While there were plenty of highlights during vgmtogether this past weekend, one moment (or video) stood out from the rest—“Line Them Up! A Paper Mario: The Origami King Concert” brought together over 160 musicians for a 30-minute medley. That alone is worth praise, but here are five more reasons why I loved “Line Them Up!”

The Game

Paper Mario: The Origami King was one of the best soundtracks to release last year, and while the cover community did embrace it, I’m always happy when the little guys (comparatively speaking) get the spotlight. This soundtrack is chock-full of great tracks from battle songs to overworld themes, making it the perfect candidate for a 30-minute medley.

The Format

I can’t begin to imagine how much time went into editing this video, and from the first few moments, I knew that this was going to be something special. In addition to your standard fare of split-screen performances and green screen magic, there were some truly inspired moments that elevated this medley to a whole other level (10:44 comes to mind).

The Composers

When is the last time that Gareth Coker, Lena Raine, Grant Kirkhope, David Wise, Will Roget, and many more composers worked together on one project? That’s a rhetorical question by the way, but the answer is never. It’s always a special treat when composers collaborate with cover artists and fans, but this medley set a new standard for artist interaction.

The Artists

Watching this video reminded me of why I fell in love with the VGM community in the first place. There is something special about watching people from all around the world being united by a common passion, in this case, video game music. Artists from every background, genre, and walk of life contributed to something greater than themselves, and in the process, they created something that is unique as it is precious. I can’t think of a better embodiment of the VGM community than “Line Them Up!”.

The Message

As I was watching this video, a single thought struck me like lightning—I really miss my VGM friends. Normally, I would be able to catch up with everyone during MAGFest, but as we all know, that didn’t happen this year. This video, more than anything else I’ve seen, made me feel as though I were at MAGFest, proudly watching as my friends played their heart out on stage. The message at the end of the video, “We’ll be together again” delivers a message of hope and reassurance that we so desperately need, not just for the VGM community, but for the world.

I’d be lying if I said this medley didn’t emotionally resonate with me as I’m sure it resonated with many of you. I’m so proud of every single person involved in this project, and thanks to this video, I have a lot more people that I need to follow. “Line Them Up!” proves what I’ve been saying for years—VGM is love, and what better way to show love for video game music and each other than the biggest collaboration the VGM community has ever seen.