Viewership Analysis of AGDQ 2020, 2021, and 2022

Another year another Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ) in the bag. AGDQ is a yearly video game speedrunning charity event organized by Games Done Quick, LLC. Games Done Quick is separated into 2 different categories, AGDQ which occurs each January, and Summer Games Done Quick (SGDQ), which occurs anywhere between late May and early August. AGDQ raises money for the Prevent Cancer Foundation while SGDQ raises money for Doctors Without Borders. There have also been several special Games Done Quick events either as impromptu disaster relief fundraising, or purely celebratory events.

AGDQ 2022 reportedly had the highest donation amount raised for any Games Done Quick event in history with $3,439,822.85, beating out AGDQ 2020's record of $3,164,002. We've pulled the viewership data for the past 3 AGDQ events (2020, 2021, and 2022) and we'll be looking at any noticeable trends or interesting tidbits. We'll also be looking at which games were the most popular each year by ranking them through their Average Concurrent Viewership (ACV). We would normally rank by total hours watched, but some games were completed too quickly for total hours watched to be a viable ranking mechanism.

Let's get into it!

AGDQ 2020

AGDQ 2020 was the last Games Done Quick event with a live audience, as the Covid-19 lockdown was implemented just 2 months later. As mentioned above, AGDQ 2020 held the previous donation record of $3,164,002. The stat breakdown for AGDQ 2020 (all languages) is as follows:

Total Viewer Hours: 19,639,344
ACV: 20,473
Peak Viewers: 236,157
Hours Streamed: 959

A further breakdown of AGDQ 2020's total viewer hours by language (non-English languages are from re-streams):

English: 17,343,482
French: 662,343
Japanese: 448,648
Russian: 326,604
Spanish: 324,567
German: 268,375
Portuguese: 265,325

The 3 most popular games (by ACV) during AGDQ 2020 were:

1. The Binding of Isaac

ACV: 47,509
Peak Viewership: 166,604

2. Super Mario Maker 2

ACV: 40,282
Peak Viewership: 236,157

3. The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

ACV: 39,136
Peak Viewership: 216,980

AGDQ 2021

Being the first Games Done Quick to occur during lockdown, AGDQ 2021 had an entirely different vibe than previous events. With no live audience, the energy of the crowd was sorely missed by many speedrunners. AGDQ 2021 also had a lower total donation amount than AGDQ 2020 at $2,739,612, but still higher than AGDQ 2019. The stat breakdown for AGDQ 2021 (all languages) is as follows:

Total Viewer Hours: 16,041,139
ACV: 15,159
Peak Viewers: 141,291
Hours Streamed: 1,058

A further breakdown of AGDQ 2021's total viewer hours by language (non-English languages are from re-streams):

English: 13,040,153
French: 880,024
Japanese: 595,523
German: 484,334
Portuguese: 387,897
Spanish: 364,205
Russian: 289,003

The 3 most popular games (by ACV) during AGDQ 2021 were:

1. Sonic the Hedgehog 3

ACV: 33,960
Peak Viewership: 124,180

2. Super Mario Bros. 3

ACV: 26,381
Peak Viewership: 116,403

3. Tony Hawk's Underground 2

ACV: 26,035
Peak Viewership: 126,203

AGDQ 2022

Finally, we arrive at the most recent AGDQ. AGDQ 2022 had the lowest total viewer hours, ACV, and peak viewership of the past 3 main events, but still set the record for highest donations. One speculation for the decline in overall viewership is that many viewers enjoy watching crowd reactions to the insane mechanical skill of the speedrunners. Without that same energy, viewers might only tune in for shorter periods of time, while still donating the same amount. Another interesting tidbit is that both Japanese and German re-stream viewership has increased each year, while English has decreased. The stat breakdown for AGDQ 2022 (all languages) is as follows:

Total Viewer Hours: 14,009,575
ACV: 12,635
Peak Viewers: 113,011
Hours Streamed: 1,109

A further breakdown of AGDQ 2022's total viewer hours by language (non-English languages are from re-streams):

English: 11,555,891
German: 798,642
Japanese: 613,868
French: 539,523
Spanish: 279,339
Russian: 143,851
Portuguese: 78,462

The 3 most popular games (by ACV) during AGDQ 2021 were:

1. Crash Team Racing

ACV: 19,932
Peak Viewership: 113,011

2. Halo: Combat Evolved

ACV: 18,989
Peak Viewership: 113,177

3. Chicory: A Colorful Tale

ACV: 18,982
Peak Viewership: 105,194

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