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My son is not a brony.

Thank you BuyCostumes.com for sending us a deluxe Bowser costume!

BuyCostumes.com, a division of BuysSeasons Inc. was founded in 1999 and is one of the largest internet retailers of costumes and accessories.  Their motto is “Life’s Better in Costume.” While Halloweeen costumes are their biggest market, they sell costumes for events and cosplay all year round. 

There are costumes for people of all sizes and shapes; even couple’s and group costumes are available.  Costumes for pets are not left out either!  If you’re looking for indoor, yard, or porch decorations, BuyCostumes.com has you covered!

Gamers may want to check out their video game collection.     BuyCostumes.com sells officially licensed Nintendo costumes featuring Mario, Luigi, Toad, Princess Peach, Bowser, Yoshi, and Pikachu.  Other popular video game costumes include: 

  • Master Chief
  • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
  • Kitana, Subzero, and Scorpion from Mortal Kombat
  • Batman
  • Arno from Assassin’s Creed  

Minecraft fans may want to check out the block heads for Endermen, Creepers, and the default character, Steve.  Skylander collectors might like the Spyro, Jet Vac, Wash Buckler, and Trigger Happy costumes.  

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A fun ride (on a pterodactyl)

Thank you Sicily Publicity for sending us a screener of this film!

Jay Bartlett and Rob McCallum live in Canada and have been lifelong friends and fans of Nintendo games since the NES era. Although Jay had a decent NES collection, he longed to eventually own all 678 Nintendo licensed games. Over the summer Rob gave Jay a lofty challenge: To collect all 678 North America released games using his own funds, no internet, and having to do it all in thirty days. Jay accepted and this movie was born.

Jay was not allowed to use his existing collection so he began his journey locally and talked/negotiated with friends and nearby game resale shops. When he collected all that he could, Jay and Rob set off on one of many road trips to the USA and expand their horizons and game collection there. 

Out of all of the NES games the rarest three are Stadium Events, Little Samson, and Bonk’s Adventure. Some of these games go for hundreds if not thousands of dollars apiece. Not only is buying these on ebay or craigslist not allowed, it’s not as fun. Part of the video game experience is how they are acquired along with the fun gameplay. Most gamers have specific games that have sentimental value to them. 

Many awesome game collections are shown in this film along with professional gamers and those who are featured in the Guinness book of world records. Besides fine-tuning his negotiation skills, Jay got to meet some video gaming legends who put him in touch with potential sellers of rare NES cartridges. While the viewers are made aware of some of the prices, most of the costs and total money spent remains a mystery.

I will not spoil the ending, but I do recommend this film for gamers who have a soft spot for the NES console. Many good memories came rushing back as I recognized many of the games collected. Some I didn’t even know existed! While Nintendo Quest is mostly kid friendly, there is some language. Some of it is bleeped out but holy sh*t and hell are clearly heard. This film can be rented on Vimeo for $7.99 or digitally owned for $12.99.

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Enervee ranks popular consoles by energy efficiency

Here’s a quick breakdown of the most family friendly games we have reviewed in 2015. More reviews can be found on ChristCenteredGamer.com! Each game is given a gameplay score for the overall gaming experience and a moral score for how suitable it is for younger gamers. The Amazon and Humble Store links will benefit Christ Centered Gamer by giving us a small % of the sale.

