Hogwarts Legacy speedruns banned by GDQ

The charity speedrunning event Games Done Quick (GDQ) has confirmed that no Hogwarts Legacy speedruns will be allowed for the foreseeable future.

As TheGamer reports, GDQ hasn’t specifically explained this decision - it’s simply added “Harry Potter Series, including Hogwarts Legacy” to its list of disallowed games in its submission guide. This guide states that all the games listed have “content, views, or an origin that we have deemed unsuitable for our stream”. For reference, other banned titles include God of War (2005) and the Huniepop series.

Although GDQ hasn’t stated if this has impacted its decision to ban Harry Potter games, many have been boycotting Hogwarts Legacy due to its association with author J.K. Rowling. Rowling has been criticised for making harmful comments about the trans community, and despite the fact that she wasn’t involved with the development of the game, she will profit from its sales.

Following the release of Hogwarts Legacy, some devs who worked on the game stated that they’ll be boycotting it, too, with one saying that “it is the least I can do as an ally”.

“Trans people do not deserve to have people like JKR grow and prosper,” realtime technician Parker Hartzler tweeted. “Any ammunition to the wrong side is damage to a society I would otherwise wish to see in the future. One where people are not discriminated against for their gender, sexuality, or any piece of their identity.”

Notably, the disallowed games list states that the ban on Harry Potter titles is “subject to further review in the future”, so there’s a chance that the organisers could change their minds, although it's not clear what would cause them to do so. Submissions for Summer GDQ open on 25 February and close on 7 March, so it seems unlikely that the rules will be altered before then.