Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers’ Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, Super Bowl XL MVP Hines Ward, and several of the teams running backs and offensive line members participated in a Guitar Hero 5 “Pro vs. GI Joe” competition with a group of soldiers from the U.S. Army’s 336th Military Police Company stationed in Iraq.

Pro vs. GI Joe is a non-profit organization started by Addie Zinone (still active in the military with two tours in Iraq under her belt) and her husband Greg in June of 2007 as a means to “do a little for those who do a lot.”

“This is an opportunity and a way that the professional athletes can say thank you to the troops from their community in a really fun way,” said Zinone.

This Friday, the service did just that, as it connected soldiers to the Steelers players at their practice facility in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania through used of satellites and the Xbox LIVE service. Steelers Quarterback had the following to say about the experience:

“To be able to interact with these guys and enjoy it – and I could see the joy on their face – and get to beat them a little bit in some Rock band. It’s a lot of fun”

Apparently even Super Bowl Quarterbacks have a hard time telling EA’s Rock Band and Activision’s Guitar Hero apart these days.

While Steelers All Pro Safety, and co-Madden 2010 cover athlete, Troy Polamalu, didn’t take part in the strumming of plastic instruments, he did his part to boost soldier moral by showing up in a grass-covered Ghillie sniper suit. Check out the video below.

In the end, Pittsburgh’s KDKA news station declared the Steelers winners of the competition, and considering the teams performance in last Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals, I’m sure they’re relishing the win.

Yes. I’m a bitter Steelers fan. Sue me. I will end this on a positive note by saying bravo to Zinone and her husband for putting together such an awesome organization. If you’d like to find out more about Pro vs. GI Joe, head on over to their website at provsgijoe.com.

With Guitar Hero 5, Champions Online and Mini Ninjas coming out this week, it looks like a great start in new game releases for September. Not to mention that the PS3 Slim is officially released on Tuesday, September 1. Hit the jump for the full list of new games coming out this week, along with my pick of the week.

Pick of the Week: Champions Online (PC)

Xbox 360:

• Cabela’s Outdoor Adventure
• Guitar Hero 5 Guitar Bundle
• Guitar Hero 5
• Mini Ninjas
• Section 8

PS3:

• Cabela’s Outdoor Adventure
• Guitar Hero 5
• Guitar Hero 5 Guitar Bundle
• Mini Ninjas

Wii:

• Cabela’s Outdoor Adventure
• Cruise Ship Vacation Games
• Guitar Hero 5
• Guitar Hero 5 Guitar Bundle
• Mini Ninjas
• Muramasa: The Demon Blade

PC:

• Champions Online
• Mini Ninjas
• Section 8

PS2:

• Cabela’s Outdoor Adventure
• Guitar Hero 5
• Guitar Hero 5 Guitar Bundle

DS:

• Mini Ninjas

PSP:

• Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny

I love Johnny Cash. You love Johnny Cash. These guys love Johnny Cash. Everyone loves Johnny Cash. The late singer and his song Ring of Fire appear in Guitar Hero 5, which hits shelves September 1st.

Contrary to my usual anti-Activision diatribes, I’ve been pretty positive about Guitar Hero 5 ever since the setlist was announced in May. As a huge fan of Vampire Weeekend, Stevie Wonder, and Bob Dylan, I can’t complain about the partial setlist, but I can complain about this- Activision sent out the Guitar Hero 5 box art today, and it’s, well, bad.

You can make your own judgment on the box art after the jump, but I think it’s too plain. Usually, I like minimalism, but when the minimalism is akin to Googling “trunk” and plastering your logo on the picture you find, you should probably just go with the usual box art shenanigans. Plus, what’s with all the text?

Another day, another Guitar Hero story, but this one is sure to have some of the franchise’s fans excited. USA Today announced some brand new features for Guitar Hero 5(Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, Wii) as well as a partial setlist featuring tracks by Tom Petty, White Stripes, Bob Dylan, Rolling Stones, Stevie Wonder, Johnny Cash, Santana, and Vampire Weekend. Now, regardless of how you feel about the franchise, you’ve got to admit- that is a fantastic setlist.

USA Today also announced the brand-new Fest mode that allows people to battle at home or online for scores. As always, 4 can compete at home, but with the inclusion of online battles, 8 players in total can compete online, for “momentum points”. Another mode they detailed was Party Play, which lets you join songs, switch instruments, or change the difficulty level-mid-game. Activision’s creative director says that GH5 will have a lot more variety, with more indie artists, classic rock, and heavy metal.

Call me a hypocrite if you want, but if the setlist continues to be this great, and the features keep rocking, this might be the first GH game I’ve picked up since Guitar Hero 2 back in ‘06. Plus, Vampire Weekend! I’ve been asking for their songs since Rock Band came out, but I guess Activision beat Harmonix to the punch. Hit the jump for the partial setlist.

•Tom Petty (Runnin Down a Dream)
•White Stripes (Blue Orchid)
•The Rolling Stones (Sympathy for the Devil)
•Bob Dylan (All Along The Watchtower)
•Santana (No One To Depend On)
•Vampire Weekend (A-Punk)
•Johnny Cash (Ring of Fire)
•Kings of Leon (Sex on Fire)
•Stevie Wonder (Superstition)

As if you didn’t have enough games backtracked to carry you into the New Year, today, at an event hosted by Massive Inc., Activision announced a shitload of new games, though they’re mostly sequels to old titles. Hit the jump for the full details.

As expected, Activision announced yet another game for the Guitar Hero franchise. Whoo. If you haven’t been keeping track, that’s the 9th announced Guitar Hero game from Activision. I mean, jeez, Harmonix only made three in the two years they had the series, and as of Q1 2010 (that’s two and a half years in Activision’s hands) the game will have twelve sequels & spin-offs. The franchise is going to die faster than [some 80's rap star]’s career. Thank you, I’ll be here all night.

Surprisngly, Activision also announced a new Tony Hawk game — one that won’t use the controller and will probably use the rumored skateboard peripheral, along with a new Call of Duty game planned as a sequel to Modern Warfare. The last of Activision’s announcements included a new Bond game, probably based off of the 23rd Bond film in 2010, and an original racing game from Bizarre Creations, which they’ve described as ‘Mario Kart meets Forza.” If it allows me to shoot a blue shell from a Maserati, I’m all for it.

Source: MTV Multiplayer