System Game Game Score Moral Score Buy it!
Mobile
Splendor
(Android, iOS, PC)
84% 100% $6.99
Mobile
UNWYND 80% 100% $1.99
Mobile
Star Realms 80% 98% $4.99
Mobile
Snuggle Truck 80% 96% $1.99
Nintendo 2DS/3DS
Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX 88% 87% $39.99
Nintendo 2DS/3DS
Quell Memento 86% 100% $3.99
Nintendo 2DS/3DS
Story of Seasons 86% 93% $39.99
Nintendo 2DS/3DS
Fairune 78% 93% $2.99
Nintendo Wii U
Kirby and the Rainbow Curse 90% 94% $39.99
Nintendo Wii U
Nova 111 
(PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One)
84% 96% $14.99
Nintendo Wii U
Pumped BMX + 84% 92% $9.99
Nintendo Wii U
Just Dance Disney Party 2 
(Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
82% 97% $39.99
PC/Mac
Crypt of the Necrodancer 86% 90% $14.99
PC/Mac
Pix the Cat 84% 96% $9.99
PC/Mac
Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball 84% 94% $15.00
PC/Mac
Shelter 2 82% 92% $14.99
PlayStation 4
Disney Infinity 3.0 
(PC, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
88% 90% $59.99
PlayStation 4
Shovel Knight
(PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One)
88% 94% $24.99
PlayStation 4
Risk
(PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
84% 94% $14.99
PlayStation 4
Boggle
(PS4, Xbox One)
82% 100% $9.99
PlayStation Vita
Shovel Knight
(PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One)
88% 94% $24.99
PlayStation Vita
Geometry Wars 3 Dimensions Evolved
(PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
86% 94% $14.99
PlayStation Vita
Nova 111 
(PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One)
84% 96% $14.99
PlayStation Vita
Switch Galaxy Ultra 78% 87% $11.99
Xbox One
Leo's Fortune HD Edition
(Android, iOS, PC, PS4, Xbox One)
88% 99% $6.99
Xbox One
Risk
(PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
84% 94% $14.99
Xbox One
Dance Central Spotlight 86% 91% $9.99
Xbox One
NYKO Xbox One Charge Base N/A N/A $24.90
Hardware
Gamdias Zeus Laser Gaming Mouse N/A N/A $49.99
Hardware
SteelSeries Siberia 200 Gaming Headset N/A N/A $79.99
Hardware
Mionix Castor Optical Gaming Mouse N/A N/A $69.99
Hardware
Cherry MX Board 6.0 N/A N/A $200.00

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Timeless Appeal of Minesweeper and Solitaire in a Competitive World

Thank you Shout Factory for sending us this DVD to review!

We have previously reviewed My Little Pony Rainbow Rocks and Equestria Girls and my kids thoroughly enjoyed those movies.  Surprisingly, my son enjoyed them all as well. Along with those two movies, Friendship Games is included in a 3 movie combo pack that will list for less than $25.  This is quite a bargain for My Little Pony fans.

Since this is our first time watching Friendship Games here’s our review of it: 

Rainbow Dash sent out an emergency text gathering all of the members in the band in fear of Canterlot High School being in danger.  As it turns out, it was a false alarm since Rainbow Dash only needed a replacement guitar string.  Instead of heading home right away Sunset Shimmer hangs around the portal for a little bit and catches a mysterious figure scanning the statue/portal.  Could it be someone from Crystal Prep Academy pranking their school for the upcoming Friendship Games competition?  Canterlot High School has never won a competition against Crystal Prep so their morale is pretty low until Rainbow Dash rallies everyone up with a stellar performance.  Could magic be involved in her performance?  Sunset Shimmer has been tasked to get to the bottom of it to avoid their school from being disqualified for magic use.  Twilight Sparkle is also looking into this phenomenon.  

The Twilight Sparkle in this show doesn’t know anyone in Canterlot High School since she is a Crystal Prep student.  However, they all know who she is and don’t know why she doesn’t recognize them and suddenly wears glasses.  They also discover that she has the ability to steal magic.  Will the Friendship Games go on without a hitch?  Watch to find out because I’m not going to spoil it for you!

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How Gamers Can Leverage Advanced Tools for a Superior Gaming Experience

Thank you SMT Entertainment for sending us a digital copy of this CD!

Ozwald Bozwald is a Harlem, New York City based recording artist, producer, and DJ.  He's been in the music industry for nearly fifteen years and most of his music was hip-hop and rap based.  In his new album, Transformed, he changes his music style to dance; and it's awesome!  It's not just his music style that has changed, but his whole life has been transformed from when he started making music.  

Ozwald is a full-fledged vegan, Christian, and a husband though he never planned on being any of those.  While the songs are pretty neutral without any scripture or praising of Jesus, Ozwald isn't shy about his faith on his social media sites.  In fact, his single 'Only One' is about being monogamous and the singer offers to break the law if needed for his love interest.  While that song isn't exactly teaching good values, it's not promoting sleeping around like many popular dance songs these days.

There are four tracks on this EP and they can be listened to freely on Sound Cloud.  If you like the music, you can buy it digitally on iTunes for $3.99.      His latest single 'Only One' is available on Amazon, but the rest of the album is not there yet.  Some of his older rap music is though. I'm definitely a fan of his newer music versus his hip-hop roots.

