Once upon a time there wasn't much of a dispute over the word "football." Over here, it meant cheerleaders, instant replay, and concussions. Over there, it meant relegation, riots, and flopping. Then came the Internet, and commenters stomping around in one another's mud puddles.

If you're sick and tired of Madden NFL, or if you just don't want to wait until the end of the month to complain about it, why not get a real downloadable roster update for a sports video game really released two years ago, the way everyone says it ought to be.

This screenshot isn't new but it is revealing. Kurt Warner last played in the NFL in the 2009-2010 season. Of the 24 players on Madden NFL 13's "Canton Greats" roster of throwback stars, he was the last to retire. And here we see his return to the league touted in the game's new "Connected Careers" mode.

Both are made by EA Sports. Both are American football titles. Both are made under exclusive license, and both come out every year.

A couple years ago, Cullen Loeffler was sore at EA Sports because they had deliberately left the Minnesota Vikings' long snapper out of Madden NFL, for years, because of roster space restrictions. It was an amusing kerfuffle, mostly because who the hell is really looking to play as a long snapper on special teams,…

Robert Griffin III may be the cover athlete for NCAA Football 13 but the former Baylor quarterback is not an optimal superstar headlining the game's demo, which released last week. He's skilled enough, but the new "Reaction Time"—the signal feature of NCAA 13's Heisman and Road to Glory modes—is really showcased when…

The debut of Madden NFL's new suite of career modes—called "Connected Careers"—seemed to be drowned out by the noise of E3 and by the announcement that same day of the game's new real-time physics engine. That's a gameplay enhancement gamers could easily understand. Connected Careers wasn't so easily reduced, and as…

Maybe the only way to make the Oakland Raiders' season interesting past the sixth week would be to force them - and every other wretched team - to play for the right to stay in the National Football League.