Terrible twosome is a pretty unfair way to describe Benny & Richie, considering Benny's really the only terrible one. This week Richie conducts a professional and interesting interview with legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk about his new game, and talks the sweet science with Aussie boxer and new Fight Night entrant Billy "The Kid" Dib. Benny on the other hand pushes the boundaries of good taste with his booth babe interviews and calls out Gamespot. GAMESPOT? One of them does Krav Maga Benny. What do I do, Couch Fu...

And we wouldn't have it any other way. Watch the latest episode now to see it all in action, and boys - don't change. (Also GameArena would totally whoop Gamespot's arse).

This week's update sees Andy talking Monster Hunter Freedom Unite with Ben Dwyer-Roberts - they're not kidding about the friends thing by the way. This game needs people with you to be any fun. He also takes aim at Obama again, although this time the Prez has resigned himself to the idea that kids will play video games. We also reflect on MJ's career in videogames, and Suze was back on the street asking people questions again!

Watch the latest episode now! If you were going to make a Michael Jackson game today, what the hell would you make? Nobody say anything related to kiddy touching.

This is literally my first trip out to the Atari offices, and it's definitely larger than I imagined. Upon arrival I'm ushered into the media room equivalent of my dream lounge room. In the centre of the room are two chairs with swivelling bases and a small coffee table. On two walls are massive HDTVs connected to dev consoles - one is showing the Wii version of Codemaster's take on Formula 1, the other playing the menu screen for Batman: Arkham Asylum.

Around the room are life size figurines of Lara Croft and Kane & Lynch, but the real winner - the piece I contemplate stealth KO'ing my gracious hosts for - is a framed canvas for Metal Gear Solid, signed by Hideo Kojima. I'm considering a sneaking mission of my own...


Why do asylums always look so creepy?

Hudson Hawk-esque capers aside, even a MGS canvas couldn't hold my attention as long as Batman: Arkham Asylum. I waltzed in the room and I'm immediately asked the all important question "Do you have a preference? PS3 or Xbox 360?"

It's already on the screen on the 360, so my decision is made for me. The game loads straight to Batman escorting The Joker into Arkham Asylum, a sprawling island correctional facility. I'm immediately reminded of the beginning to The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay - except this time you're X to the Z, not V to the D...

Head through for our full first look!

This week Andy shows off his mad skills once again with a sneak peak at the end of Red Faction: Guerrilla. He's also checking out his favourite iPhone game Flight Control from Aussie devs Firemint, sassing Barack Obama regarding his opinions on video games and we take a look at Andy from a few different perspectives on his new pocket video camera.






You can watch the video here. Have you finished Red Faction: Guerrilla?

12 years after the events of Max Payne 2: Maxer Payne, our hero has found himself in the city of São Paulo, Brazil working as a private security officer for a wealthy family, addicted to painkillers.

And that's probably your fault. You're the one who kept popping them every time you didn't dodge the bullets flying your way. Anyway, there's new screenshots available on the Max Payne 3 Games Page.

The real question here is - can you accept this new Max Payne? He's not a cop any more and he appears to be shooting things in the day time. He's looking more With a Vengeance than Maltese Falcon - do you trust Rockstar with Max?

P.S. We want to apologise to Rockstar for likening their game to Transformers 2.

Ok so somehow last week's joke option Final Fantasy VII won. Shame. Mechwarrior was relegated to a very close second, with the write-ins favouring either Age of Empires 2 (because Real Time Strategies desperately rely on graphics) and Planescape: Torment (yeah, ok).

This week you're picking the least heroic video game hero - these guys either look like cuddly little toys, or they're just not especially inspiring.

Bub and Bob - (Bubble Bobble) They're dragons and they shoot bubbles. They could be bloody velociraptors, schnick schnicking their way through legions of foes but instead they burp bubbles and eventually turn human where they fart rainbows. Very forward thinking, but not especially heroic.

Ash Ketchum - (Pokemon) This little kid leaves home at what, 8? Then he cavorts around the world training wild animals to fight one another practically to death before eventually capturing and enslaving them when he defeats them. What a horrid little boy.

Kirby - (Kirby's Dreamland)Even if you ignore the whole "he's a little cute, pink bubble" thing, you have to admit he's not very heroic. He eats and absorbs everyone he sees. He's the cute, pink, bubbly version of Alex Mercer from Prototype (well, Alex Mercer is a punching people in half version of Kirby).