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The Role of Mockups in Game Development

It’s been a year since we were pulled into #GamerGate.  A lot has happened since then.  We’ve been around since 2000 and were quite accustomed with people poking fun at our reviews and sharing them on various forums for a laugh.  Parents and Christians still found them useful, so we pressed on and grew thicker skin over the years.  Throughout our existence on the internet, we have received a lot of good constructive criticism to which we have taken to heart and have implemented into our current review standard and quality of reviews.  While some people still poke fun at the moral score or objectionable content we point out, the quality of the reviews are often noted and praised.

With that being said, on October 15th I woke up to ten or more people tweeting about us (@divinegames) and suggesting that Intel consider advertising with us. At first I thought it was sarcasm until I read more comments where people were actually PRAISING our review standard that so many have poked fun at in the past.  In fact, Kotaku once re-posted a blog post about how our Portal 2 review lacked references to Jesus.  People were also comparing our Red Dead Redemption score to Bayonetta 2 (we own the discs but have yet to play and review this game BTW) and liked how we did not dock the game’s score if we did not agree with it in a political or religious manner. 

Our goal always has been and will be to point out objectionable content in a neutral manner to allow our readers to know what is in a game.   We want them to make their own buying decisions without talking down to them.    We respect that our readers have different convictions and gaming preferences. 

My gaming horizons were expanded a little bit this year as #GamerGate arranged for us to review games like

 we did.  The new microphone works great, so thanks again for that!

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World of Warcraft Gifts Guide: Delight Every WoW Enthusiast

Thank you Disney for Sending us this DVD to review!

Dear Sofia: A Royal Collection DVD features six episodes with wonderful life lessons and special appearances from popular Disney princesses to aide Sofia in times of trouble.  This 114-minute DVD is available on Amazon for less than $13 and is well worth it for any princess loving girls out there.  

Here’s a breakdown of the six episodes on this disc:

  • The Amulet and the Anthem – Sofia is randomly picked to sing the Enchancia Anthem and the privileges that go with it get to her head.    Her friends that were hoping to get picked get tired of her bragging and leave Sofia to her duties.  The only problem is that Sofia suddenly becomes cursed to randomly ribbit!  She discovers that this curse is from her special amulet.  Despite apologizing to her friends, the curse is not lifted.  Admirably, Sofia does not disobey her father to give the amulet to Cedric to undo the curse.  Instead, Belle comes to the rescue and helps Sofia and her friends feel better.  
  • Princesses to the Rescue – Princes James and Jin stumble upon a treasure map of the Jade Jaguar.  They set off to locate the treasure doubting the existence of the Jade Jaguar.  When the kings find out, they set off immediately to stop the young boys.  Unfortunately, they all get caught in the same trap together.  With the advice of the mage, the princesses set out to rescue them by taking a side entrance into the jaguar’s cave.  The path is perilous and all but Sofia want to give up.  Mulan shows up and encourages them to keep going and to think outside of the box to solve many obstacles in their way.
  • Winter’s Gift – Sofia made a wand holder for Cedric, but after hearing him complain about the useless gifts he had received in the past she doesn’t deem her gift worthy and sets off to find another.  On her journey with her rabbit, Clover, they meet a fawn named Winter who is cursed.  Whatever or whomever Winter touches, becomes frozen in enchanted ice.  In order to undo this curse, Winter must appease the mountain witch with a nice gift.  After failing at offering a gift, princess Tiana appears and teaches them that gifts from the heart are worth more than any material thing.
  • Two to Tangu – The princesses are heading to a party and risk taking a magic carpet instead of their royal carriage.  Unfortunately, they get lost on the way and end up in the town’s marketplace instead.  A fortune teller there gives them directions but the two princesses still manage to get stranded because their magic carpet has yet to be tamed.  Jasmine appears and teaches them how to tame their carpet and the princesses discover that some risks are worth taking.
  • Minimus is Missing – Princess Amber is struggling to learn how to ride a flying horse and is on the verge of giving up.  After a lunch break they discover that all of the flying horses have gone missing!  While searching for their horses, Amber learns how to fly a gryphon and learns that sometimes it takes a few tries to learn something, but it’s always worthwhile in the end.
  • Cool Hand Fluke (bonus episode) - Sofia visits and offers to throw a party for the merpeople.  However, Fluke is jealous of Sofia  and tries to one up her and her friends.  In an attempt to get a pearl, he winds up stuck in a giant clam.  When Sofia and Flip rescue him, he is ungrateful and doesn't care that Flip was injured during the process.    Upon learning that mantacorns shed their horns once a year, Fluke gets the (bad) idea to take an old horn to replace Flip's broken one.  Again, Fluke gets trapped and upon rescuing him, everyone learns that jealousy is bad and that asking is always better than taking.


