And a Merry Maddenoliday to all!

The latest edition of Madden comes out tomorrow (technically today), and Michael Vick issues aside, it should be a spectacular game. Some people have talked about the fact that there aren't haven't been that many changes from year to year, and if you just download the roster updates from XBox Live, or try and stick out your franchise all the way to Year 30, you don't need to get the new game. This, of course, is complete nonsense. As my friend Brett says, "Every year, Madden comes out and becomes the best game of all time." I find no fault with that statement whatsoever.

It is an important Madden update for me, because I'm making the leap to the next generation and getting the XBox 360 version. This may not seem like a momentous occasion, but essentially, I am officially passing the torch to the new generation. I've bought the PS2 version the last two years of the new generation, and despite trying out the Wii version last year, I've stuck with the PlayStation 2 version through thick and thin. And now, I feel it's time to move on. And once I move Madden from one generation to the other, that usually means I shut the door on the previous generation. It's kind of like how Barack Obama is ushering in a new era of American politics, if you overlook the fact that Hillary(!) Clinton is going to whoop his ass early next year.

It's the end of an era, but it's a happy time, not a sad time. Another reason why it's exciting to get Madden is because I haven't been keeping up with the new updates and upgrades and features. So it'll be a new experience, but a good one, because Madden always is good. It's a constant, it's reliable, you know what you're getting, and you like what you're getting. It's like Jenna Jameson. Actually, it's not really like Jenna Jameson. I don't know where I'm going with that. I think I just want to write a Jenna Jameson analogy, but I don't know how to make the connection. Although I think that sentence I just wrote is really clever. If you're smart you'll figure out why.

But rejoice, because Maddenoliday is finally here.