Speed Demos Archive
| Speed Demos Archive | |
 | |
| Owner | Nolan "Radix" Pflug |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | SDA |
| Location |  United States |
| Website | http://speeddemosarchive.com |
| http://twitter.com/sdaspeedruns | |
| http://facebook.com/pages/Spe... | |
| Youtube | http://youtube.com/user/Speed... |
| Stream | http://www.twitch.tv/team/sda |
Speed Demos Archive, abbreviated SDA, is a website and community dedicated to speedruns. Their focus is providing people with high quality speedrun videos, and has over 750 games currently in their database with more being added on a regular basis. SDA also hosts two annual charity marathons, Awesome Games Done Quick and Summer Games Done Quick. Additionally, they have hosted Classic Games Done Quick and Japan Relief Done Quick.
Overview
Speed Demos Archive began as a demo archive of Quake playthroughs, and was formed by Nolan "Radix" Pflug of Pittburgh, Pennsylvania. After the success of his 100% Metroid Prime speedrun, Radix expanded SDA to include other games. In 2006, Miku Uyama took over as the site's administrator. In 2010, SDA hosted Classic Games Done Quick, its first charity marathon, raising over ten thousand dollars for CARE.
History
As of October 2013, SDA hosts videos of 936 games. The site includes videos of popular games such as Mega Man, Metroid, and The Legend of Zelda. The site has been featured numerous times in publications such as Electronic Gaming Monthly and G4tv's Attack of the Show!.
Submissions to SDA undergo a verification process, where community members who are familiar with a game watch a run and verify the run's quality, and make sure it follows SDA's rules. Each run is reviewed by multiple verifiers, who report back to the site's staff; the staff then makes the final decision on whether or not to accept the run.
Rules
SDA accepts speedruns in three categories:
- Segmented, where the run is done in multiple parts using the in-game save system..
- Single-segment, where the entire game is beaten from start to finish in a single sitting.
- Single-segment with resets; as the name implies, this category is similar to single-segment runs, but resets are allowed.
SDA accepts runs following three different completion requirements: any%, where the game is beaten as fast as possible; the 100% run, where the player gets everything and finishes the game; and the low% run, where the player beats the game with the lowest completion percentage possible.
Runs must be performed on their native consoles or on certain PC/Mac configurations; runs on emulators are not allowed. In-game glitches and exploits are allowed. Modifications to the game, console or controller are not allowed. Glitches that are triggered as a result of messing with the console while the game is running, like the crooked cartridge trick in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, are not allowed.
Runs are required to be recorded using direct-feed capture, usually using a capture card or DVD recorder. In some cases, runs can be rejected for poor video quality.
Charity marathons
The SDA community began their first charity marathon in January 2010, titled Classic Games Done Quick. Both direct-feed gameplay footage and webcam footage of the runners were live-streamed on SDA's homepage. The marathon was a success, raising over $10,000 for CARE. Starting in 2011, SDA began two annual marathons: Awesome Games Done Quick during the winter, and Summer Games Done Quick during the summer. Each marathon has become substantially more successful than its last iteration, with the January 2012 marathon raising $149,000 for the Prevent Cancer Foundation.
In April 2011, following the Great East Japan Earthquake, SDA put together a marathon titled Japan Relief Done Quick. JRDQ raised $25,000 for Doctors Without Borders.
During the marathons, a widget is placed beneath the streaming video, which visually displays how much has been donated so far, and which allows people watching the runs to donate money directly to the charity through a PayPal account. Prizes are available throughout the marathon; all donors with a donation of $5 or more are entered into a raffle for the prizes.
On the 24th January 2013, it was announced that Awesome Games Done Quick 2013's donation total had reached $448,423, becoming the most successful single gaming charity marathon at the time.
List of marathons
| Marathon | Dates | Games | Charity | Donations | Grand prize | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Classic Games Done Quick | 1–3 January 2010 | 72 | CARE | $10,531.64 | N/A | SDA's first marathon |
| Awesome Games Done Quick 2011 | 6–11 January 2011 | 98 | Prevent Cancer Foundation | $52,519.83 | N/A | |
| Japan Relief Done Quick | 7–10 April 2011 | 67 | Doctors Without Borders | $25,800.33 | PC game pack | Emergency marathon to support victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake |
| Summer Games Done Quick 2011 | 4–6 August 2011 | 46 | Organization for Autism Research | $21,396.76 | Nintendo 3DS with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D | |
| Awesome Games Done Quick 2012 | 4–9 January 2012 | 107 | Prevent Cancer Foundation | $149,044.99 | Replica Master Sword | |
| Summer Games Done Quick 2012 | 24–28 May 2012 | 74 | Organization for Autism Research | $46,278.99 | Wii bundle | |
| Awesome Games Done Quick 2013 | 6–12 January 2013 | 128 | Prevent Cancer Foundation | $448,423.27 | Wii U bundle, Squall's gunblade | At the time, most successful single gaming charity marathon ever |
| Summer Games Done Quick 2013 | 25–30 July 2013 | 90 | Doctors Without Borders | $255,160.62 | Hitbox arcade PS3/PC stick, Nintendo 3DS XL | |
| Awesome Games Done Quick 2014 | 5–11 January 2014 | 139 | Prevent Cancer Foundation | $1,006,906.26 | Limited Edition Majora's Mask bundle, Nes Pc, Stain-Glass Golden Green Hyliam Crest | Most successful charity marathon |
