A taxi deposits me outside of the Nob Hill Masonic Center around 5 p.m. last Friday. Originally I was supposed to arrive closer to 6:00, but a last minute email from my sponsor for the event, Dream Authentics, sent me into a flurry of preparation seldom seen in my otherwise relatively laid back life. Tonight, on the last day of the 2007 Game Developers Conference, I would be attending the Video Games Live concert, with special guest Koji Kondo, the legendary composer for Super Mario Bros. and Zelda.

I snap a few shots of the venue's lobby, noting the beautiful stained glass window that will go largely unnoticed by the hordes of fans that will soon fill the hall. Their focus will most likely be on the Guitar Hero II competition and the souvenir table set up beside it, or the Dream Authentics arcade machine that will be playing host to a Space Invaders competition once things get rolling. And the gates, of course. The gates behind which even now some of the greatest names in video game music were practicing for tonight's performance. The gates through which I would soon be passing through with my shiny backstage pass.

Yeah, About That Pass

After poking around a bit and watching The Video Game Pianist Martin Leung kick a little ass at Space Invaders, I take a seat on a bench across from an attractive blonde woman to try and give my contact at the show another call. She had said to hit up her cell when I arrived so she could hook me up with my ticket and pass, but two calls had already gone unanswered. I dial the number...and watch as the woman across from me pulls her cellphone from her pocket, looks at the screen, hits the disconnect button and puts the phone away. In my ear the ringing stops. I raise an eyebrow and cock my head a little, catching the woman's eye.

"Oh my god, did you just call me?"

It seems I share an area code with her family, and she thought I was her sister calling. As I often get mistaken for people's female siblings, I accept it. After spending a week at GDC being mistaken for McWhertor and catching the disappointed looks on developer's faces as they realize that Crecente isn't coming, being mistaken for a woman is almost a step up.

After a meeting with the Dream Authentics folks to discuss their home arcade machines, I am guided over to the gate, which is swung open by the hand of an elderly gentleman in an usher uniform. In the back of my mind I am playing out the circumstances that led to this frail gentleman earning the post of guarding the main security point for the whole concert. The phrase, "Watch the gate, grandpa" comes to mind.

The Nob Hill Masonic Center is your basic circular concert hall. The relatively small stage is surrounded on three sides with bi-level seating. As I am escorted inside I notice that almost several people walking about with green Video Games Live all access passes hanging from their necks. "Shouldn't I have one of those?" I ask my escorts, only to be told not to worry about it. Should be fine now. There are a few other members of the press sitting in the audience - all with green passes mind you - so I wander over to them, pull out my trusty camera and increasingly ratty notebook, and focus my attention on the stage.

Rehearsal - Once more with feeling!

One-Winged Angel. Why is it always One-Winged Angel? As my attention shifts stageward I recognize the distinctive chanting of everyone's favorite Aeris-killer's theme song. A song that follows me like the plague, inevitably showing up on any MP3 player I own despite my never actually actively putting it there. Sephiroth is such a bad ass that his song kills some poor other tune on my hard drive and takes its place.

Tommy Tallarico and VertexGuy, the amazing guitar player, flank the stage on electric guitars as the chorus chants and the symphony plays. The guitars add a raw power to a song I've seen performed live before at the Dear Friends concert in Atlanta, but without the video playing in the background it loses something for me. Square Enix won't let Video Games Live display images from their games, so there shall be no menacing Sephiroth standing amidst flames and smirking this night.

It's-A-Him, Mario!

As the symphony continues to rehearse...Metal Gear Solid, Medal of Honor, music from Sonic...some folks set up a camera and begin an interview right beside where I am sitting. Holy crap, it's Mario! More specifically the voice of Mario, Charles Martinet. I try and snap a few quick pictures, then curse as I realize the tracking light on my new camera is still on. If you by chance watch an interview with Martinet and see him bathed in an eerie amber light several times as he is trying to speak, that was me. Luckily I don't think they notice.

Martinet is a real character, and he loves his job. Any other man would have gotten sick of people asking him to do the Mario voice, but not our man Charles. He revels in the character, and when I finally get a chance to take a photo of him away from the interviewers, he not only poses, but also lets out a triumphant "Woo-hoo!"

After taking the picture I sit back down. Koji Kondo should be coming out to practice at any minute, and I was going to get a chance to see him!

