It’s Sunday, which means it’s time to check out Toys R Us’ latest ad for any gaming deals. If you’re shopping June 26 – July 2, 2011, then you’ll find two kinds of sales at the toy store this week. One discounts six 3DS games and the other is a pretty tempting iPod Touch deal.

If you don’t own an iPod Touch, or want to upgrade to the newer model, the current deal may provide the incentive you need to take the plunge…

According to EA Sports’ observations, the Dallas Cowboys are still “America’s Team” despite a horrendous 1-7 start.

EA’s numbers indicated the Cowboys are the team most used in online play. The Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, Baltimore Ravens and New York Jets round out the Top 5. The least popular team is the Arizona Cardinals.

That’s not a big shock. Arizona is a relatively small media market. Teams such as the Cowboys enjoy national prominence even when they’re losing. Seriously, watch any sports channel and see how much pub the Cowboys and Vikings get. A team such as Arizona only gets media attention when it’s winning. For the Cardinals, that is not often.

A recent Madden NFL 11 patch unlocks several new uniforms. There has been some confusion on how to get them once you’ve downloaded the latest Madden update.

It turns out Xbox 360 owners need to download the latest update for Madden’s card-based “Ultimate Team” mode to unlock the new uniforms. Ultimate Team is a popular game mode but there are many Madden players who have never touched it. Thus, they were left wondering where the new unis were.

Madden NFL is a sales juggernaut and retailers count on it to get you into the store to buy even more stuff. That’s especially true during a year in which videogame sales are down. Here’s a look at what’s being offered for Madden deals:

The Madden NFL 11 demo recently went live (July 27, 2010), with the new features EA touted overshadowed by one change: the strategy pad.

The strategy pad changes the way players make pre-snap adjustments. In previous Xbox 360 incarnations, if you wanted to shift your linebackers right you simply hit right bumper and moved your analog stick right. Now to do the same thing you must hit down on the directional pad and right on the D-pad twice.

NFL legends Jim Brown and Herb Adderley believe EA Sports is using their images and career statistics – and those of thousands of other athletes – without fair compensation. On Monday (September 28, 2009) they asked U.S. District Court Judge Claudia Wilken to let them join former Nebraska and Arizona State University quarterback Sam Keller in a suit against EA.

Keller and the NFL Hall of Famers say EA is making millions from the images of college and pro athletes it uses in their games without compensating those players.

EA uses retired players in its Madden NFL games but doesn’t call them by name. It uses their famous jersey numbers, racial backgrounds and the ratings it would assume to those players. College athletes are portrayed the same way. EA and the NCAA argue the video games are protected under the First Amendment as realistic expressions of the games they depict.

The gaming industry’s most prolific superstition didn’t take long to reach center stage in the 2009 NFL season.

Athletes who have graced the cover of Electronic Arts’ best selling Madden NFL 10 football simulation have traditionally fallen on some hard times.

Pittsburgh cornerback Troy Polamalu, famous for his big plays and long flowing hair, is one of the Madden NFL 10 cover athletes. He sprained his MCL (Medial Collateral ligament) in the league’s season opening game, putting the Madden Curse on display for a nationwide audience. The injury could keep Polamalu out of the lineup for as long as six weeks.

EA game designer Donny Moore answered one of the big questions among Madden faithful on his Twitter: Former NFL star Michael Vick is not included in the game’s first roster update. Vick is still trying to find a new NFL team after his release from prison on charges connected to a dogfighting ring.

“It’s official,” Moore tweeted. “Michael Vick not in Madden NFL 10 Roster Update #1… once he signs with a team, we will get him in there ASAP.”

There has been much speculation about how EA Sports would handle the Vick situation…

For many fans, Seattle Seahawks receiver T.J. Houshmanzadeh will forever be known as the receiver that meant a guaranteed fantasy championship to the guy in that classic commercial. Of course, he’s had to spend the past couple of years getting referred to as “Who’s Your Mama,” the moniker the unfortunate owner in that commercial hung on T.J.

Now the receiver is getting publicity because of his plans to boycott the latest Madden installment over his in-game player rating. Every year a few players take issue with their Madden NFL rating but Houshmanzadeh may be the first to take it to this extreme.

The master of on-screen scribbling, pre-calling plays and devouring multi-legged turkeys has finally retired from broadcast announcing. Some will miss him. Others think this day should have come a lot sooner.

Regardless of the side you fall off that fence, it’s hard to deny the success of the games that bear the John Madden name. The Madden franchise of football games, as NPR reported today (April 17, 2009), has made more money than all the James Bond films.

Madden retired from field activities in 1979 as the coach of the Oakland Raiders, then becoming a broadcaster and starring in several commercials. With this announcement, Super Bowl XLIII in February 2009 will be Madden’s final official broadcasting appearance. Now 73, he’s leaving in the middle of a 6-year contract (worth approximately $5 million per year) to spend more time with his family.

There’s good news for gamers, however. According to the New York Times, “Madden will continue his work with EA Sports.” That likely means we can plan to see more Madden NFL games for many more years. (Grandaddy’s gotta pay for all those gold-plated gifts to his grandchildren somehow).