For the first time ever Awesome Games Done Quick, the huge annual speedrunning charity event where players compete to set world records in crafty ways, will have a dog compete onstage. I suppose this is the logical culmination of speedrunning.
On Tuesday, speedrunner JSR announced in a YouTube video that his Shiba Inu, Peanut Butter, will play Nintendo’s 1985 strange puzzle-action NES game Gyromite at AGDQ 2024 in January. All Peanut Butter will have to do is follow his owner’s command and press colored platforms on a custom-built controller that open and close gates and move platforms. What could possibly go wrong?
Peanut Butter’s task in the Gyromite run is to basically take the place of R.O.B. the infamous Robotic Operating Buddy that shipped with certain versions of the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1985. Like Peanut Butter now hopes to, R.O.B. ostensibly served as a second player who would assist gamers in playing the two games the accessory supported, Gyromite and Stack-Up. The only difference is that R.O.B. isn’t a cute doggo who gets treats for being a gamer while single-handedly (?) bringing Gyromite back into the mainstream.
Check out Peanut Butter’s hype-AF announcement trailer:
This won’t be Peanut Butter’s first time playing Gyromite for an audience. Back in July, JSR uploaded a video of Peanut Butter’s first speedrun attempt. It took the gamer doge 25 minutes and 29 seconds to beat the game. Eat your heart out, Air Bud.
Read More: Awesome Games Done Quick 2023 Makes $2.6 Million For Cancer Charity
“This took years of training,” JSR wrote in the description of Peanut Butter’s initial Gyromite speedrun. “I wanted to train him to do something special, when I realized as a puppy that he was much smarter than most other dogs I’ve seen. Since I’m a speedrunner and PB was literally named after getting a ‘P’ [personal best] in a speedrun it only made sense to me.”
I think I speak for all of us in wishing Peanut Butter good luck in becoming the world’s best Gyromite player.