"Anyone without a green badge needs to leave the auditorium now!"

Or possibly not.

As the legendary Koji Kondo prepares to take the stage, I am asked in no uncertain terms to make myself scarce. Fuming slightly, I head for the lobby, determined to find a shiny green all access pass of my own.

The Epic Quest for the Magical All Access Pass

"Hey, they just kicked me out for not having a pass!"

"Oh sorry. Here, take mine."

Thus ends the epic quest for the magical all access pass.

Once More Into The Breach

One my way back inside I run into the ever colorful Game Jew, who neatly sums up my entire experience at GDC this year by asking when Crecente was going to show up, and then looking really disappointed when I tell him he wouldn't be. Apparently he was eager to sing to Brian's testicles in public, and when it comes right down to it, who isn't?

The distraction costs me dearly. I enter the auditorium only to find that Koji Kondo is just wrapping things up, surrounded by members of the press who didn't have to play through an extremely short RPG to get their passes. It takes reflexes honed through years of dodging whirling blades while his music played in the background, but I manage to snap a shot of him before he is ushered off the stage.

Seeing Double

With a sigh I take my seat, going over my notes as The Video Game Pianist sits down at the piano for a little warm up. I find myself getting a lost in the music, only to be roused by yet another interview being set up right beside me in the aisle. Oddly enough, it's Mario interviewing...Mario?

Sure, Game Jew is a short Jewish man dressed as an Italian plumber, and Charles Martinet is an older man with white hair wearing bright red shoes, but beyond that the similarities are uncanny. You can find the clip of the interview mixed in with some other bits here.

After all that excitement I needed a little air, so I wander out into the lobby, where the crowd is beginning to gather. Sonic the Hedgehog is entertaining the crowd. Excuse the blurry picture, but the little blue bugger is the fastest game character alive.

The PMS clan is also on hand, doing something that probably has nothing to do with hotness, yet nonetheless is infused with it by association. I snap a pic, feel dirty for doing it, and head back inside the auditorium to hide for a bit.

Koji Kondo Signs Some Stuff...Not For Me

The team from Advance Media Network was milling about all throughout the rehearsal, and as I return to my seat their director of public relations pops in from backstage, carrying a Wii and a look of unabashed joy on his face. The Wii, it turns out, is the prize for the costume contest to be held before the show starts, and they just got Koji Kondo to sign it for them. Some lucky cosplayer will be very happy this evening. Not only did Sean get the Wii signed, but also a little something for himself.

Lucky bastard, though I suppose it all balances out considering AMN did sacrifice one of their media guys, Victor Torres, to fill out the Sonic costume that was parading through the lobby earlier. Apparently he was the only person they could find with the right build for the suit. A true Cinderella story, only instead of a glass slipper it was a giant foam hedgehog costume.

The Glamorous Backstage Pass Lifestyle

I don't think I've ever had a backstage pass to anything. Even productions I've been in myself. Like discussing how scary Adam Sessler is when he's drunk, backstage was a place I just didn't go. It isn't until I catch a wonderful scent that I work up the courage to wander back there. What is that smell? The smell of a good story? The scent of intrigue? No, my friends.

It was the smell of free pizza.

GDC has conditioned me to have a reaction to free food that borders on Pavlovian, so like a cartoon toucan I follow my nose...it always knows, you see. Past the door to the left of the stage into what was sure to be a glorious...hallway.

Backstage at the Nob Hill Masonic Center is pretty much a hallway with a few tiny rooms off of it. Not nearly as exciting as I would have imagined. I begin to think I never was allowed backstage before to save me from the disappointment. There is, however, plenty of free pizza, along with Charles Martinet, who seems to have an uncanny power to be everywhere at once. When I got back to my room later in the evening I was surprised and just a bit disappointed that he wasn't there, ready to cheer me up with a random "Woo-hoo!"

While the voice of Mario munches on a slice of pizza (with mushrooms!), I discuss the excitement of being backstage with some of the guys from Nintendo World Report, recently renamed from Planet Gamecube for obvious reasons. A guard getting ready for the Metal Gear Solid portion of the program wanders by, and I snap a quick shot of him posing with Martinet. Note the glowing exclamation point above his head...pure genius there. It's actually retractable, popping up via mechanical trigger.

