Speedrunning enthusiasts are gearing up for a thrilling four-day marathon as Games Done Quick (GDQ) launches its Back to Black 2026 event starting tomorrow. The charity-driven speedrunning extravaganza is being spearheaded by the team at Black in a Flash, with all proceeds going towards Race Forward, a nonprofit organization dedicated to combating systemic racism across communities.
Titled Back to Black, this event marks a timely nod to Black History Month and serves as a platform to celebrate the remarkable prowess of the Black speedrunning community. Earlier teasers hinted at an impressive lineup of games, including speedruns for Hades II, Donkey Kong Country, and Silent Hill 4 – but fans will have plenty more reason to get excited with the full schedule.
From February 5 to February 8, viewers can tune in live on GDQ's Twitch and YouTube channels to witness these incredibly skilled players tackle an assortment of challenging titles. On February 5, co-op run through Plants vs Zombies: Replanted will kick off proceedings, followed by an Any% run of The Barbie Diaries: High School Mystery on February 6.
With the speedrunning world coming together in support of a worthy cause, Back to Black 2026 promises to be a truly unforgettable experience for fans.
Titled Back to Black, this event marks a timely nod to Black History Month and serves as a platform to celebrate the remarkable prowess of the Black speedrunning community. Earlier teasers hinted at an impressive lineup of games, including speedruns for Hades II, Donkey Kong Country, and Silent Hill 4 – but fans will have plenty more reason to get excited with the full schedule.
From February 5 to February 8, viewers can tune in live on GDQ's Twitch and YouTube channels to witness these incredibly skilled players tackle an assortment of challenging titles. On February 5, co-op run through Plants vs Zombies: Replanted will kick off proceedings, followed by an Any% run of The Barbie Diaries: High School Mystery on February 6.
With the speedrunning world coming together in support of a worthy cause, Back to Black 2026 promises to be a truly unforgettable experience for fans.
! Speedrunners are literally the most talented people ever, and it's awesome that they're coming together for a good cause 
. I mean, who wouldn't want to watch some dude run through Hades II in like 10 minutes 
? The lineup looks crazy good and I'm super excited to see the co-op runs 
. It's also really cool that it's supporting Race Forward – they're doing such important work 
. Can't wait to tune in tomorrow and binge some speedrunning goodness 
. And it's all for a good cause too - supporting Race Forward in their fight against systemic racism... it just warms my heart 
. I'm planning on tuning in live with my friends during lunch breaks at school 
. We can't wait to see the speedrunners crush it and raise awareness for such an important issue 
The lineup looks insane too - I'm particularly hyped to see those Donkey Kong Country and Silent Hill 4 speedruns. I've been following this event for years, and it's always awesome to see the speedrunning community come together like this. Can't wait to tune in tomorrow and get my game on! 
. i'm definitely tuning in live on the 5th to watch that co-op run of plants vs zombies: replanted - can't wait to see how fast those speedrunners can blast their way through it 
! I mean, who needs therapy when you have Speedrunners running marathons... err, I mean speedrunning games? 
And the best part? It's all about raising cash for a great cause - combating systemic racism? That's what I call a "game-changer" 
And what's with all the fuss over Games Done Quick, anyway? Can't they just play some old-school games without making a big deal out of it? I dunno, maybe I'm just being skeptical, but I think these events are just a bunch of hype... 
but seriously, it's amazing that they're using GDQ to raise money for Race Forward - it's such an important cause 
. I'm definitely tuning in from Feb 5-8 to watch some of these incredible runs go down! 
but seriously, speedrunning is insane these ppl can finish games in like, seconds 