I like how each episode teaches one or more valuable lessons.  Better yet, they're not overly preachy either.   As an added bonus, there is some stationary bundled with this DVD collection.  My daughters, despite getting older,  enjoyed the stationery as well as the episodes.

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What Routers Are Best For Home In 2019?

Thank you MPRM Communications for sending us this DVD to review!

While my kids and I were not necessarily looking forward to watching a sports related movie, we're all glad we gave it a shot.  Golden Shoes is about an eight year old boy named Christian Larou who lives and breathes soccer.   He wants to be like the professional footballer Christiano Ronaldo.   Christian's dad is on active duty in Afghanistan and his mother is working long hours and struggles taking her son to soccer practice.  

For some reason their neighbor, Frank, has a chip on his shoulder and is blackmailing the coach to put his twin boys on the playing field more than Christian. As a result, Christian's athletic abilities are suffering.  Instead of catching a break, Christian's life gets more difficult when his mother is bed-ridden in the hospital for a while.  Since Christian has no relatives and his dad is MIA, he is forced to live in Frank's basement until his mother recuperates.

Much like Cinderella, Christian is treated very poorly compared to Frank's sons and is given some golden soccer shoes that unlock his hidden talent that propels his team into the play-offs.  Not only does Christian become an inspiration to his teammates, he becomes a local hero that attracts the attention of talent scouts, and even the president of the United States.       

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AUKEY Car Cup Holder Phone Mount

Thank you Disney for sending us this DVD to review!

Almost everyone likes Star Wars and kids love Legos.  So mixing them together is a match made in heaven.  Add in everyone's favorite characters with their famous lines, a solid script, and it'll be 92 minutes well spent.   The humor in this series had both kids and adults cracking up.

Darth Vader had many funny moments with his voice getting messed up due to a short in his wiring.  His cape also got in his way often and choked him while flying his pod racer.  Another great moment was when he scolded a storm trooper for being clumsy and then tripped over him!  I dare say that these episodes are more entertaining than the original movies.

Here's a synopsis of the four episodes in this DVD:

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Logitech M570 Wireless Mouse Review-Better than a conventional mouse

Thank you Bohlsen Group for sending us this book to review!

When Melinda Cerisano, the author of Heaven Is For Animal Too, was ten years old she asked a Methodist minister if animals go to heaven.  He told her that they did not since they lacked souls and were not made in the likeness of God.  As a certified animal trainer, behaviorist, and accomplished equestrian, she was not satisfied with that answer and  set out on a seven year journey to prove that animals do indeed go to heaven when they die.

This 257 page book began as eight verses in the Bible that comforted Melinda and several of her friends when they suffered the loss of their pets.  After seeing how these verses (Gen 1:30, Hos 2:18-19, Pro 12:!0, Ecc 3:21, Joel 1:18,20, 2:22, Rom 8:20-21) affected her friends and even brought some of them closer to God, she embarked on her journey to write a book. While she doesn't claim to be a theologian, she does cite and reference various Bible translations, texts, and scrolls in their original language.  

The Bible translations used include the New King James Version, the Darby New Translation, the New Living Translation, the New International Version, the New American Standard Bible,  and the Dead Sea Scrolls.  The Interlinear Bible is used for translating between Greek, Hebrew, and English.

I found it fascinating that most of the modern day translations replace the word "soul" for "creature" instead.  With the word soul in place, verses like Genesis 1:29-30 give animals more hope of joining us in heaven one day.  There is an entire chapter dedicated to explaining the word for word translation and its significance.  

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Living The Christian Life

Thank you Bohlsen Group for sending us this book to review!

John F. Hunter, the author of Living The Christian Life is a pastor, evangelist, chaplain, and a missionary.  He put together an eighty-eight page book that nicely summarizes the basics of Christianity without going over people's heads.  There are plenty of life stories, analogies, and scripture references to back up the fundamentals of living a God honoring life. 

