While rumors of a 
redesigned 3DS didn’t pan out, Nintendo had plenty to say about the future of its latest handheld system at a pre-Tokyo Game Show press conference on Tuesday.
The Kyoto-based company is going all-in with the 3DS this November and early December, offering a system update that will add several new features (including video recording) as well as two major titles to help boost holiday sales. But analysts still think the company will fall short of its goals.
GameStop is joining 
the iOS revolution.
The country’s largest video game retailer — and the biggest seller of used games and game hardware — has now started accepting iPods, iPhones and iPads for trade-in for store credit, which can be redeemed for games, hardware, downloadable content and more. The company claims to offer ‘competitive’ trade values on the systems.
Read more at Yahoo! Games
Kenny Rogers offers 
some great advice about knowing when to hold ’em and when to fold ’em, but when it comes to putting together a world-class poker night for you and your buddies, he’s pretty useless.
The key to throwing a great poker night is to remember that it’s not just about the game — it’s about the people. Instead of silently staring at the TV, you’re gathered around a table eating, drinking and relaxing (sort of), the perfect ingredients for a good conversation. And the cash on the table ensures that everyone stays on their toes.
What a difference 
a price cut makes.
Sales of Nintendo’s beleaguered 3DS handheld were up a whopping 260 percent in August (compared to July) after the system’s $70 price cut went into effect. Even more impressive, that price cut was only in effect for part of the month.
Everyone wants to knock 
the wedding proposal out of the park by doing something truly special. Hire a skywriter to scrawl a message at 10,000 feet, perhaps? Or maybe you’ll just carve out a note in the sand during a romantic island vacation?
Fine ideas, for sure, but if you want to really go big with your wedding plans, look to the gamers. Often eschewing the standard sunset-on-the-beach locale for something more…original, the more romantic geeks out there have gone to great lengths to make that special moment all kinds of fun. When it comes to romantic gestures, they’re a hard bunch to top.
Everyone was expecting 
bad news from video game retailers in August.
And everyone was right.
The NPD Group reports that year over year sales were down 23 percent, with software sales tumbling 37 percent. August, historically, has been a rebound month for the industry, but EA’s decision to move the release of the annual Madden entry to the end of the month torpedoed any chance of that happening this year.
2011 really hasn’t 
been Nintendo’s year.
The company’s stock has plunged 40 percent. The 3DS fell on its face after its launch. And despite a price cut to $150 in May, the Wii is still dead in the water.
Sometimes even the 
strangest rumors turn out to be true.
Whispers that Nintendo might be adding a second analog stick controller to its 3DS handheld system started circulating a few days ago, but few gave them much credence.
Super Bowl XLVI may 
look an awful lot like Super Bowl XLV, if the prognostication skills of EA’s Madden series are on target this year.
The football gaming franchise predicts both the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers will once again capture their divisions. And while he might be one of the league’s most controversial players, Eagles QB Michael Vick will take home the MVP trophy.
After years spent 
dodging countless cars, hopping across millions of floating logs and gobbling an untold number of flies, Frogger has made the jump into his 30s.
Yup, it was this day in 1981 when the coin-op classic first leapt into gamers’ lives, inspiring plenty of clones and a legacy of sequels that’s still going strong today.
Chris Morris: Journalist 