I'm an American.  That means I eat enough saturated fat and high-fructose corn syrup to give diabetes to Cthulu, I have no interest in the culture or traditions of people who aren't just like me, and I am far too obsessed with sports.  I'm also a gamer, so this is a good week for me.

First off, Madden 11 came out last week, so I'm still playing the holy hell out of that.  I'm addicted to the "Madden Moments," which are equally fun and frustrating, but I'm an absolute crackhead for online team-play.  Getting four or more friends together for a head-to-head team matchup is some of the most fun I've ever had in a sports game, and it's already made Madden's replay value better than last year's.  Tonight, the demo for NHL 11 comes out, and although it's only good one period of play, I'm on board.  The previous two NHL titles were simply phenomenal, and I expect even more from this year's offering.  I know I'm not Canadian, but I'm pretty sure the US annexed them some time last year, so it's all good.  I'm pretty sure that Canada is now the "Please and Thank You State."

I'm also in the process of reviewing Monday Night Combat, which is sort of a cross between a shooter and a sports game, so that counts on my sports list.  The game is a lot of hectic fun, with a nice amount of strategy thrown in, but I worry about the game's replayability over a long period of time.  Perhaps playing with friends, instead of random strangers, will help with that. 

I can't even try to justify Family Game Night: Scrabble or LittleBigPlanet as sports games, so I'll just drop the whole theme now.  There; it's dropped.  The release of all those adorable Marvel costumne packs has inspired me to pop LBP back into my PS3, and let me tell you; playing any swinging level is infinitely more satisfying in a Spider-Man costume.  as for Scrabble, I must have a serious masochistic streak in me, because even now, I'm looking forward to my nightly game with a friend of mine.  Later on tonight, I'll be looking back on the vocabularian beating I just took from him, just as I always do.

So, what are you playing this week?