SGDQ 2019 Overview

Hey everyone. I just got back from Summer Games Done Quick (SGDQ) and I'm back home safe and sound. Just like last year I have some things to talk about as far as the whole experience goes. This is going to be a bit lengthy so let's jump into it!

So first and foremost, the KH3 run went fantastically. I was well prepared, but still had anxiety performing on stage for the 2nd time (If I could do Level 1 KH1 last year then this should have been easy, but I just get like this). Especially since I was the lead of the run, I wanted to make a good first impression with my portion of early game. Most important things went well, such as getting leg skip on rock titan, 2nd try gummi boss skip and Grim Guardianess getting destroyed by Ralph. I can definitely say it wasn't the early game I was hoping for since I know there were quite a few bumpy parts, but nothing went horribly wrong which is all that matters in a marathon setting. But I was blown away at how well Crispy and Ninten did during their portions. This was their first run at a GDQ and they knocked it out of the park. Most mistakes that came from the later portions of the run were so minor they aren't even worth mentioning. I'm very proud of them for being able to execute in a high-pressure scenario like a GDQ run. To be honest I probably had the weakest third out of all of us, but that isn't a bad thing. I'm so glad they got to showcase their skills during the run and I couldn't have asked for it to have gone much better. We were hoping for a time that was sub 2:50 and ended up getting a 2:46. Insanely good time for a marathon run of KH3. Not to mention Ninten first-trying Dark Inferno at Level 1 (and Biz carrying the commentary since I knew nothing about the fight LOL), amazing closure to an amazing run. It was an honor to work with other incredible runners and I'm thankful to have been a part of it.

As far as the event itself, it was extremely enjoyable. I hung out with my squad Dajman27, Waldens and SPTspoon at on offsite place near the event hotel (which was MUCH better than what we did last year, we don't talk about it). There was a commute that had to be made back and forth, but we had a car to go pretty much everywhere so it was worth it. The area was the same as last year so nothing new to talk about, went to the obvious spots like the Mall of America and things like that. Played board games, went mini-golfing and so on and so forth for the week. The best part about GDQ however, is hanging out with speedfriends both new and old. This has been my third GDQ that I've attended now and it almost felt like a culmination of each one I went to previously. There was a combination of people I met this year, last year and even a few I hadn't seen since AGDQ 2016 (the first one I went to and then didn't come back for 2 years). We had some of the biggest representation from the Kingdom Hearts Speedrun Community at this particular GDQ and it was amazing to see that. One thing I will always hold with me with this community is how friendly everyone is and just fun to be around. There was never a dull moment when I hung around those close to me. To anyone reading this, even if I didn't get to see you much during the event because I'm so bad at prioritizing, it was a joy to see you and I hope to see you again very soon!

One thing I do wish I had done better is not wait until the last minute to try and meet everyone. Most people I wanted to meet at the event I did get the chance to talk to for at least a decent amount of time. However there are still some people I didn't get to see and it was mostly because I was too focused on the KH3 run on Thursday (because then there were only around two and a half days left at the event). GDQ is the opportunity to break away from the community you originate from and meet new people, but I still find myself having a hard time introducing myself to people I'm not as familiar with. If there is anything to improve upon, it is stepping out of my comfort zone and saying "Hi" to anyone I recognize (as long as they aren't super busy and whatnot). You're only there for a week at most twice a year, if you don't get in everything you want to do then you have at least a six month waiting period to try again (even longer if you don't make the next event). I'm going to strive at every future event I go to whether it be GDQ or anything I haven't gone to yet like RPGLimitBreak, to break down these walls and just have a friendly introduction to those. On the flip side to this, I also ran into a few people at the event who recognized me from my streams and it made me so happy to branch even closer to my community than before. One big thing I want to stress is that if you ever see me at an event, DO NOT hesitate to call out to me because I would LOVE to talk to anyone while I'm there.

Now to bring up something probably nobody really thought about. I never really talked about this to anyone while I was there because it may have ruined other people's time, but there were moments I felt like I shouldn't have been there. 2019 has been a bit of a rough time for me the last few months just with how some personal things are going and part of me worried I could indirectly rub that off on people. I felt homesick literally on the first night and was questioning if it was worth it to be at GDQ again, am I going to represent the KH speedrun community well, am I going to be worth people's time and all that other nonsense (I still don't get why I think that way sometimes). My mental state wasn't the best 2 months ago and was slowly improving these last few weeks, but I was so worried I would have a break down out of nowhere and scare people. I was going back and forth on the first few days from being happy and being indecisive.

But as it stands, literally the opposite happened. I forgot how welcoming everyone at this event was in the year I was gone and it was honestly the thing I needed the most. I'm more inspired to reach out and hook up with people I haven't talked to a lot in the last year and my entire mindset has changed for the better. So on a personal front, thank you so much. I was honestly worried I was on the brink of a mental breakdown the day I was flying to the event, but I can push that aside and remind myself that I should never feel that way again.

Regardless, everyone I saw at SGDQ made this a week to remember just like last year. I loved having all of your company despite the amount of time we actually hung out. Thanks for keeping my spirits up, I hope I did the same for you.

I will do my best to make it AGDQ 2020. As it stands I should be able to make it, but just like last year things could come up and not allow me to go. On back of this event and how my personal life is going for me now, I would say it is much more likely I'll make this coming AGDQ compared to last year. If you plan on going to that one, I look forward to seeing you in January!

Streams should return the day after I post this pastebin. My current plans are to do the Trifecta Any% run of KH1, 2 and 3 and then primarily focus on running KH2 for a decent bit (with some KH1 as well). I have no major goals I want to do with KH3 post trifecta run as of right now, so I'm putting it down for now (but I will probably be back to it at a later time). I'm very excited to get back into streaming and make the rest of 2019 the best it can be! Whether you have known me for a while or have found me recently, whether we talk all the time or barely at all, whether we are from the same speedrun communities or not, I love you all and I will speak to you all again soon.

Thank you for everything,

Mistmaster1