Animal Crossing: New Horizons' Toy Day Is Here

It is officially Toy Day in Animal Crossing: New Horizons! Thanks to a recent update filled with holiday content, players should be able to participate in Toy Day, within the video game. There's been festive content leading up to this moment, but now is the time to go out and meet Jingle the reindeer and generally be merry within the popular title.

When you first boot up Animal Crossing: New Horizons today, Isabelle should notify you about it being Toy Day. As such, Jingle the reindeer is waiting for you on your island. For me, they were milling about the town square in front of Resident Services. They initially ask you to create and hand over some festive wrapping paper -- for which Jingle has the DIY plans, which require some ornaments which can be shaken down from festive trees around the island.

Once you've made and handed over the wrapping paper, Jingle tasks you with delivering gifts to all the residents with the help of a little magic bag. All you need to do is keep it equipped and talk to the various island residents and offer them a Toy Day gift from it. Once you've given one to all of the villagers -- only the ones with houses seem to count -- head back to Jingle.

Turning over the magic bag once you're done, Jingle has a special gift and another DIY recipe for you. Additionally, once you've finished with Jingle, you can go about and exchange gifts with all of the villagers. You'll need some wrapping paper to make sure a gift is properly, well, a gift, but Zucker made sure I had some when I tried to exchange gifts without a wrapped present first. So far, the stuff I've received lines up with the toys that have been available in the shop this month. And that seems to do it for Toy Day!

New Resident Evil Portal Service Launching in 2021

Capcom is launching a new service in 2021 called “Resident Evil Portal” that’ll serve as a one-stop place for Resident Evil fans’ needs. It’ll encompass a number of different individual Resident Evil services that’ll be integrated under the Resident Evil Portal soon, but perhaps most important for the casual and hardcore Resident Evil followers alike, it’ll be “the go-to source for the latest info” on the series, Capcom said. No exact release date has been announced yet, but this service will be available at some point in 2021.

The plans to consolidate different Resident Evil services into the Resident Evil Portal were announced on Thursday with a new page on Capcom’s site giving an overview of what’s to come. Players will be able to connect with other Resident Evil fans just as they can now through other services and will be able to keep up with Resident Evil news.

“Resident Evil Portal will be the go-to source for the latest info on the Resident Evil series; it's a place for players to share their stats with others around the world, an overflowing item box of content for series veterans and rookies,” Capcom said.

After looking at the many Resident Evil sites Capcom has up, the idea to integrate them under one umbrella makes sense. A version of the Resident Evil Portal exists already and serves as a landing page for individual sites for games like Resident Evil 3 and Resident Evil Village. That site is different from Resident Evil.net which keeps players up to date on different events and things like stats and media. Add to those the Resident Evil Ambassador Program and the Japanese sites for the series and you have a lot of Resident Evil news that’s spread out all over the place which hopefully won’t be a problem once the new portal launches.

Pokemon: Secret of the Jungle Will Reveal New Info on Ash’s Father

Pokemon: Secret of the Jungle, aka Pokemon Coco, is set to be released in Japan later this week, with a North American release set to hit next year, and the film has released some new info that is sure to blow fans' minds as Ash Ketchum's father is slated to be further examined in the twenty-third film of the series. With Ash and Pikachu experiencing a brand new adventure in the depths of a jungle, coming into contact with a Tarzan-like character in "Coco", the characters will be introduced to a new legendary Pokemon known as Zarude!

Pokemon fans have never had the opportunity to see Ash's father in the long-running anime franchise, but it has been alluded to that Ketchum's father and grandfather are currently exploring the world on journeys of their own to become the greatest trainers in the world. The director of the film, Tetsuo Yajima, went into detail in a recent interview regarding how Ash will be reminded of his father when he looks at the relationship between Coco and Zarude, with the large primate seemingly protecting the young boy who spends his time traveling the jungle by swinging from vines and living with the pocket monsters residing in the green environment.

With Ash Ketchum recently having won a Pokemon Tournament to cap off his adventures within the Alola Region, the protagonist of the anime franchise, his Pikachu, and his new friend Goh has been exploring the world in a bid to capture even more powerful Pokemon. With the Galar Region having a large factor in the newest season of Pokemon Journeys, Ash and Goh have been butting heads with some of the trainers from the popular Nintendo Switch game of Pokemon Sword and Shield, with the current champion of Galar, Leon, acting as their biggest hurdle to overcome.