Tidus - (Final Fantasy X) Cloud, the giant sissy from Final Fantasy VII is always an attractive option but Tidus... Come on. Shorts above the knees. Floppy hair. This (youtube is metered content). The only defense he has is that being cretinous isn't not heroic. Close enough though.

Gordon Freeman - (Half Life) A mute, vision impaired scientist? Not really setting off the swoon alarms. Some would argue that fighting off an alien invasion is pretty heroic - it's not when the space-time hole which let them in is your fault. That's called covering your arse.

Head to the front page to pick your favourite, or tell me I'm wrong in the comments below! No nominating anti-heroes either. They're obviously not heroes. They're anti-heroes. Low-hanging fruit is not close to the ground because it's full of juicy goodness.

Looks like Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is too big for just one platform - it's branching out from the Nintendo DS to open new markets on the PlayStation Portable.

GTA:CW released in March this year on Nintendo's handheld, and it was very, very good. The highlight was the drug economy and the game's emphasis on humour. According to the press release, GTA:CW will keep its core elements the same but will add some features,

Specifically built for the PSP platform with upscaled widescreen graphics, enhanced lighting and animation; and including all-new story missions; this version of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars will take full advantage of the power of the PSP system.

We can only assume they're dropping the stylus controlled mini-games - hopefully they don't replace them with quick time events or anything of the sort. How do you think Chinatown Wars will go on the PSP?

The boys are bringing us an E3 special this week - they talk to Sean Cunningham - the Art Director on God of War 3 - David Cage - the Writer/Director on Heavy Rain - and Neil Druckman - Lead Designer on Uncharted 2. Richie sends some love Scribblenauts' way - a game Kreese really enjoyed as well - but Benny... Oh Benny. They also scope out the dude who voiced Mario, check out a Jay Z and Eminem concert, see what swag people scored and talk to a dude who paints shoes. An action packed episode!

Watch it now! On the subject of the shoes, I want a pair. I want a couple of pairs. I want a pair with Solid Snake on it signed by Hideo Kojima, and I want a pair with the GameArena logo on them. Feel free to buy them for me, Benny.

John Woo's Hong Kong Blood Operas inspired games like Max Payne and (obviously) Stranglehold, and mods like The Specialists. His films like Face/Off, Broken Arrow and The Killer are favourites for gamers everywhere. Now his newest film Red Cliff is heading to Australian cinemas very, very soon and GameArena, Icon Films and THQ have teamed up to send you to see it first.

John Woo's latest epic film is the tale of the Battle of Red Cliff - a Kung-Fu epic set in the year 208 (think Kung-Fu meets Braveheart). Fans of the massive Dynasty Warriors series' will recognise the battle and the names from the game - both the movie and the games share a common element in their historical background.

Woo's masterpiece however is aiming for a more historically accurate viewpoint, telling the tale of a Prime Minister who personally leads a war against two rival empires.

GameArena has 300 double passes to see the film in a GameArena special screening - 100 double passes for Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne each on July 22. To enter, all you have to do is head through to the GameArena competition page (linked below) and tell us in 25 words or less what your favourite John Woo film is, and why.

If you haven't seen a John Woo film yet (you haven't seen Face/Off? Mission Impossible 2? Hard Boiled? Go find a freaking Blockbuster) go and see one now, and make Red Cliff your second John Woo film!

THQ are coming to the party as well, and they've provided us with copies of the latest Dynasty Warriors games as lucky door prizes - so you get to see a war epic for free and you might walk away with a game from the series which pioneered console hack-and-slash. Get your friends to enter, get your family to enter and we'll see you at the movies.

Red Cliff Competition

This week Andy chats with Bliss and Eso of Bliss'n'Eso fame about Fight Night Round 4 and Call of Duty 4. He also chats to Microsoft man Jeff Putt about Windows 7 and gaming and he wraps things up with a look at Vidzone on the PlayStation 3!






Watch the latest video now. Have you checked out Vidzone yet? I played around with the beta, and I was able to listen to an uncensored version of Killing in the Name Of, but Busta Rhymes and M.O.P.'s version of Ante Up
This song, Metered content) is censored. What the heck.