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.

Xbox

As one generation of game consoles inexorably gives way to the next, and the next, Microsoft’s Xbox One—which replaces the Xbox 360—is shaped, interestingly, much like an old-school VCR. But it comes with a host of high-tech improvements. • The new sys …

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New Super Mario Bros. Wii

After years of mostly solo stomping Koopalings and head-bopping magic blocks, Mario invites the whole family to play … at once.

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The Secret Life of Pets 2

For the most part, kids and adults alike will find their hearts tickled and tugged at by this bouncy sequel.

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Virtua Fighter 5

On the heels of 14 years of karate chopping, hook-kicking success, the godfather of 3-D fighting games has released a new edition. And the years have been kind. The highly anticipated Virtua Fighter 5 makes its next-gen splash on Sony’s PlayStation 3, …

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Godzilla: King of the Monsters

This metropolis-mulching monster masher makes superhero-movie destruction look almost dainty in comparison.

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Trover Saves the Universe

Trover Saves the Universe looks like cartoony, brain-tickling fun … or is that a brain bleed?

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Dead Rising

Many a classic film has used well-known landmarks as backdrops for its celluloid diorama. Moviemakers love this because a shot of England’s Big Ben or Egypt’s Pyramids instantly connects us with something of that country’s beauty and culture. So when t …

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Battlestations: Midway

A heavily shadowed sub strategically swims in and out of the crack-your-hull-like-an-eggshell ocean depths, having battled its way past a gauntlet of PT boats, torpedo-bombers and destroyers. The captain throws a quick glance toward the instruments and …

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Gato Roboto

Gato Roboto is an E-rated platformer that’s easy to start and stop, and one that doesn’t suck up weeks of gameplay time.

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Outer Wilds

Outer Wilds is tricky and rewarding, but this space exploration game comes with an unexpected twist.

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The Sinking City

Fans of H.P. Lovecraft might be drawn to this game. But what they’ll find is a grinding, grotesque and goopy narrative.

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Saints Row 2

“The game requires you cast your morality aside, and I’m sure the intended audience (you know who you are) will relish this celebration of depravity.” —Electronic Gaming Monthly There are some video game titles out there that don’t require hours and ho …

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BioShock

“No Gods or Kings. Only Man.” That’s the banner bidding you enter the underwater Art Deco mecca of Rapture. You get there via 2K Games’ newest first-person shooter, BioShock. It’s a city built by an eccentric, billionaire genius (Andrew Ryan) as a shin …

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LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures

Oh yeah, that’s the Indiana Jones I remember. That perpetual stubble and derring-do. The swaggering bravado mixed with a dash of self-deprecating humor. A whip at the ready and a dusty fedora shading his brow. That’s the Indy I know. Of course, this on …

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PlayStation

The newest Sony console, the PlayStation 4, has a much smaller trapezoid profile than its now last-gen sibling, the PS3, and into that tighter territory it packs any number of upgrades. • The console sports a new graphics engine and processing chip mak …

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