Like so many other anime shows and movies, Pokemon: Secret of the Jungle was pushed back as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, as it was originally scheduled to be released into theaters in Japan earlier this summer. Though we don't know when exactly the twenty-third film in the series will be released in North America, we would imagine that this news about Ash's father being mentioned in the movie will get plenty of Pokemon fans buzzing!

MrBeast Launching $100,000 Finger On The App Game

MrBeast, one of the most popular YouTube creators, is launching an updated version of the "Finger on the App" game which will multiply the cash prize of its past efforts by four times over. MrBeast has earned a reputation for giving away wild prizes to friends, strangers, and game contestants in his online videos and now he is making his big cash prizes available to everyone who wants to play through the app. With thee latest Finger on the App game, MrBeast is going to be giving away $100,000. All you have to do to win is keep your finger on the app longer than everyone else who plays.

Finger on the App launched back on June 30 with a $25,000 prize. 1.1 million devices downloaded the game. 400,000 people were still playing the game when it reached its three-hour mark. After 70 hours, MrBeast (real name Jimmy Donaldson) ended the game and awarded $20,000 to the four contestants who were still remaining. The new app is called Finger on the App 2 and will kick off its next contest on Friday, December 29 at 7pm ET/4pm PT. There is no word on how long te contest is expected to last or if MrBeast will wrap the game early and award multiple prizes but it's a safe bet the winner(s) will have their finger on the app through the clock striking midnight on New Year's Eve.

As a means to ensure players are not cheating, the participants will be required to follow an object within the app without removing their finger from it. This is to prevent any contestants from putting an object on the app which could otherwise be registered as a finger.

MrBeast has given away a $1 million prize in the past but the overall value of everything he has given away on his YouTube channel would take hours to calculate. He has opened a free car dealership, taken his friends and their families on shopping sprees, and hosted games of hide and seek where the winner takes home a fat cash prize. He has also hosted games of endurance like this Finger on the App 2 endeavor, having friends sit in a Tesla or keep their hand on a house in order to win the object which they are unable to be distanced from. He has also made strong efforts to help people who have been financially impacted by 2020's coronavirus pandemic.

Genshin Impact Leak Reveals Some of Update 1.3

A new Genshin Impact leak has surfaced online, previewing some of the content supposedly coming to the free-to-play action RPG on PS4, PS5, PC, and mobile devices with the next update. Just this month, developer miHoYo pushed the game's new 1.2 update, which added Dragonspine, a brand new snowy and cold region, alongside new characters and a slab of content, fixes, and adjustments. That said, while the update added a ton for players to do, many have already made their way through this content and are now looking ahead towards the game's next update, 1.3.

At the moment of publishing, official details on this update, including when it will release, are quite scarce, and it's unclear when that will change. In the meantime, players are just going to have to settle for leaks. And like the many leaks of the past few months, the newest comes the way of prominent Genshin Impact leaker "NEP NEP."

Taking to Twitter, the leaker previewed a slither of the content players can look forward to when update 1.3 hits:

"Leaks all weapons from 1.3 and Inazuma: (Bows)

Bakufu - Kunwu - Moonfall - Monstad Wildsith

Leaked Catalysts from 1.3 and Inazuma: Bakufu - Kaliedo - Narukami - Wildsith

Leaked Catalysts from 1.3 and Inazuma: Jade

Leaked Swords from 1.3 and Inazuma: Bakufu - Boreas -Kunwu - Morax

Leaked Swords from 1.3 and Inazuma: Narukami - Transcendent - Wildsith

Leaked Claymores and Polearm from 1.3 and Inazuma: Appease - Morax - Widsith - Regicide"

As noted, take everything here with a grain of salt given that nothing here is official and that everything in video game development is subject to change. At the moment of publishing, developer miHoYo has not commented on this leak in any capacity, and it's unlikely this will change, but if it does, we will be sure to update the story with whatever is provided.

Puma Reunites With Neymar Jr. for FUTURE Z 1.1

Neymar Jr. has unveiled his second collaboration with PUMA, following on from his PUMA KING Platinum football boot-centred capsule earlier this year. The latest release focuses on the FUTURE Z 1.1, to be worn exclusively by the Paris Saint-Germain and Brazil player, which will release alongside the Neymar Jr. Future apparel collection. The FUTURE Z 1.1 football boot has been designed with Neymar Jr.’s playing style in mind, with technical functions chosen to maximize ball control and multidirectional movement.

