Damn you, Valve! One of the few times of the year when we get to partake in forced social interaction, and you had to ruin it — withsomething totally rad. From now through Thursday, items will drop inTeam Fortress 2at double the normal rate. On top of this, everyone has received a free “stocking stuffer,” which is really just a giant key that would not fit in a reasonably sized stocking....

DrawRaceis free today, as found onTouch Arcade. I gave it a spin, and after some initial annoyances with the tutorial where you are unable to restart it without having to sit through the explanations again, I have to say it’s quite a bit of fun. Instead of dealing with virtual sticks or touch buttons, you draw a line through a lap for every lap in a race. A car will then race through the created path....

Good news everyone! TheWiiXploded Web siteis offering free shipping to Dtoiders that ordertheir new Wii shirt. All you have to do to knock off the $6 shipping fee is get in touch withDion Briggsafter you place your order and let him know that you were referred to their site via Destructoid. The T-shirt version is going for $17 and the hoodies version is going for $37. If you’re looking for something more retro, they have thisAtari 2600 Exploded shirt....

These useless before-the-real-information paragraphs have been mostly serious for a while now, so I’m throwing it back to the days of old where anything goes. Although, now that I think about it, that’s essentially how it still is today. Whatever. In case you haven’t seen the countdown on the right, why yes, the site relaunch is happening soon. I don’t think I can say much about it, other than that the new groups system ought to be hell of useful for our weekly game meet-ups....

Video games should not just be “fun.” They shouldn’t just serve as “entertainment.” As gamers, we have been present for the birth and adolescence of what may be the single most important and inclusive art form in the history of mankind, and yet all we ever do with that art form is create better and prettier methods of driving fast, shooting accurately, and blowing things up spectacularly. It may seem odd to demand more than just simple entertainment from a medium that has provided us with nothing but for the past thirty years, but an escape from escapism is exactly what the medium needs....

Last weekwasn’t just one of the best debates in a while, it was one of the best debates we’ve ever had here on Dtoid. I remember a few other discussions that ended with a one vote difference, but it hasn’t happened in months. At first the score was dead even, then one side took a monstrous lead that lasted for fifty votes. Just when I had thought this was over, the other game rallied and not only tied it up, but it too took a giant lead....

Today we celebrateFleet Admiral Firmus Piett, the greatest character in all ofStar Warsand my personal hero. As one of the few Imperial officers to escape death long enough to appear in twoStar Warsfilms, he was also the only one to be played by the same actor twice. Know why? He’s bloody legendary, that’s why. Anybody to be promoted to Admiral inThe Empire Strikes Backand survive execution until past the end is an icon in my book....

Aside from impressing liberal arts majors, traditionally, there has been no reason for a gamer to own a Mac. While Mr. Jobs’ sleek machines exude all the hipster appeal ofVice Magazineand Momus albums, they simply do not offer the broad range of gaming selections that aWindows-based computer can provide. GameTap, Ted Turner’s stunning foray into on-demand gaming, is looking to change that. MacWorld haswordthat GameTap is going to be making the leap to the Apple platform beginning June 28th, and while it doesn’t have the cache of a release from Valve or id, those who haven’t irrevocably damaged their short-term memories with drug use or cerebral trauma will have no problem finding something to love in GameTap’s ever-expanding library of classic, new-ish, and exclusive titles, assuming they aren’t too busy writing ironic slogans on their American Apparel T-shirts (mine says “Anorexic Chicks Are Hot!...

We’re hours away from the release of Bethesda Softworks’ highly-anticipatedFallout 3, the first “now-gen” installment of a beloved series. If by this point you haven’t played the original Fallout or its sequels, we’d highly suggest you go do that … now.But if you don’t have that kind of time (estimated about 150+ hours), GameTrailers has you covered. They’ve put together this excellent video retrospective feature that should get you caught up right quick (estimated about 15 minutes)....

[As originally postedon Japanator] This is going to get some flak from you guys, I’m sure. Gerard Way, the frontman for the band My Chemical Romance,is co-producingKyosuke Himuro’s song that will be the ending theme for theFinal Fantasy: Advent Children Comlpete. Way wrote and composed the song, and sings some vocals, although Himuro is the main singer. The song, “Safe and Sound,” will be replacing “Calling,” the original 2005 ending song inAdvent Children....

Woah. Deja vu, man. I could’ve sworn that we already told you about aGod of Wardirector leaving Sony to do his own thing. Wait, we did! That wasDavid Jaffe. Now,God of War IIdirector Cory Barlog follows and leaves Sony Computer Entertainment for something bigger and better. But what, exactly? I wish I could tell you.Level Up’s N’Gai Croalhas been chatting up Barlog in amulti-partinterview, but it looks like we’re one installment away from the big reveal....

During the course of this week’s episode of Sessler’s Soapbox, the ever suave, yet somewhat neurotic G4 host takes on the controversial subject of release dates for popular games — and their star killing properties. He may be much calmer than usual, but that doesn’t seem to hinder his ability to navigate through the BS that (some people would like us to believe for an instant) pushing backGrand Theft Auto IVby a week will save Hollywood from the embarrassment of having the game deep-six the debut ofIron Manat the box office....

As Sony continues torebuild the PlayStation Networkand itsrelated services, there comes grim news from Japan which indicates that this whole situation is far from over. Hackers recently cracked into the Sony-run Internet service provider So-Net, making off with a bunch of virtual currency. According to reports, roughly 100,000 yen (or $1,224)’s worth of “Virtual Points” were thieves from around 128 customers. It would appear that no personal information was compromised, nor were any other accounts....