There are thirteen chapters  discussing salvation, baptism, communion, praying, serving, and reaching out to others.  I like the analogy of the hub, spokes, and rim being all part of a tire much like God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are all integrated into one God.  The author recommends spending some alone time with God and listening to what his purpose for your life is.  Though I'm not sure if I would spend a couple of weeks in the wilderness like he did and deal with ticks, raccoons, and thunderstorms.  To each their own.  

Some of the other life stories are fascinating as well including a vivid dream he had about his unborn daughter and got to meet her nine months later and the mysterious person/potential angel that helped his family out when their truck's engine threw a rod in the desert.  When they got their truck looked at, nobody knew of anyone by the helpful person's name.  

Since I was raised Christian, I can't really say that this book has changed my life much.  I have put into practice many of its teachings including: prayer, fellowship, Bible study, witnessing, worship, and giving.  However, I do recommend this book to new believers and those who are curious to what Christianity is all about.  The language is pretty easy to understand and the concepts are straightforward and easy to follow.  Because this book is so short and I was able to finish it in two sittings, I recommend getting the $3.99 digital version as opposed to the $15.99 paperback.  Unless of course, you're getting it as a gift for someone you love.

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Encuentro De Sangre – A Metal Tribute to Castlevania

Thank you Click Communications for sending us this DVD to review!

This 115 minute DVD features three problem solving and singing episodes that involve ghosts, pirates, and your favorite Disney characters. Included in the DVD is a trick or treat bag that is more of a novelty than useful given its small size.  Thankfully, my kids still enjoyed the DVD regardless. 

In the first episode Mickey has a surprise picnic planned for Minnie and hopes that she will say yes. She does and they start on their way. The weather starts out beautiful, but that soon changes.  Upon trying to turn around, their car breaks down and gets two flat tires.  A creepy castle is just up ahead; they or course they go there seeking help.  

Once inside, they meet the flying Count Mickula who is very helpful and offers to help fix their car while they stay at his castle. The only downside is that Count Mickula believes that his castle is haunted. In return for helping them fix their car, Minnie and Mickey offer to help explore the castle to confirm or deny that suspicion.  

Along the way Mickey and Minnie will gather various tools used to solve riddles throughout the show.  The kids are encouraged to deduce which tool will solve each dilemma presented to them.  There is also plenty of singing and dancing they're asked to participate in as well.  The songs and atmosphere reminds me of the Rocky Horror Picture Show with much cleaner lyrics and characters of course!  

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How To Turn Your Love Of Video Games Into A Career

Thank you Bohlsen Group for sending us a copy of this book!

Many Christians often wonder if they are truly saved and many non-believers wonder what salvation is all about.  Is it simply praying a prayer and apologizing for your sins, or is there more to it?  Can a person lose their salvation?  Pastor Bill Parker has spent over thirty years studying the Bible and has put together a comprehensive guide for true salvation.

The book What is Salvation contains eight chapters and is 101 pages long.  It looks at salvation from the eternal realm,  legal realm, spiritual realm, and from the glorified realm.  Each of these realms have four common truths.  All four of them are of the Lord, all of them are necessary for the salvation of God's people, and they are all founded upon the Lord Jesus Christ as the salvation of His people.  According to this book "...Salvation, including faith, is a free gift that comes by the sovereign will, power, mercy, and grace of God, not by the sinner's will." (page 60)    The passage this statement is based on is Romans 9:15-16.  

There are many bold statements made by this book and each one of them is backed by scripture.  Many believers debate about the possibility of losing one's salvation.  The stance this book takes is that "Truly saved people can never be condemned or lost again" and that "the reason so many believe salvation can be lost is because they believe salvation can be gained/and or maintained by some condition(s) sinners meet, at least in some way, at some stage, to some degree."  (page 68)  Those quotes are based on passages like John 6:37-40, John 10:27-30, and Romans 8:31-39.  The whole passages are displayed which makes this book a little easier to read without having to crack open the Bible every five paragraphs to look up the reference verse.  

With that said, this book is very thorough and I could only read a chapter or two a day to have enough time to let the information absorb into my non-seminary student brain.   While it wasn't exactly a page turner for me, I did find it well written and relatively easy to follow.  The asking price is a reasonable $7.99 on Amazon and I recommend looking into it if you have any questions about your or any loved one's salvation.