 

With a white base layer, the boot is finished with eye-catching details including a bright yellow FUZIOFIT+ compression band, the word “FUTURE” on the medial side and an all-over arrow pattern. For the accompanying Neymar Jr. Future collection, PUMA has incorporated a number of the player’s signature graphics including his number 10 logo and NJR badge. The color palette and graphics used on the jersey, shorts, training accessories and off-pitch apparel are all inspired by the graffiti found on the streets of Sāo Paolo. Both the FUTURE Z 1.1 and accompanying apparel collection are available now from the PUMA web store.

David Beckham Returns to FIFA 21

Football fans all across the world will be delighted to learn that one of the sport’s greatest legends David Beckham is making a return to FIFA 21. Joining the title for both its FIFA Ultimate Team and VOLTA game modes, Beckham will be a playable character starting December 15.

As part of a promotion to fans of the game, FIFA 21 will be gifting an untradeable Beckham FUT item based on his LaLiga debut for Real Madrid back in 2003 for anyone who plays before January 15, 2021, with another version of him as a VOLTA Groundbreaker. Of course, he’ll also be receiving three ICONS versions spanning across the different eras in his career. Starting his professional career at Manchester United, Beckham went on to play for some of the sport’s greatest teams, including Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan. He earned 17 major honors including six Premier League championships, two FA Cups, and a UEGA Champions League title, accumulating 115 caps for the English national team at the same time. To learn more about the upcoming return of one of football’s greatest to FIFA 21, you can head over to EA Sports’ website.

Walmart Just Released Its Second Round Of Black Friday 2020 Deals

Another day, another early Black Friday sale! In line with competitors such as Best Buy, Kohl's, Target and more, Walmart has gone ahead and launched its Black Friday 2020 deals well ahead of schedule. Need help finding products? Sign up for our weekly newsletter. It’s free and you can unsubscribe at any time. Instead of one large, post-Thanksgiving sale, this year, Walmart will be running three separate savings events throughout the month of November, which the retail giant has dubbed “Black Friday Deals for Days." The first round of deals on toys, electronics and home products launched earlier this month, and tonight, November 11, we're looking at even more savings from the mega store. These discounts include TVs, smartphones, tablets and more, with a third wave of markdowns set to be released on Saturday, November 14. The final set of deals will be offered on Wednesday, November 25, with adds on November 27 a.k.a Black Friday! In addition to all these great savings, the big-box retailer is offering contact-free curbside pickup service, as well as fast, free delivery through its new Amazon Prime-like membership service, Walmart+. Ahead, we've rounded up the best Black Friday deals you can already shop at Walmart.

The Mandalorian Star Reveals Season 2 Villain

Giancarlo Esposito has revealed some intriguing new information about The Mandalorian's second season. The Better Call Saul actor will be returning to the Star Wars universe for the new season as Moff Gideon, the mysterious military commander tracking Mando and The Child across the galaxy. During an appearance on Good Morning America this week, Giancarlo shed a bit more light on Moff Gideon's connection to remains of the Galactic Empire.

 

"My character, Moff Gideon, is the warden of the galaxy," the actor teased. "He is a remnant of the Imperial Empire and he is still searching for his quarry, which we hope he will find." The "quarry" he referred to is The Child (aka Baby Yoda), whom Esposito predicted will take The Mandalorian viewers on "a journey spiritually" throughout the new episodes. Last season ended with the stunning scene revealing Moff Gideon is in possession of the mythical Darksaber weapon but the villain has had more skill wielding it than Esposito himself. "I have been practising," he previously revealed to IMDb. "I'm decent. I'm getting better. You have to respect the power of it. The energy of it. It's long, dude. I've bopped myself three times with it, already. "Pop yourself in the head. I'm like, 'Oh my god, what do you do?' I start laughing. People look at me and want me to be the expert right off the bat because I am the badass [in the show]. But, you know, it takes practice."

Sony’s new PlayStation Application

With the PS5 launch roughly two weeks away, Sony has unveiled a redesign for its PlayStation App on iOS and Android, and it makes me very excited to try it out when the new console launches. Early adopters of the console will have the ability to remotely launch games, sign in to their PS5 directly from the app, and the app will even allow you to remotely manage storage on your console in case you need to make room for a new game to install.

