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And with that smooth transition, allow me to present my ADGQ 2016 Awards.
NOTE: If the VoD links don’t work, it’s because the Games Done Quick YouTube channel updated/upgraded the VoD on the channel at the time of writing. If you go to their channel, you should be able to find any run listed here.
Miscellaneous Cool Runnings (because, in the end, my hype cannot be contained to just a few awards)
- Splatoon by Tones Balones — Splatoon is a neat game and the tricks you can do in it are similarly neat.
- Tony Hawk's Underground 2 [Classic Normal All Goals] by Plumato — Because watching Shrek do lightning fast skateboard tricks is hilarious.
- Azure Striker Gunvolt [Any% Speedrun Mode/All Stages] by Greenalink and Ajarmar — This game is ANIMU as all hell and that's a wonderful thing. Also, Mega Man-likes are cool.
- Shovel Knight [NG+ Plague] by TheTaiwanNinja and Munchakoopas — Shovel Knight is the best game ever and will always be mentioned in my reviews. ALWAYS.
- The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time / Master Quest [All Dungeons] by ZFG — There’s always a great OoT run. This is 2016’s.
- Pokemon Blue [Glitch Exhibition] by Shenanagans — Seeing Pokemon broken to pieces is never not fun.
- Diablo II: Lord of Destruction [D2:LOD Sorceress Any% Normal] by MrLlamaSC — I love the Diablo series and watching such an RNG-heavy run be performed is fantastic.
The Blue Controller Comedy Award for Most Hilarious Run
Winner — Animorphs by Keizaron — There are bad games, terrible games, and then there's Animorphs. Animorphs is both sleep-inducingly derivative and so broken that it is entirely unfair and nigh upon unbeatable. So what is there to gain by watching a “playthrough" of one of the worst games of all time? The answer is forty-five minutes of laughs produced by Keizaron and his hilarious couch crew. Seeing this game played (but not playing yourself) might be funny enough on its own, but the speedrunners who know it so well make it even funnier. Understanding why everything in the game fails in the way it does turns Animorphs from a tragedy to a laugh-riot, and it only gets better when the game starts defying even the runners’ well-informed expectations. If you’re looking for some speedrunning silliness to brighten up your day, pull up this video and you’ll be giggling in no time.
The Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition Award for Most Inspiring Run
Winner — Transformers: Devastation [Any% NG+ Prime Difficulty, 1-Handed] by Halfcoordinated — I cannot stress this enough: speedrunning is hard. Really hard. It requires hours and hours of practice and piles of dedication. As such, it’s awesome to see runners like Halfcoordinated representing the disabled gamer community with a badass run of the stylish and over-the-top Transformers: Devastation. With one-hand, Halfcoordinated absolutely dismantles the game on its highest difficulty setting. As he says during the run (and I’m almost certainly paraphrasing), “… nothing should get in the way of your gaming,” and he has the GDQ credits to prove that he practices what he preaches. Plus, anyone who solicits terrible donation puns throughout his run is an inspiration to me. Come to this run for the uplifting and impressive gameplay, stay for the superb style and the puerile puns.
The Proclaimers Memorial Award for Best Long Run
Honorable Mention — Pokémon Yellow: Special Pikachu Edition [any% glitchless] by Gunnermaniac3 — After seeing so many glitched Pokemon runs, a glitchless speedrun of the game is quite impressive. The Pokemon games are both large and present an incredible amount of options and randomness, so watching Gunnermaniac become a Pokemon Master with such efficiency is astounding. Any Pokemon fan will marvel at the depth of knowledge required to execute run like this, as well as the luck necessary to make it look so good. There’s a lot of nail-baiting RNG-potential throughout the entire run, but the corresponding tension and commentary makes this run well worth the time investment.
Winner — Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX [Any% Proud] by Zetris — Even without the arduous cutscenes, games in the Kingdom Hearts franchise tend to be exhaustingly long. Completing the Final Mix version of the game on the hardest difficulty in around three hours would seem impossible to me were it not for the evidence provided by ADGQ 2016’s Proud Mode Any% run. This awesome run kept me engrossed the entire time with the discussions about the speed tech and hidden mechanics in the game, the marvelous execution of Zetris in even the most trying situations, and the nostalgia evoked by every Kingdom Hearts scene, an incredible feat for one of the longest runs in the marathon.* Not only that, but the run’s now-traditional Disney sing-a-long actually provided more awe than cringe this year after several impressive performances (I was a big fan of Hercules’ “Go The Distance”).** Finally, while not a mandatory part of the run, the Sephiroth fight finale was superb to spectate, especially as someone who was never able to take down the bishie badass in my own playthrough. If you’ve got the time to spare, indulge in this speedrun of the best mashup game around.