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Gaming Trends in 2021: What is the Future of Gaming?

Thank you Click Communications for sending us this DVD!

Miles From Tomorrowland is a futuristic space themed animated series on Disney Junior.  It came out in February of 2015 and has some recurring characters with famous voice actors including Bill Nye, Alton Brown, Wil Wheaton, George Takei, and Mark Hamill.  The main character, Miles, is an enthusiastic and curious kid that often finds himself in and out of trouble.  His sister, Loretta, is the complete opposite and follows the rules and is the smarter of the two kids.  Their mother, Phoebe, is the spaceship's captain with their father, Leo, as the ship's engineer.  The parents work for Tomorrowland's Transit Authority and undertake many missions to keep outer space safe for all of its travelers.

The Let's Rocket DVD contains ten episodes including:

  • Runaway Shuttle -There's an out of control ice cream truck heading to one of Jupiter's smoldering moons, Io.  The Callistos have been summoned to assist their former schoolmate, Lucky, who is trapped in the ice cream vehicle.   

  • Surfing the Whirlpool - Miles wants to go surfing with his dad where he used to hang out as a younger surfer dude.  While the mother and daughter stay behind, they learn of a huge gamma ray burst heading straight for Miles and his dad.

  • Ocean in Motion - The Callistos have been summoned to figure out why a probe has received water damage.  The most unusual part of this mystery is the planet that the probe is on, doesn't have any water.  Or does it?

  • Explorer Exchange - Blodger Blopp visits the Callisto family as part of a Cosmic Explorers exchange program.  

  • Game On - While a new highway is being setup in an uncharted quadrant, the Callistos are sent to introduce themselves to the alien races in that sector to start an alliance.  They get captured as prisoners instead.

  • How I saved My Summer Vacation - The Callisto family is on vacation, but the vacant planet they visit is nothing like the pamphlets describe it.    

  • Who Stole The Stellosphere?  While Miles is left behind to clean his room, his family's spaceship is stolen.  Can Miles stall the thief to help his uncle and family reclaim their ship?

  • Rock N' Roll - Miles is finally big enough to use the Exoflex.  His whole family is certified to use it, and it adds pressure for Miles to learn how to use it quickly.  Unfortunately, he's not the natural he had hoped he would be.  Miles will have to overcome his doubts and save his family from a rock slide on the moon using the Exoflex.

  • The Goldilocks Zone - Miles gets reunited with a former skating buddy of his. As sweet at the reunion is, the situation could have been better since his friend's home planet was destroyed.

  • Hiccup In The Plan - The Callistos accept a mission to locate a missing beacon.  However, the mission would be a lot easier to accomplish if Merc, the robotic ostrich, didn't have ship shaking hiccups.


My kids enjoyed this two hour DVD and are new fans of the Miles From Tomorrowland series.  My son liked the bundled blastboard flashlight.    The DVD sells for a little over $12 on Amazon and is worth buying for any kid that likes outer space.

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The Benefits Of The Internet For Your Gameplay

Thank you Rogers and Cowen for sending us this DVD to review!

Calvin Campbell is a former professional baseball player who would rather go drinking with his friends than spend time with his seventeen year old daughter who needs him in her life.  She is dating a guy that is older than her and has a one track mind.  She knows her father doesn't approve of him, but when he doesn't spend time with her,  she's running into her boyfriend's arms instead.  

While shopping at the local grocery store for some food and alcohol, Calvin Campbell meets an employee there with Down syndrome.  He goes by the name Produce and just so happens to work in the produce department.  Produce is a good employee that knows the SKU numbers for every fruit and vegetable in the store.  As much as he longs for the employee of the month recognition, the honor always seems to elude him.  Despite the lack of recognition, Produce is very friendly and makes many friends at the store.  One of those friendships is with Calvin who can use a good friend to help him get his life back in order.  

Where Hope Grows tells a good story about redemption and spending more time with your loved ones.  Because of the language, heavy drinking, and sexual situations, I don't recommend this movie for young children.  It's accurately rated PG-13.  With that said, I highly recommend it for everyone else.  The picture quality and acting is well done.  I recognized the actors Alan Powell from The Song and William Zabka from

.  Sometimes the actor for Produce, David DeSanctis, was a little hard to understand, but he still did an excellent job and made his character lovable.  I like how the movie and cast vowed to stop using the "R" word to describe people with Down syndrome.   The message of not under-estimating or giving up on people is clear and needs to be shared.  The DVD sells for less than $13 and the Blu-Ray goes for $18 on Amazon.