Previously, the PlayStation App would let you download games on the PS4, but the app now allows me to download and launch games, plus manage the storage on my PS5. Based on Sony’s blog post, it looks like PS5 owners will have a lot more freedom to manage their consoles without directly interacting with it. It was such a pain having to shuffle around between multiple PlayStation apps and my PS4 just to take full advantage of all the features Sony provided. Theoretically, the new PlayStation App could allow me to buy a game (digitally), free up some storage space, download it, launch it, and check to make sure the software is up to date, all before I actually grab my DualSense controller and start playing. Even better? The new update allows me to message friends, voice chat, and create party groups directly from the app. So if I were preparing to play Call of Duty or Dead by Daylight with friends, I could set everything up through my phone. The app also adds a new UI that completely overhauls the home screen, and, as you can tell from the images, it looks a lot cleaner now. I think the update makes the app a lot more organized than before Since Sony is integrating its messaging system, you no longer need the separate PS Messages app. In fact, PS Messages will no longer be available, but any existing messages and threads from the discontinued app will be carried over into the new PS App update.

Sony confirms Disney Plus, Netflix, and Twitch will be on the PS5 at Launch

If you are planning to use your PlayStation 5 for more than just gaming whether that’s to stream movies and TV shows on Netflix or play music on Spotify you’ll be happy to know that Sony’s next-gen console will support some of the more popular entertainment apps at launch. Sony confirmed in a blog post on Thursday that several popular streaming apps, including Apple TV Plus, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus, Hulu, Netflix, Peacock, Spotify, Twitch, and YouTube would be available when the PS5 launches on November 12th. Notably absent from the list is HBO Max, which is currently in contract disputes with Amazon and Roku over the inclusion of the new streaming app on their platforms, and pay-TV options like Sling.

 

Sony shut down its own pay-TV Sling competitor, PlayStation Vue, last year. Interestingly, the anime streaming service Crunchyroll, owned by the same parent company as HBO, will be available at launch, a spokesperson confirmed to The Verge today. Additionally, Sony confirmed that the four previously unmarked buttons located on the dedicated PS5 Media Remote would serve as dedicated launch buttons for Disney Plus, Netflix, Spotify, and YouTube, as you can see pictured above. The remote will launch alongside the PS5 on November 12th, but it is not included with the console. It’s currently available as a separate $30 purchase at Target. Other retailers including Amazon, Best Buy, and GameStop are also selling it, but they’re currently out of stock. With next-gen consoles set to arrive in just a few weeks, Sony is showing that its upcoming console is much more than just a system to play video games. The inclusion of four dedicated launch buttons to some of the more popular streaming apps and the recently unveiled system interface, including a separate home screen for entertainment apps gives us a better glimpse of how PS5 owners will be able to use the hardware come launch day.

Googly Eyes Halloween Wreath

I’m in love with this fun Halloween wreath made with ping pong balls and googly eyes. Googly eyes are one of my all-time favorite crafting supplies, especially for Halloween. Our googly eyes halloween wreath makes everybody smile, especially our kids. Here is how to make one of your own:

Supplies needed:

18 inch straw wreath form

White ribbon or fabric to wrap wreath form

Wire

Practice Ping Pong Balls, Pack of 144 balls – two orders.

I used around 250 ping pong balls and have some left over for future crafts.

Googly Eyes – Two packages of 94 count

Hot glue and hot glue gun

Step One: Tightly wrap straw wreath in ribbon or fabric, hot glueing the ends down. Use wire wrapped around wreath and twisted in the back to create a wreath hanger.

Step Two: Hot glue ping pong balls onto wreath. I added mine randomly until I felt it looked full and even. I just kept filling and stepping back to check my progress.

Step Three: Hot glue googly eyes to ping pong balls. Use a hair dryer to melt any hot glue strings left behind.

Williams-Sonoma Knock-Off Halloween Wreath

 

It's the 1st of October and that means it's time to start decking the halls with all things wicked and spooky! A few weeks ago I was browsing through the Williams-Sonoma website and saw a gorgeous grapevine wreath with a crow on it. I fell in love with it, but when I saw the price, I was stunned - $70! Since it's such a simple wreath made with readily available materials, I decided to take a trip to the dollar store and make one of my own.

Here's a quick tutorial to show how it came together:

The WS wreath is round, but when I spotted this oval shape at Michaels, I fell in love with it! To create the base, I lightly misted it with grey and black spray paint.

 

When the paint was dry, I adhered Spanish moss from the dollar store.

