A new year on the calendar means it's almost time for another speedrunning spectacle, as Awesome Games Done Quick 2025 is set to begin this Sunday. The marathon will be streamed on Twitch from the Wyndham Grand in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As usual, donations can be made to the Prevent Cancer Foundation throughout the marathon via the Games Done Quick website, with prizes given away to a lucky few donors as the week progresses.

How to watch AGDQ 2025

The entirety of AGDQ 2025 can be viewed on the official Games Done Quick Twitch channel, with streaming scheduled to begin at 8:30 AM PT / 11:30 AM ET on Sunday, January 5. As runs finish up, the GDQ YouTube channel uploads each individual run within hours of completion, so you will be able to catch up on specific runs you might have missed.

AGDQ 2025 schedule highlights

AGDQ 2025 will run continuously January 5-12, with a continuous schedule of speedruns designed to take place one right after the other (with a short break in between). While the full schedule is available on the event website, below we have listed a few events--and their starting times--which have us particularly excited, whether it's the first run for a game at an event like this or it's an old retro game that we love seeing get torn apart. Someone is playing Elden Ring using a saxophone--and honestly, after a dog hit a Super Nintendo walk-off home run last summer, a jazzy Elden Ring run could be the perfect wacky follow-up.

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If you've ever wondered about your skill level in Call of Duty, you now have a way to find out. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 players have discovered a way to get Activision to provide their previously hidden SBMM ratings, and it's really easy.

TheXclusiveAce has shared the method on his YouTube channel, which lays out the simple steps to get your personalized SBMM report going back to 2021's Call of Duty: Vanguard. As noted by TheXclusiveAce, each report includes some highly personal data including your IP address, so think twice before sharing it unedited.

To get access, the first step is to visit Activision's privacy page and login to your Activision account. TheXclusiveAce also mentioned that he had to login to his PSN account as well. After that, submit a personal information access request. Prior to the video above, the wait time was around a day before Activision e-mailed the file out. But since this method is now widely known, there may be additional delays.

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Amazon has started canceling preorders for the Nintendo 3DS version of Mighty No. 9, a game that was released almost 10 years ago. Developed by Comcept and former Capcom producer Keiji Inafune, Mighty No. 9 was billed as a spiritual successor to Mega Man.

According to a BlueSky user, Amazon UK sent a notification to them saying that their preorder for Mighty No. 9 on Nintendo 3DS was canceled due to the lack of availability. Surprisingly, this user placed the order in 2022, indicating that people were still able to preorder this version of Mighty No. 9 years after it came out on other platforms.

Mighty No. 9 was funded via Kickstarter and became one of the most infamous funding campaigns in video game history. The 3DS and PS Vita versions were added as stretch goals for the campaign if it hit $3.5 million, which it ended up reaching.

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Marvel Rivals developer NetEase has apologized to rightfully pissed-off players who were unfairly banned for cheating. The problem is even though they were not using cheating software, this resulted in false bans. NetEase failed to say how many.

NetEase said (via IGN) that it admitted it had mistakenly flagged some players who were playing in compatibility layer programs as cheaters. "We sincerely apologize for this situation and want to assure you that we do not and will not ban players who are playing fairly and without cheating," NetEase said. "We have identified the specific reasons behind these false bans and have compiled a list of affected players. We have lifted these bans and want to express our heartfelt apologies for the inconvenience this has caused."

NetEase continued that it is investing in improving its anti-cheat, and called on players to report cheaters if they encounter them.

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New Lego Sets

Over 100 new Lego sets released on January 1

Check them out at Amazon

More than 100 Lego sets released January 1, including 10 new additions to the expansive Marvel lineup. If you have a big collection of Marvel Lego sets or MCU collectibles in general, the most notable new set might be the 931-piece Marvel Logo building kit, which could be a centerpiece to your collection. Lego also added to its lineup of mech figures with larger-than-life Spider-Man and Iron Man kits, each of which is priced at only $15.

New Marvel Lego Sets

• Lego Marvel - Marvel Logo & Minifigures (931 Pieces) -- $100
• Lego Marvel - Captain America: Civil War Action Battle (736 pieces) -- $100
• Lego Marvel - Spider-Verse: Miles Morales vs. The Spot (375 pieces) -- $50
• Lego Marvel - Spider-Man Mech vs. Anti-Venom (107 pieces) -- $15
• Lego Marvel - Iron Man Mech vs. Ultron (101 pieces) -- $15
• Lego Marvel - Spider-Man vs. Venom Muscle Car (254 pieces) -- $30
• Lego Marvel - Iron Man and Black Panther vs. Red Hulk (295 pieces) -- $35
• Lego Marvel - Spidey and Gobby's Raptor Battle at Tree House HQ (143 pieces) -- $55
• Lego Marvel - Team Spidey Dino Crawler Rescue (136 pieces) -- $30
• Lego Marvel - Spider-Man Spin and Electro Dinosaur Vehicle Chase (124 pieces) -- $20

Shop Marvel Lego Sets at Amazon

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According to a veteran video game industry analyst, 2025 could be the year that Microsoft goes "all-in" on bringing its Xbox games to other platforms, including PlayStation 5. Microsoft, of course, has already begun to launch some games on rival platforms, but Serkan Toto of Kantan Games believes Microsoft will lean further into that this year.

Toto told GI.biz that Microsoft may opt to do this for a variety of reasons, including helping to pay for its massive buyout of Activision Blizzard and the "huge lead" of PlayStation in the market.

"2025 might be the year where they go all-in," Toto said. "The $69 billion Activision Blizzard deal, rising costs across the board, the power of forever-titles, the huge lead of Sony, and other factors will likely leave Microsoft no choice but to bring all their big games to PS5 early, including blockbusters such as Gears of War: E-Day or Perfect Dark."

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Jim Carrey says he's open to returning to the Sonic franchise for future films, including Sonic 4, according to a recent interview with Japanese YouTube channel Cinema Today.

"I'm definitely open," Carrey said of returning to the role. "I'm open to the idea, and generally, they come to me with the next idea, and if I go, 'That sounds fun,' then I'll do it. I don’t feel locked to anything in life, unless it's something that interests me."

Carrey has played the role of mustachioed baddie Doctor Ivo Robotnik in all of the live-action Sonic films, including the recently released Sonic The Hedgehog 3. The most recent entry in the series also saw Carrey portray Doctor Robotnik's grandfather, Gerald.

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A Missouri man was busted by cops after getting caught driving 107mph while playing video games behind the wheel, authorities said.

The Claycomo Police Department said in a release that the man, who was not identified, was doing 107mph in a 65mph zone on I-35 in Missouri. "The driver was playing a video game, yes, a video game, while driving 107mph," authorities said. The man also had a suspended license.

"Apparently he was so distracted he didn't see our motor officer in the lane ahead of him. We forgot to ask if he was playing NASCAR, but we'll assume," the police said.

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