The Video Game Pianist wanders up to the pizza table, only to find himself accosted by giant members of the press, like this one, for instance:

Please ignore the shirt. General consensus between friends, family, and colleagues has already indicated to me that the shirt was a really bad idea. I picked it up at the Big and Tall store near the convention hall earlier in the week. Apparently their plan is to make big men stand out more, to keep them from sneaking up on people.

Soon the pizza is gone, and the performers are preparing to take the stage. Time to go pick up my ticket and get seated!

There Is No Ticket

A brief foray outside finds me teamed up with frequent Kotaku contributor Collette Bennett, and having her around makes it a little easier to cope with the fact that we don't have tickets.

Apparently Tommy Tallarico wanted 70 tickets for guests from the venue, and they gave him only 30, which were eaten up quickly by guests like Koji and his entourage. Several members of the press actually purchased their own tickets, which I would have done had I not been told there was one waiting for me.

Our sponsors tell us not to worry. All we have to do is wait till everyone else is seated, and then grab some spare seats. Needless to say, I do not wind up in the front row. Indeed the front row seems like a distant dream as I take my seat in the upper tier of the balcony, and nothing helps you relax and enjoy a concert like the fear of someone sidling up to you with a ticket in hand, looking confused. Thanks to this happy fun ticket snafu I miss the majority of the costume contest, in which a Kingdom Hearts cosplayer walks away with a Wii.

Mercifully we manage to somehow find seats that hat not been sold...either that, or whoever bought them saw me looking pensive and decided not to bother me. Either way, the lights soon dimmed, and the concert finally began.

And We're Off

Tommy Tallarico will not stop moving, resisting every attempt I make to snap a quick photo of him as he introduces the show. Being a relatively small man, he has reserves of energy that larger folks like me utilize to keep us from going extinct, like the dinosaurs. It's a reflection of his great love of the video game music industry, the sheer amount of excitement the man has for this event.

I fully expected the $15 program I bought at the beginning of the concert to contain an actual program of events, allowing me to relax and enjoy the show without having to remember the exact order of performances. Much to my chagrin, the program book does not contain a program. I spent $15 for a glossy picture book, which is why you shouldn't expect the following show highlights to be in any particular order.

Retro-Spective

In the beginning, there was Pong. The show kicks off with a medley of classic gaming, from Pong, to Asteroids, to Defender, and onward. Like a cover band doing a medley of classic rock tunes, the audience reacts to their favorites, hotting and hollering when selections from Ghouls N' Ghosts or Satan's Hollow (a personal favorite) are played. Just quick snippets from each game, but more than enough to whet the appetite of a few hundred game enthusiasts.

Space Invaders Live

No, it isn't Space Invaders via Xbox Live. It's Space Invaders played with motion tracking by a pudgy Legacy of Kain cosplayer wearing a spaceship T-shirt that took at least five minutes to get on.

I forget which fabulous prize was up for grabs, but that hardly matters, as he completely fails to complete the level, despite the audience cheering him on. He walks away with a DS as a consolation prize, which is certainly something.

Metal Gear Solid

I have a confession to make. I've only ever finished the first Metal Gear Solid. I just can't seem to get into the whole stealth action thing. Having said that, it is strange that I find the music from the series so moving. I sit here, watching scenes from the games I have never experienced first hand and I feel nostalgic. The main theme in particular just speaks of the sad resignation of a person who has completely committed themselves to duty above all other things. I could just be talking out of my ass here. The segment is introduced by a pre-recorded Hideo Kojima, who I snapped a totally awesome picture of.

While the music plays, a box inches its way onto the stage, sitting there as the soldier from backstage makes an appearance. He wanders about for a bit, showing off his nifty switchblade exclamation point device, stopping for a moment in front of the box before shrugging and heading offstage. The box sits there through two more numbers before Tommy pops out of it...claiming to have been the only person small enough to fit inside.

Medal of Honor

Another series I haven't messed about with much, for the Medal of Honor sequence they eschewed the normal showing of game footage on the big screen, opting instead to show black and white photos from World War II. Women crying, injured men, families torn apart by war. While it was certainly moving, it felt a bit like a political statement, and I really hate it when I go to a concert and the artists feel like they need to make political statements. Not what I am there for.

Sonic the Hedgehog

Ah yes, this music brings me back. A fine arrangement of Sonic music, showcasing footage from the classic and not so classic titles, from the original game on up to Sonic Heroes, The probably went a few games too far, but at least they stopped before Shadow.

