Months ago, I wrote a positive article about Gamefly. I am now reconsidering. Today I went to their site with my son to choose new games. First, I was disgusted by the advertisements on their website. Second, my child wanted to watch a game trailer and it began playing a hidious preview for a Mature rated game called “Shutter”. It is impossible to watch the game trailers without being subjected to these gross previews. Update: I have posted their very nice and positive response to this problem below.
I sent Gamefly the following complaint:
I am a long time member and am considering canceling my account for this reason. As a mother of two children, I am disappointed with the graphic advertisements on your website. I can’t even watch the game trailers with my kids because the previews before them are sometimes horrifying (shutter for example). My children like to go on Gamefly and pick out their games, but this is not possible because the advertisement pictures have BLOOD and GRAPHIC IMAGES. After this month I will be canceling if this is not corrected.
UPDATE I’m satisfied with Gamefly’s response on this matter. Here it is:
Thank you for sharing your concerns regarding our recent advertising campaign. While we screen the advertisements before they appear on the site, we do understand your desire to shield your children from inappropriate content. We will evaluate future advertisements with your concerns in mind.
If you would like your account to present GameFly Advertisements only, you can use GameFly’s Parental Controls. To activate this feature, please visit the “My Account” link, http://www.gamefly.com/member/account.asp, and select “Parental Controls”. By adjusting the game and UMD movie ratings, the only ads displayed will be ones promoting the GameFly service.
We would like to thank you again for bringing this to our attention in a thoughtful manner. Feel free to contact me if you have any further issues or concerns.
Sincerely,
Terri - Vice President
GameFly Customer Service
Email: support@gamefly.com
We went to see the 2D version of the new movie Journey to the Center of the Earth. It kept the kids interest, but I think that the 3D version would have been so much better. We liked the movie even though we made fun of it on the way home. I was very happy that someone finally made a movie for kids that didn’t have any blood in it. Click here for more. . .
There have been two episodes of ABC’s new show Wipeout. It reminds me of MXC, only unlike MXC, Wipeout is family friendly (more about MXC below). Episode three airs Tues, July 8, 8/7c. Check out the official website where you can watch episodes and get recaps. Wipeout Website See a video below of both shows to compare them.
Human cannonballs! Human pinballs! Crashes, smashes and mud splashes! Twenty-four thrill-seekers will compete in the world’s largest extreme obstacle course designed to provide the most spills, face plants and wipeouts ever seen on television, in Wipeout, a painfully funny new reality series.
Each week 24 daring new contestants of all ages, shapes and sizes will go head to head through four rounds of grueling and physically demanding but wildly hilarious obstacle courses to win the title of Wipeout Championand the grand prize of $50,000. The contestants and the courses change every week, with over-the-top obstacles including “Dizzy Dummy” the “Dirty Balls” and “The Dreadmill” - which will have contestants jumping hurdles on a 40-foot long treadmill at warp speed. In the end, only one contestant will win, while everyone else will Wipeout! read more…
About MXC: In Japan from 1986 to 1989 there was a popular gameshow called ‘Takeshi’s Castle’ where contestants have to run through obstacle courses. Often they ended up getting clobbered. MXC is a re-dubbing in English of that old show. It is funny but definitely not appropriate for kids (unless you turn the volume down all the way). The last new episode premiered in February 2007, and no word has been made at this time whether any more new episodes will be produced. On Spike, usually in the middle of the night, you can catch MXC.
We highly recommend this movie to everyone. It was great! There was nothing in it that would be bad for the kids to see, no swearing, nothing disturbing. It was just plain fun and had everyone in a full theatre laughing!
Our family recently finished reading the Percy Jackson & The Olympians books, 1-4, written by Rick Riordan. We all really enjoyed the stories. We read about three to five chapters daily. We highly recommend this series and are waiting impatiently for the next book!
The main character, Percy, always had trouble in school and was diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD. As it turns out, all the children of the gods have dyslexia and ADHD. The reason behind this is that they have to be alert and on thier toes, so it is one of thier natural instincts to not focus on one partular thing, but be constantly surveying their surroundings. I liked that.