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eniTAB360

Thank you Disney for sending us this movie to review!

Unlike previous Disney movies, Descendants opens up with a story from a tablet instead of a book.  When Belle and Beast married they rounded up all of the villains and cast them away on an island with no Wifi and no escape.  That is until Belle and Beast's son, Ben, is crowned king of Auradon and gives the offspring of the most notorious villains a chance to live a normal life in his kingdom.  Their parents Evil Queen (Snow White), Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty), Jafar (Aladdin), and Cruella De Vil (101 Dalmations) eagerly await their kids efforts to reclaim the fairy godmother's wand to undo the protection magic on the Isle of the Lost. 

Getting their hands on the wand is no easy task since it is locked down in a museum.  The misfits will have to make friends at the boarding school and become acquainted with the offspring of Dopey, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Mulan, and the fairy godmother.  Sadly many of the friendships are one sided as the descendants are using their social engineering skills and magic to get what they want.  

They're not all bad once they step away from their parent's shadows though.  I like how this movie teaches about forgiveness and redemption.  Each of the descendants learns to accomplish things on their own and they become well aware of good and evil and its consequences.  Some of the treatment the descendants get is well deserved, but not all of it is.

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Waves '98

Thank you Rogers and Cowan for sending us this DVD to review!

Skepticism is on the rise and Christianity has been under attack from scientists, scholars, and archaeologists.  Many consider the Bible to be nothing more than a history book or just a bunch of fairy tales.  For more than fifty years, many prominent archaeologists believe that there is no solid evidence for the events in Exodus taking place as the Bible claims.  This view is so widespread that prominent rabbis like David Wolpe consider the book of Exodus to be "historical fiction."

If the book of Exodus is myth then the rest of the Bible loses its credibility and purpose.  Director Timothy Mahoney sets out to validate or disprove the Bible's account of Exodus in a twelve year archaeological journey to Egypt and around the world. Throughout this documentary (narrated by Kevin Sorbo) there are interviews with prominent Egyptologists, historians, archaeologists, authors, and even the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Shimon Peres, the president of Israel.

What Tim discovers is that many people assume the Biblical Exodus took place during the New Kingdom era of Rameses II.  There is no evidence of a famine, infanticide, or vacating and destruction of Biblical cites in that time period.  However, if you examine the previous era, the Middle Kingdom, there is evidence that matches up perfectly with the Bible time frame and historical accounts.  The problem with these findings is that it would mean that all of the dating to this point would be inaccurate and this is a tough pill to swallow for  Egyptologists, historians, and archaeologists.  

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Belong To Us

Thank you Click Communications for sending us this Blu-Ray to review!

The Walt Disney Animation Studios Short Films Collection contains twelve short films that are bound to make you and your family laugh, cry, and stay on the edge of your seat.  Even though my family owns several Disney movies, we have only seen two of the short films beforehand.  The collection includes:

 

  • Frozen Fever - Elsa wants to make up for lost time and throw her sister a birthday party that she'll never forget.  The only problem is that Elsa isn't feeling that well.
  • Feast - A dog is enjoying the bachelor life style with his owner and all of the junk food that goes along with it.  Things change when the owner gets a health conscious girlfriend and hilarity ensues.  
  • Get a Horse - The classic black and white Disney characters get a 3D CGI-makeover in this silly short.
  • Paperman - A couple falls in love at first sight and suddenly get separated - can paper airplanes reunite them?
  • Tangled Ever After - Pascal and Maximus lose the rings for Rapunzel and  Flynn Rider's wedding.  They go through a lot of effort and humiliation to retrieve them.
  • The Ballad Of Nessie - The origin of Loch Ness is explained in this story about a dragon who was kicked out of her happy pond when a mini golf course took over the region.
  • Prep & Landing - Operation: Secret Santa - Christmas is just around the corner and Mrs. Claus needs the help of some tech savvy elves to put together a gift for Santa.
  • Tick Tock Tale - Clocks can live an exciting life too, especially when the owner of a clock shop leaves for the day.
  • How To Hook Up Your Home Theater - Goofy just wants to watch a football game on a good sized television in the comfort of his own home.  Little does he know how complicated setting up a home theater can be!
  • The Little Match Girl - In the dead of winter a poor girl is trying to sustain herself by selling matches.  Unfortunately nobody seems to be interested in buying them or helping her stay warm.  Perhaps her matches can comfort her?  
  • Lorenzo - A gluttonous cat enjoys eating in front of starving cats starting at him from his window.  As a tail-less cat walks by, Lorenzo makes fun of it.  He is then cursed with a tail that has a mind of its own that likes to dance the Tango.  
  • John Henry - Recently freed slaves are promised land for helping construct rail road tracks. The deadline is quickly looming and they may lose this opportunity.  The legendary John Henry with his super strength gives it his all to  help secure better lives for his family and friends. 