* Not the longest, but more on that later.
** Don’t worry cringe fans, there’s still some of that.
The Ground Floor Award for The Most Awesome Innovation
Honorable Mention — TASBot plays Brain Age [x100] by micro500, xy2 — It’s hard to get tired of the antics of TASBot, but I’m to the point where I’m not as surprised by the insane glitches the TASers concoct with their scripting talents (even though they’re always awesome). Luckily, TASbot always creates something that's completely new and different, such as this year's TASBot Brain Age “run." If you know anything about Brain Age you probably have no idea what this run could be. Don’t guess; watch it. I can almost guarantee that it’s stranger and more whimsical than what you’re picturing.
Winner — Super Mario Maker [Custom Level Blind Race] by mitchflowerpower, area51, trihex, TheMexicanRunner, Dram55, bismuth, Andy, and linkdeadx2 — If you’ve followed gaming press in 2015 (or own a WiiU), I probably don’t have to introduce you to the wonders of Super Mario Maker. Many amateur level-designers can show off their creativity (read: sadism) in this level-making masterpiece and provide dedicated players with new experiences on a consistent basis. Yet I never could have imagined the awesomeness that Super Mario Maker could provide to events like AGDQ. On the one hand, a blind Super Mario Maker race prevents the audience from seeing one of the best parts of any speedrun: the dedication necessary to cut every corner and master every trick. However, it made up for this deficit in two ways. First, it shows viewers the improvisational skills and cooperative analytical powers of each team of Mario Maker runners. Second, it let us see the kinds of awesome challenges that skilled level designers can create in only a few days time. With this single run, fans of the GDQ events got to see two things they’d never seen on stream before.* That’s pretty incredible.
* I’m like… 87% sure that’s accurate.
The Jaw On The Floor Award for Most Amazing Video Game Playing I’ve Ever Seen
Honorable Mention — Kaizo Mario Bros. 3 by mitchflowerpower — Kaizo Mario Bros. 3 is what you get when you mix Mario with Saw: a seemingly-impossible obstacle course designed to kill whoever wanders in. Brutal platforming, complex puzzles, and sneaky tricks abound throughout each of the game’s eighteen sadistically-designed stages (not to mention end-of-level RNG for some added “fun"). It is a madhouse and it shows how cunningly the mechanics of the Mario franchise can be employed more than any other game (even Super Mario Maker). With that description, no one would want to invest the hours needed to complete this hellish game, much less speedrun it, right? If you’re actually asking that question, you don’t know speedrunners. Instead, mitchflowerpower makes a strong case for being the best Mario player in the world by running a game that would make normal players weep in frustration from the very start.
Winner — StepMania [Showcase] by Staiain — Every year, AGDQ shows me something so unexpectedly incredible that I don’t even know what to say about it. Last year, it was Tetris. TETRIS, of all things. Who could be amazed by Tetris?* My yearly surprise for 2016 came from a small showcase of a game called StepMania. I mean, why would I care for a game that’s basically DDR with your fingers? You can’t even make a real speedrun of that! Maybe you’re now wondering what could be special about StepMania. Do me a favor: stop wondering and go watch. It’s incredible. Just. Incredible. Even nothing else does, the StepMania showcase will have you believing in the Speed Force.
* Everyone. Go and look for yourself [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViwDUiCzPVU].
The Tastosis Award for Best Commentary
Honorable Mention — Ori and the Blind Forest [All Cells] by Grimelios and Ankamius — Ori and the Blind Forest is a beautiful and challenging game, and this run is a photo-finish race between two awesome runners. Yet what makes the run superlative is the commentary that ties it all together. Vulajin* and the rest of the couch do a great job to show why the game’s innovative mechanics make it really impressive in a speedrun setting. By the end of this race, you’ll know how tough an Ori and the Blind Forest run is, even though Grimelios and Ankamius make it look smooth and simple.
