In-Depth Game Reviews
Minimum 20 hours logged before we score. Every review published within 72 hours of embargo lift — free to read, always.
North Melbourne · Est. 2016
Where every battle earns its polish.
Silver Battle Vanguard is an independent Australian gaming blog forging honest reviews, hardware deep-dives and esports analysis from our studio on Errol Street.
What We Cover
Editorial forged with precision
Four editorial desks, each run by specialists who play the games, bench the hardware and sit in the arena stands.
Hardware Bench Lab
GPUs, mechanical boards and 240Hz panels put through 48-hour stress runs with thermal charts you can actually trust.
Esports & Meta Analysis
Weekly patch breakdowns and live coverage from Melbourne Esports Open — team comps, VOD reviews and roster news.
Membership Workshops
Monthly build-along and speedrun clinics at our Errol Street studio. Members from AUD $12/month, first session free.
Retro Preservation Files
Long-form histories of the games that shaped us, plus a catalogued archive of Australian arcade culture from 1982 onward.
The Vanguard
The people behind the byline
A small, opinionated crew who would rather miss a deadline than post a lazy take.
Marcus Tran
Editor-in-Chief
RPG obsessive, 14 years in games media, refuses to score anything he hasn't finished.
Priya Nair
Hardware Lead
Former systems engineer who runs the bench lab and photographs every teardown herself.
Jesse Okafor
Esports Editor
Casts local FGC events on weekends, breaks down the meta with spreadsheets nobody asked for.
Hana Whitmore
Community & Events
Runs the workshops and the Discord, keeps the North Melbourne meetups running smoothly.
Reader Voices
Trusted by the community
What readers, builders and competitors say after leaning on our coverage.
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Daniel R.
Carlton, VIC
"Their GPU thermal charts talked me out of a card I'd already added to cart. Saved me AUD $600 and a lot of fan noise."
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Sophie L.
Fitzroy, VIC
"I went to the March build workshop as a total beginner and walked out with a working PC. The team never once made me feel silly."
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Kwame A.
Docklands, VIC
"Their patch breakdowns are the only ones I actually read cover to cover. Genuinely lifted my ranked placement last season."
MJ
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TN
RB
CE
+ 8,400 readers in the Vanguard community
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Reviews Published
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Community Members
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Hardware Benched
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Years Independent
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Get in Touch
Pitch, review request, or just say hi
Got a story, a product for the bench lab, or a question about the workshops? Reach us directly — we read everything.
- Phone
- +61 3 9347 1138
- Studio
- 57 Errol Street, North Melbourne VIC 3051
- [email protected]
- Studio Hours
- Mon–Fri 10am–6pm · Sat 11am–4pm