August 2017, the organization raised $225,000 for Hurricane Harvey relief through their weekend-long Harvey Relief Done Quick gaming marathon, which was announced right as the cyclone reached its peak intensity.

Hurricane Helene formed in late September 2024 and rapidly intensified to a Category 4 major hurricane, bringing intense flooding and dangerous weather across Georgia and the Carolinas. The death toll has since topped 200, making it the deadliest hurricane to affect the US since Hurricane Maria in 2017 and the deadliest to hit the continental United States since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Games Done Quick has a new owner, but he says the GDQ vibes aren't changing: "It's basically like a family get-together".

Jordan Gerblick

After scoring a degree in English from ASU, I worked as a copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. Now, as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer, I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my apartment, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.

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