* Disclaimer: I’m a huge Vulajin fan**
** Double Disclaimer: You should be too.
Winner — Sonic Lost World [any% Wingless] by DarkSpinesSonic — For many (including myself once upon a time), AGDQ is the first speedrunning event they ever watch. While few gamers have trouble comprehending the basic ideas behind speedrunning, the subtle minutia of perfecting runs is more difficult to convey. That’s why runs like DarkSpinesSonic’s Sonic Lost World run are so essential to GDQ events. Without in-depth, consistent, and entertaining explanations of the runs that these dedicated gamers perform, the true beauty of speedrunning would be lost on casual followers such as myself. DarkSpinesSonic offers just this during his AGDQ 2016 performance, and it makes a game in which I’d otherwise have no interest very enjoyable.
The Mach 5 Award for the Best Speedrunning Race
Honorable Mention — Super Mario 64 [120 star] by Puncayshun, Cheese05, and Simply — Games like Super Mario 64 are tough for me to review. On one hand, extraordinarily popular games like SM64 are so “tried and true” in the speedrunning community that they are almost always a treat to watch. On the other hand, they’ve been around for so long and run so many times that some of the novelty is gone. There are years when a race this close and with this many notable events would be a clear favorite for Best Race, but not this year. Regardless, watching three of the greatest SM64 players do what they do best is immensely satisfying and the way this run plays out makes it a nail-biter until the very end. If you like Super Mario 64 (and so many of us do), then this run is 120/120% worth your time.
Winner — Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! [Blindfolded] by sinister1 and zallard1 — After AGDQ 2014, Mike Tyson’s Punch Out!! found its way into my heart. Not because of the nostalgic gameplay or presentation (because I’ve never played the game), but due to the incredible hype that arose during that year's Blindfolded run attempt. That moment was one of the greatest in AGDQ history, and it ended in a loss! Needless to say, I was pumped for another Blindfolded Punch Out!! run and even more excited when I saw it was a race. And what a race it was. Blindfolded races are even more tense and exciting than the rest of the GDQ speedrunning duels: the silence, the nervous commentary, the palpable wince from the crowd when a player’s plan doesn’t work out as expected. On top of all that, seeing Blindfolded runs reminds me just how great these runners are at their games of choice and how much they’ve invested into perfecting the titles they enjoy. I guarantee that this race is a true knock out!!
The Forrest Gump Award for the Best Run
Honorable Mention — Crypt of the Necrodancer [Coda All Zones] by SpootyBiscuit — Sometimes the best runs of an AGDQ are not the obvious ones. On the surface, the Crypt of the Necrodancer run is a rather short run through a rhythm game that included a rather large mistake halfway through. But to penalize this run based on the uninformed view of it does it an incredible disservice. First of all, Crypt of the Necrodancer is a singular roguelike with mechanics like no other game in a genre known to be incredibly punishing (especially in speedruns). Secondly, the mode that was being played has only been completed by TEN people ever. EVER. The fact that such a feat could even be reliably performed in a speedrun proves SpootyBiscuit’s sensational skills and how worthy this run is of praise. Go watch it. Rock out. It’s incredible.
Winner — The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask [4p co-op 100%] by fullgrowngaming, thiefbug, Trevperson, MajinPhil — When you’re looking for an incredible run at a GDQ event, you should always look for one of the 3D Zelda titles. Their runs range from fewer than twenty minutes to more than five hours and are incredibly entertaining either way. This year the best Zelda run was not of the beloved Ocarina of Time, but it’s incredible follow-up, Majora’s Mask. Anyone who has played the strange, dark game knows that a full completion requires a lot of time and effort, even in the scope of the expansive Zelda adventures. Furthermore, the game’s unique three-day cycle forces casual players to reset over and over again to just get through the game, much less 100% it. In defiance of everything I understand about games, this incredible Majora’s Mask run requires only four cycles. FOUR. How is something so absurd possible? You’ll just have to watch and find out. The length may by intimidating, but the four runners on the couch keep the commentary consistent, informative, and enjoyable.
Let me know what your favorite AGDQ 2016 runs were as well! And, as always, shoutout to reddit’s /u/suudo for the always helpful AGDQ VoD Thread!
You can see some of my love of speedruns and a bunch of other stuff over at the N3rd Dimension!
Well done. Can agree with most of the other rankings aswell ( apart from those I didn't watch of course) 