 

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That Sugar Film

Thank you Sunshine Sachs for sending us a DVD screener of this film!

Thanks to his girlfriend of five years, Damon Gameau has been eating a healthy diet with very little sugar in it. With a baby on the way he wants to see firsthand what impact seemingly healthy foods would have on his trim body. His goal is to eat the national average of forty-four teaspoons of sugar a day for two months and to record the negative changes his body goes through as a result. Instead of indulging on known sugary food like candy and ice cream, his new diet will include food with hidden forms of sugars in food such such as yogurt, granola, and fruit juices. 

To document his journey, Damon enlists the help of several doctors and a nutritionalist. While they monitor his calorie intake and the deterioration of his liver, Damon still exercises as he did before this experiment. Not surprisingly Damon started to develop fatty liver disease, mood swings, and loss of energy throughout this documentary. His abdomen and rear end grew in size as well.

That Sugar Film is not just about Damon - he travels across Australia and to the United states to interview Aborigines and other people impacted by sugary sodas like Mountain Dew. Soda addiction has put many Aborigines in the grave or on dialysis and there was a seventeen year old in the US with such badly rotten teeth that he needed to have them pulled and get dentures. The dental procedure is a little graphic and there are some images of naked Aborigines. 

Other than those scenes, there are some light hearted skits and silly songs featuring famous actors like Stephen Fry and Hugh Jackman. Most of the film is as serious as the issue at hand. People have to learn to read the labels on all of their food items; many foods look innocent, but contain the daily suggested amount of sugar by themselves! After seeing That Sugar Film and Fed Up, our family has been paying closer attention to how much sugar is in the food we are eating and have eliminated sugary cereals from our pantry. Thankfully we have never been big soda drinkers, but we have been fooled by seemingly healthy food. I highly recommend watching this movie, and if you don't please pay more attention to the amount of sugar (in all of its forms) in the foods you are eating.

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Flash/Browser Games Trends to Watch Out for In 2018

Thank you Destination America for sending us a screener of the first episode!

People often ponder what happens after we die.  Do the lights simply fade out, or is there more to it than that?  The Bible says that Jesus is the resurrection and the life. He who believes in him, though he may die, he shall live. (John 11:25)  The team of Project Afterlife set out to talk to various people who have clinically died and have miraculously come back.  Their stories thus far indicate that there is indeed more to come after we die.  Are you ready for that day?

Each of the six-part series will look at two extraordinary cases.  The team consists of an investigative filmmaker, a paramedic, an ordained minister, and a retired state trooper.   A camera man and another teammate (who has some expertise on the case at hand) will interrogate the resurrected person and those involved with their death and resuscitation.    

The first episode has a case about a non-believer in his fifties that had a massive heart attack and died at a hospital shortly after his arrival.  He was pronounced dead and was unresponsive for forty minutes.  Despite all of the doctors' efforts, they cleared the room with the exception of one nurse.  The doctor in charge left the room and was audibly told to pray for the man and to try reviving him again.  The doctor obeyed after being told twice by this voice in his head (whom he believed to be the Lord's).  Even though his actions were questioned by the nurse and another doctor who entered the room, he prayed for the deceased man and shocked him one more time.  After putting his reputation and possible career on the line, the once dead man came back to life despite his body darkening after the massive heart attack he suffered.   

While that man was not a believer at his death, this experience changed his views and he lives a completely different life now as a result.   The doctor who obeyed and saved him was greatly impacted by this experience as well.  I won't go into too much more detail as this show is worth seeing firsthand.

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