SGDQ 2022, the seven-day-long speedrun marathon, continued today with a full 24 hours of speedy entertainment. After a satisfying opening day, SGDQ 2022 pressed onward with more charitable streaming, this time with an emphasis on iconic retro games. Including some 16-bit and 8-bit classics and a few early 3D gems, SGDQ 2022 day two had a roster of excellent speedruns to binge.
If you’re looking for an exciting speedrun to watch from SGDQ 2022 day two, we’ve picked some of our favorites for you to check out. As we were unable to watch every run of the day, there are undoubtedly many we missed, so we consider these picks as a starting point. With that said, here are our picks for the best speedruns of SGDQ 2022 day two!
The Best Speedruns of SGDQ 2022 Day 2
To watch replays of these speedruns (and the rest of SGDQ 2022 day two), you can find videos on the GamesDoneQuick YouTube channel and Twitch VODs. We’ll do our best to update this article with videos and links as they become available!
Perfect Dark (Special Agent All Missions) by Zero_IF
We have a soft spot for this classic N64 FPS developed by Rare, which plays like a sci-fi Goldeneye 007, with futuristic weapons and levels. In this All Missions run, played on Special Agent difficulty, runner Zero_IF showed off their skill, completing extra objectives and dodging deadly bullets. Despite a single death (which wasn’t really the runner’s fault anyhow), Zero_IF pulled off an excellent run, which showcases the post-game challenge missions as well. Thanks to the smooth frame rate of the Xbox 360 port, watching this speedrun was a perfect way to relive the magic of Perfect Dark.
Final time: 51:12
Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back (100%) by Potty
Between the Spyro the Dragon speedrun on day one and this Crash Bandicoot 2 run today, SGDQ 2022 has done a great job highlighting the challenging platformers of Sony’s PlayStation. Playing this vivid sequel, runner Potty performed admirably, executing dangerous jumps onto deceptively hard-to-see platforms, all while spinning to victory. There aren’t a ton of glitches in this speedrun, so it was a treat to see Potty blaze through the linear levels and pick up every extra collectible in the game.
Final time: 1:14:49
Super Bonk (Any%) by LeadOstrich
Another wonderful early-morning speedrun from SGDQ 2022 day two was LeadOstrich’s Any% run of Super Bonk, the woefully underrated SNES platformer. This charming adventure sees caveman protagonist Bonk working through a variety of sidescrolling levels, including a forest filled with dinosaurs and even crumbling ruins on the moon. LeadOstrich displayed a mastery of Super Bonk‘s movement tech, utilizing every power-up and warp token possible. The fun bosses and chill commentary made this another retro speedrun from SGDQ 2022 day two that’s worth checking out.
Final time: 25:22
Ninja Gaiden (Any%) by The Retro Runner
Without a doubt, Ninja Gaiden is one of the hardest games of all time. This NES classic has enemies and levels seemingly designed to punish the player with frustrating pitfalls and unfair deaths. It was an absolute pleasure to watch The Retro Runner demolish this endlessly infuriating title in just over 10 minutes, making minimal mistakes during the brief run. If you only have a few minutes to watch some speedruns, we highly recommend checking out this Ninja Gaiden run, as it was one of the most impressive showings of the game in GDQ history.
Final time: 11:44
Super Castlevania 4 (Low% Race) by Crunan and DrunkenDraconian
Speedrun races are a joy to watch, especially when you have two runners of immense skill who offer significant competition. That was the case with this race of Super Castlevania 4, as both runners Crunan and DrunkenDraconian wowed us with their abilities in the challenging SNES action title. In the Low% category, runners cannot collect any items other than health replenishment and a few potions, leaving no sub-weapons or upgrades to fall back on. Narrowly dodging enemies and occasionally falling prey to the difficulty, we loved watching these runners exchange their leads, resulting in an exciting sprint to the finish.
Final time: 41:38
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (2019) (Any% Glitchless Race) by TGH and Glan
Speaking of great speedrun races from SGDQ 2022 day two, runners TGH and Glan offered an engaging duel in 2019 remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening for Nintendo Switch. Showcasing the Glitchless category, both runners raced from dungeon to dungeon in this cutesy and colorful top-down adventure. With minimal glitches and informative commentary, it’s an easy run to follow, providing a relaxed vibe. Even so, TGH and Glan were neck-and-neck for the entirety of the race, leading up to a decisive boss fight with surprising results.
Final time: 1:40:32
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City – Definitive Edition (Any% No SSU) by KZ_FREW
When Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – Definitive Edition came out last year, we were taken aback by its enormous amount of bugs and odd developmental choices. After recently playing through this buggy remake, it was vindicating to see runner KZ_FREW dominate Vice City in under an hour. As always, KZ_FREW is a delight to watch, offering energetic commentary with affable flair. Due to the removal of the replay feature seen in the original game, the “definitive” version has a notably unique route which shows off more missions and other wacky changes. In signature GTA spirit, this run contains plenty of chaos and reckless violence, but it’s the humorous commentary and fantastic motorcycle tricks that earns this run a spot on our list.
Final time: 58:13
Silent Hill 4: The Room (Any%) by AnEternalEnigma
The horror block is growing tradition at GDQ marathons and we absolutely love it. Due to a schedule change, we got to enjoy this run of Silent Hill 4: The Room a bit earlier than expected, acting as an excellent closer for SGDQ 2022 day two. With a wonderful crew of commentators along for the ride, AnEternalEnigma guided us through this creepy, experimental entry in the beloved horror franchise. Despite the creepy vibes, the runner and commentators raised the mood by poking fun at both themselves and the game’s idiosyncrasies. The mixture of horror gameplay, lighthearted commentary, and interesting strategies made this one of our favorite speedruns in the horror block.
Final time: 1:03:38
By the end of day two, the donation total for SGDQ 2022 has already reached the $295,000 mark. That’s double the total of day one, with the marathon raising over $160,000 on day two alone. It’s always wonderful to see the generosity of the GDQ community, especially this early in the week. We hope the trend continues and that SGDQ 2022 hits a new donation total record, smiting the previous $3.14 million.
Thanks for checking out our list of the best speedruns from SGDQ 2022 day two! Follow us on Twitter (@official90skid) for our live reactions to all the runs and be sure to check back throughout SGDQ 2022 for more of our daily recaps. Enjoy the marathon!