Incidentally, I've decided that I want the Green Hill Zone music to be played at my funeral, and my casket to be interred via a series of looping ramps.

Advent Rising

Tommy of course created the operatic soundtrack for Advent Rising, the ill-fated game written by sci-fi master Orson Scott Card. Whatever faults you might have found with the game, you certainly cannot take away from the beautiful sounds inspired by it. The music and game footage combination was so moving that after the concert Colette asked me about the game, which she had never played.

The saddest thing about Advent Rising was how much I loved the game, and the ending of it, which set us up for a sequel that will never come.

Koji Kondo

The man. the legend. The lounge pianist. Kondo comes out on stage first to tease us, appearing with colorful characters like Zelda, Link, and the ever-present Charles Martinet. When he returns to the stage later in the show, he takes a seat at the piano...which incidentally is behind a lighting fixture that I cannot see around. Thank goodness for the large screen, which allows me a view of Kondo playing through Mario songs with the ease and flair of a guy you might find stroking the ivories in a Vegas bar. The man has style, I'll give him that, but for some reason listening to him play doesn't have the impact on me I first thought it would. I'll go ahead and blame the lousy seats for this one.

VertexGuy

The videos of VertexGuy that appeared on the interwebs awhile back do him no justice. I've found in my explorations of video game music, that game players make some of the best guitarists you're likely to find, and VertexGuy is living proof. Take a look for yourself.

The man is seriously gifted, and I am surprised his fingers don't burst into flame as he effortlessly burns through his rendition of Contra Jungle Jam. Definitely my second favorite performance of the night. My first favorite?

The Video Game Pianist

Martin Leung is, quite simply, a piano god. Hearing him practice earlier gave me just a small taste of the scope of this young man's talent. In the hallway that was backstage I asked him how it felt to play the music of composers like Koji Kondo while actually being in their presence. What I should have done is ask Koji Kondo how it felt to be completely upstaged by a guy not yet old enough to legally drink.

Leung appears on stage twice this evening. First he plays a selection of music from Final Fantasy which literally brings tears to my eyes. Even remembering it now, days after the fact, has me tearing up. His renditions of the songs from a video game series that at times has been so much a part of my life has me seeing those titles in a whole new light. As many others have noted, it makes you want to play the games all over again.

He then returns to the stage later on for an encore performance, and completely blows the crowd away with a medley of Super Mario Bros. music. At one point his fingers are moving so fast across the keys that he looks like he's in one of those artificially sped up time-lapse sequences that were so popular in music videos back in the day. He leaves the crowd completely in awe, earning a standing ovation for his effort. Even more of a standing ovation than Koji Kondo himself. What could possibly follow such a performance?

One Winged Angel

Arguably the most popular piece of video game music ever created, One Winged Angel is, of course, Sephiroth's theme song from Final Fantasy VII. When I saw the Dear Friends concert last year they did this song as an encore, and then came back on and did it again. That's how much people love this song. Despite the lack of gameplay video on the big screen an the somewhat muffled guitars compared to what I heard during rehearsal, it was a completely satisfying end to an evening of wonderful music.

As the performers file off stage after the final bow, I head out into the balcony lobby to see how my chances of getting in on the meet and greet line look.

Seeing as the entire first floor of the auditorium was already waiting, I made a decision not to stick around. After walking all over San Francisco for a week, the last thing I needed to do was stand in line for hours as a legion of fans in front of me stumbled over their tongues to find just the right words of praise to give these legends of the video game music world.

I did, however, manage to meet two of gaming's biggest names this evening, so it wasn't a total loss in that regard.

If you look deep into their eyes, you can see extreme discomfort, and quite possibly a little bit of fear.

A Night to Remember

Video games are more than just something gamers do to pass the time, and an event like Video Games Live serves as proof of that point. That you can separate the music or the art from the context of the game and create something so very satisfying shows the depth of the industry that we all know and love.

These are the thoughts going through my head as I hail one of San Francisco's many suicidal cab drivers for a ride back to my hotel to pack for the long trip home. The driver asks me if I had a good time, and I smile. "One of the best."

As the driver takes one of the city's famous downhill slopes at 45 miles per hour, I can't help but ask, "Have you ever played Crazy Taxi?" Michael Fahey

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