The author, Rick Riordan, did a wonderful job of making the characters endearing, even the kids who are bullies and the not-so-nice kids.
read more: Percy Jackson & The Olympians Review , Vote for your favorite Percy Jackson book and watch a video of the author reading chapter one of “The Battle of the Labyrinth” (click here)
Book review:Send Yourself Roses: Thoughts on my Life, Love, and Leading Roles, by Kathleen Turner, published in 2008.
I recently read the book Send Yourself Roses by Kathleen Turner. I don’t read biographies. The last one I read was in 1995, It’s always Something, by Gilda Radner. Because I am a fan and heard that Nicolas Cage was suing over some things Mrs. Turner said in the book, I had to read it. I’m glad I did. It was good.
She told a little story about each movie she was in, such as Romancing the Stone. Michael Douglas, Danny DeVito and Kathleen really hit it off. She stated that during the filming, Michael and his wife were going through a separation. She didn’t have a relationship at the time, either, and began to fall in love.
I found it entertaining the way she lets everyone have it. She obviously doesn’t worry about angering her fellow actors. If they did something to upset her, they are going to hear about it. Maybe even in a published book. For example, Christie Brinkley stood her up a few times. She was supposed to see Kathleen’s play and was a no show more than once. Aparently Christie felt bad and sent a gift. Kathleen says she sent it right back saying “You can’t buy friendship” or something like that. Nicolas Cage filed suit against her for claiming he had been arrested for DUI twice and once stole a chihuahua he liked.
Anyway, if you are a also a fan, love her movies, or have Rumatoid Arthritis, I recommend this book. A word of warning, though. F-WORD THIS, F-WORD THAT, F_CK, F_CK, F_CK. I don’t swear, and all the f_words in this book were a little surprising to me. Kathleen Turner must have been a truck driver in a former life!
We have a full size Dodge Ram 1500 Van and have calculated the gas mileage several times. It is 17 mpg every time. On the window sticker it says 14 mpg in town and 16 mpg highway. I think this is awesome for such a HUGE vehicle. Still, it costs us over $100 to fill it up every-other-week. I never imagined I’d pay so much for gas. I’m ready for an electric car, but no way am I giving up my van.
I highly recommend this book for young readers age nine to ninety. It has it all: Humor, suspense, mystery and more humor. It is really a ‘Detective Novel for Kids’. Our family totally enjoyed reading this book together and are looking forward to the next book in the series.
Summary: “Fletcher Moon may not be the most popular 12-year-old in his Irish town but he’s proud-maybe a little too proud-of the badge that he constantly flashes to let everyone know that he’s an online graduate of a private detective academy in Washington, DC. The other kids admit that Fletcher, aka Half Moon, has solved several tough cases at Saint Jerome’s Elementary and Middle School, so they come to him when they have a problem. But when super all-in-pink girly-girl April Devereux hires him to find a lock of a pop star’s hair that she claims was stolen by one of the Sharkeys-a family of well-known criminals-everything starts going wrong for Fletcher. His precious badge is taken, he finds a single huge footprint at every crime scene, and he’s picked up by the local police for arson when the Devereux playhouse burns down. When Fletcher goes on the run, who becomes his number-one ally? Young Red Sharkey. A typically funny Colfer offering without the mania of the Artemis Fowl series (Hyperion), the story wittily delivers the message that some people aren’t-for good or ill-who they appear to be. Kids who enjoy comic mysteries will have a great time with Half Moon, and the conclusion drops plenty of hints that this could become a series.“
I am a long time member and am considering canceling my account for this reason. As a mother of two children, I am disappointed with the graphic advertisements on your website. I can’t even watch the game trailers with my kids because the previews before them are sometimes horrifying (shutter for example). My children like to go on Gamefly and pick out their games, but this is not possible because the advertisement pictures have BLOOD and GRAPHIC IMAGES. After this month I will be canceling if this is not corrected.
