‘Hogwarts Legacy’ given the boot from gaming’s biggest speedrunning charity, but it might not be permanent

wegotthiscovered.com:

Games Done Quick, the world’s largest video gaming speedrunning charity event, has announced that it currently is not accepting submissions from those attempting to speedrun the newly released Hogwarts Legacy or any other Harry Potter-related games at present per its current submissions guidelines. The new Guidelines were not in place prior to January 6.

GDQ currently disallows a number of games from competition in its charity events. While no reason had been expressly stated by GDQ at this time, adult themes and controversy certainly seem to be at least some of the concerns. The Potter franchise was long understood to be “family-friendly,” but Hogwarts Legacy has found itself under scrutiny before and after its release earlier this month due to Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling’s transphobic statements and behaviors.

GDQ has been hosting speedrunning charity events since 2010 and its popularity has grown exponentially every year since. Its streaming events are among the most-viewed streams on Twitch and have raised over $34 million for charities ranging from Doctors Without Borders and the Prevent Cancer Foundation. Just this year Awesome Games Done Quick 2023 raised $2.6m for the Prevent Cancer Foundation.

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However, for now, the ban doesn’t seem to be permanent. Yet. Hogwarts Legacy‘s status is currently “subject to further review in the future” according to GDQ’s submission guidelines. Horror video game Five Nights at Freddy’s is also apparently under the same strictures — currently forbidden but subject to review. It is not currently known what a future review would entail or how long it will take but it is likely the proscription will keep moth games out of GDQ