Contributor: Bob Hoose

After spending more than two decades touring, directing, writing and producing for Christian theater and radio (most recently for Adventures in Odyssey, which he still contributes to), Bob joined the Plugged In staff to help us focus more heavily on video games. He is also one of our primary movie reviewers.

Planet of Lana II: Children of the Leaf

‘Planet of Lana II’ is a beautiful, immersive and fun puzzle-platformer. But a few moments could hold younger gamers at arm’s length.

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Pokémon Pokopia

‘Pokémon Pokopia’ is smooth, seamless, friendly and fun. And it’s free of that grindy feel of a typical casual life sim.

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Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Beginning of a New Era

This sports movie about racing horse girls is a beautifully crafted anime with some nice messages about competition, hard work and friendship.

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the secret agent

The Secret Agent

Oscar nominee ‘The Secret Agent’ isn’t really about spy work. It’s just an odd, bloody, foul and painfully slow film.

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Vertical Dramas: The Next Big Hollywood Hit?

You’ve heard of short form content. Well, meet the newest rendition of that, in the form of “vertical dramas.”

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high on life 2

High on Life 2

‘High on Life 2’ is crude, messy and foul—and not nearly as funny as it hopes to be.

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Return to Silent Hill

Director Christophe Gans returns to put the ‘Silent Hill 2 ‘video game up on the big screen. It’s a bloody mess in a number of ways.

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Shelter

In ‘Shelter,’ Jason Statham once again plays a stoic loner who protects an innocent person using the deadly skills he learned long ago. Déjà vu, anyone?

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clue: murder by death

Clue: Murder by Death

‘Clue: Murder by Death’ is a murder mystery solver that’s seemingly aimed at younger detectives. But keep track of the messy bits.

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The Choral

‘The Choral’ is a period war drama with a great cast and some serious potential. But it doesn’t lift up its emotional high notes as well as it could have.

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Cairn

‘Cairn’ is an interesting mountain-climbing game that suffers from its M-rated rocks, pitfalls and stumbles.

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MIO: Memories in Orbit

‘MIO: Memories in Orbit’ is a Metroidvania platformer with a lot to robotically beep and boop over.

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That ‘Digital Needle’ in Your Hand

Way back in 1927, a political scientist named Harold Laswell came up with a theory on mass media that some called the “Hypodermic Needle Theory.” Laswell believed that injecting media into a passive audience had a direct and significant impact on peopl …

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Hamnet

Chloé Zhao’s ‘Hamnet’ explores what may have shaped William Shakespeare as he crafted the masterpiece tragedy of ‘Hamlet.’

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We Bury the Dead

‘We Bury the Dead’ is a bloody zombie pic with a thoughtful side. But the movie is still a foul and messy ride.

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