 

Finally, I hot glued a dollar store crow to the moss. That's it! Almost silly to even write a tutorial for this!

The Williams-Sonoma version has a fancier crow, but for a savings of over $60, I think this one is just fine!

You can find products similar to what I used on Amazon via the links below. Thanks so much for stopping by today!

DIY: How To Make Your Own Decorative Halloween Candles

It’s almost time to break out the Halloween goodies! If you like DIYing your way throughout the holidays, this is the craft for you.

I’m pretty into candles. They make great decorations, they add pretty light to a room, and sometimes they smell pretty good. Have you seen some of the prices on decorative candles though? Oof. Just get crafty and make your own.

You need the following things:

Candles
Wax Paper
Tissue Paper
Rubber Stamps or InkJet Printer
Colored Pencils and Pens
Heat/Embossing Tool or (very hot) Blowdryer

First, you start with tissue paper. Place your image on the shiny, smooth side of the paper. You can use a rubber stamp, draw your own image, or use a printer to create your images. Then cut them out as close to the edge as possible.

If you’re not a rubber stamp collector or a particularly great drawer and prefer to print your images like I did, just tape a piece of tissue paper to a piece of standard printer paper and feed it through. You can find images and clipart to download all over the internet. Resize them in a photo editing program to fit your candle size.

Color them in with pencils and add additional details with a ballpoint pen if you want.

 

 

Once you’re done with that it’s time to adhere the images to the candle. Use a little bit of glue stick to stick your tissue paper to the candle.

Then wrap a piece of wax paper around the candle and over your tissue paper cut-out. Use your heat tool to melt the wax paper. You’ll know when it’s melted because the image will get clearer and you won’t be able to see the edges of the tissue paper cut-out anymore. I used a heat gun but a very hot blowdryer will work as well. Using your blowdryer’s concentrator nozzle attachment is a good idea. Don’t over do it! You don’t want to warp the candle.

Once you peel off the wax paper you’ll see that the tissue paper cut-outs are embedded and sealed in a new later of wax. Make sure you use a fresh piece of wax paper for each candle to get a clean, smooth finish.

Done! Simple custom DIY printed decorative Halloween candles.

DIY Floral Skull Centerpiece

The first sight of pumpkins in October always gets me giddy with delight. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays – second to Thanksgiving, of course. I love getting into the dark and ghoulish spirit, always looking to outdo the previous year when it comes to decor. I’m super excited to share this Halloween themed floral centerpiece with you – I mean, who knew a human skull makes for such a wonderfully creepy vessel?!

    You’ll need:

        a life size mode skull with removable calvarium
        a wet floral foam block
        pruning shears
        a knife
        a large Ziploc bag
        a variety of fresh flowers (large and small blooms, twigs, an assortment of full leaf, slender and floppy greenery)

Start by removing the top of the skull. Cut a square block out of the floral foam.

 Fit it inside the skull and slice away corners and edges so that it fits. You can press down on the foam to make sure it gets as deep as it can. Use a knife to slice off any excess foam but be sure to leave at least 1/2 an inch of floral foam peeking out from the top of the skull. You want the foam deep enough to hold your flower stems!

Remove the foam and submerge it in a bowl of water. Leave it for at least a few minutes to absorb as much water as possible. Take a large Ziploc bag and fit it over the skull. This will prevent water from leaking through the skull and allow you to water your centerpiece once it’s finished.

Set the wet floral foam back into the skull. Trim the plastic lining.

 

Now it’s time to arrange your centerpiece! When arranging flowers in wet foam, you must always trim the stems at an angle so they can absorb plenty of water. Once you insert a stem you cannot remove it as the wet foam has no memory. Insert the stems upright and about 3/4 of the way down. Start with the largest, leafiest flowers. This will help set the framework for your centerpiece.

 

Since you’ll want your skull upright when working, set a small foam block under the back of the skull to help prop it up. Add more flowers – I added the fluffy dahlias and calla lillies next. Be sure to add foliage around the edge of the skull to help hide the foam.

Add all the tall green stalks and slender stems last. Peel away any leaves or flowers to help insert the stems without crushing the other flowers.

 

Add interesting elements like grapes on a vine or long twigs with berries. And have fun with shaping the centerpiece – it shouldn’t be too perfect. Outliers make it fun and interesting!

 

Your centerpiece should last at least a week. Be sure to water it each day and keep it out of direct sunlight.