The music of video games has evolved considerably since the early years of the arcade boom and the home console movement. What were once jaunty little songs that looped in the background of a game are now full orchestral suites written to heighten tension and invoke emotion in players. For gamers the music has always been an integral part of the game experience. What would Super Mario Bros or The Legend of Zelda be like without their signature melodies? The Video Games Live concert series is a celebration of the music in video games. The songs are performed by a full orchestra with corresponding video footage and the result is a fantastic tribute. As part of the first E for All gathering, Video Games Live put on a concert at the new Nokia Theater in downtown Los Angeles. The concert dovetailed quite nicely with the convention giving E for All attendees a way to carry on their gaming festival into the night.

Although Video Games Live opened with a medley of music and footage from classic arcade games like Pong, Elevator Action, and Outrun; the concert focused on music from console games and console franchises. Metal Gear Solid, Sonic, The Legend of Zelda, Halo and Super Mario Bros all enjoyed lengthy segments that covered multiple games. Video Games Live co-creator and host Tommy Tallarico would come out between segments and introduce either the composer or the creator of the game being shown. In the case of some of the Japanese creators and composers we were treated to video introductions for their segments but the ardent fans in the crowd didn't care. They were still met with cheering and jubilation.

Music from Squaresoft - now Square Enix - is always a big hit with gamers and Video Games Live presents its fair share. It's unfortunate that Square Enix doesn't allow any game footage to be shown during Video Games Live but they have their own concert series to consider. "Liberi Fatali", the most popular song from Final Fantasy VIII, was played without any footage at all and during the Kingdom Hearts segments the screens showed clips from Disney movies. In the end the fans didn't mind. They were just happy to hear the music played live.

Jack Wall conducts the symphony orchestra during a section devoted to the music of Tetris.

Despite an overwhelming console song catalogue VGL did take some time to give PC gamers a little love. Civilization IV, Warcraft, Starcraft II, and BioShock (yes I know BioShock is also a console game but with so few PC games covered I felt obligated to claim it for the computer gamers) all received segments devoted to their music. The Warcraft set needed no introduction and covered music from the entire franchise. The footage that accompanied the music was taken from the incredible Warcraft III and World of Warcraft cinematics. The strong, thundering Warcraft music lends itself very well to an orchestral presentation so this segment was a highlight of the show for me.

The concert isn't made up entirely of orchestral renditions of popular video game music. There were also a couple of guest performers. Martin Leung - known on the internet as the Videogame Pianist - sat down for some solo sets performing music from the game Chrono Cross and a ten song medley of Final Fantasy music. Leung played on a grand piano with no accompaniment from the orchestra but his sections of the show remained the most memorable. His Final Fantasy medley received a standing ovation from the audience and practically stole the entire show. It's not just that he's an exceptional piano player but he performs the songs with so much emotion. Here's a guy who loves this music and loves to play it.

Another guest star in the show was gamer / guitarist Chris Kline who performed an absolutely awesome version of the Contra music (you can see a taste of it in his YouTube video). Kline burns up the guitar during his "Contra Jungle Jam" resulting in a flawless conversion of the classic opening theme. These sections of the show provide a nice break from the orchestral music and allow the concert to include pieces that would normally get missed. I'm not sure the music from Contra would work with a symphony but it definitely works on an electric guitar. Not to take anything away from the hard work of the orchestra but Leung and Kline's sets were the ones people were talking about after the show.

Video Games Live is a great time and you needn't be a hardcore gamer to enjoy it. There are few gaming events where kids can go with their parents and both can expect to be entertained. I was disappointed that this show did not include the God of War or Metroid segments; both games have been covered in previous concerts. I guess there isn't time to do them all. Gamers should try to catch the show at least once if it comes to their area. It's a rare opportunity to hear music that's been stuck in your head for 20 years performed loud and live.

Here's a list of some of the games and franchises covered in this show.

• Pong
• Elevator Action
• Dragon's Lair
• Space Ace
• Rastan
• Defender
• Duck Hunt
• Ghosts 'n Goblins
• Gauntlet
• Outrun
• Metal Gear Solid
• Sonic
• Chrono Cross
• BioShock
• Civilization IV
• TRON - Music from the movie
• Final Fantasy VIII
• The Legend of Zelda
• Conan
• 10 Song Medley from Final Fantasy series
• Kingdom Hearts
• Warcraft
• Starcraft II
• Contra
• Super Mario Bros.
• Halo
• One-Winged Angel from Final Fantasy VII

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