Dadnology Week 40: Witcher 3 Is Free, Plus a Two-Day Prime Sale
The Witcher 3 Remastered is free for owners, Prime Big Deal Days runs October 6-7, and LEGO's Dragon Ball Shenron set lands at $179.99.
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🧭 The Week That Was — A Free Witcher, a Two-Day Sale and a $179.99 Shenron
Your teenager has probably already worked out that The Witcher 3 is free for anyone who owns it, and the question of whether a Mature-rated, 150-hour RPG belongs on the family console is now yours to answer before the weekend. Amazon’s October sale starts on Tuesday and runs for two days, long enough to buy something you did not need and short enough to feel rushed about it. And LEGO has put a number on its first Dragon Ball set: 1,764 pieces, $179.99, a few dollars cheaper than the leaks promised.
There is a gentler end to the week as well. Avatar returns to animation on Friday, Ted Lasso says goodbye on Wednesday, GTA 6’s map turns out to be twice the size of GTA 5’s, and Arnold Schwarzenegger plays Santa in a heist comedy, which is a sentence that did not need to exist.
Jump to: 🍿 Watch This Week · 🎮 Play This Week · 🎬 Movies & TV · 🎮 Gaming · 🧱 LEGO & Family · 🏠 Smart Home, Camera & Tech
🍿 What to Watch This Week
Top Tip: Avatar: Seven Havens
Avatar: Seven Havens — Paramount+, Friday. A new animated series in the Avatar: The Last Airbender universe, and the one to build the weekend around. If the kids have never seen the original, our Avatar watch order settles where to start before Friday.
For the Whole Family: Horton Hears a Who!
Horton Hears a Who! — Netflix. Dr. Seuss for the younger end of the house, and the easiest yes on the list when the littlest one gets the remote.
Once the Kids Are in Bed: Matchbox The Movie
Matchbox The Movie — Apple TV+, Friday. John Cena in an action-comedy from the director of Extraction, and not the kids’ film the toy-brand name suggests.
The Classic: Skyfall (3.5/5)
Skyfall — Prime Video, in the catalogue since October 1. Gorgeous Bond with shakier logic than it admits, which is the whole 3.5.
Also landing this week
- Ted Lasso season 4 finale — Apple TV+, Wednesday. Ten episodes wrap here, and no season 5 is confirmed.
- Lanterns — HBO Max, tonight. The finale of the DCU’s slow detective story.
Still running
- Slow Horses season 6 — Apple TV+, Wednesdays. The six-episode run ends on October 21, and it has never had a bad season.
The full list, with dates per title, is in What to Watch This Week.
🎮 What to Play This Week
Top Tip: Gears of War: E-Day
What to Play This Week leads with Gears of War: E-Day, a prequel set on the day the Locust first surfaced, on Xbox and PC and on Game Pass from Tuesday. Keep it for after bedtime.
With the Family: Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed
The same Tuesday, Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed gets a free Switch 2 upgrade for anyone who owns the Switch version, which is the gentle paint-and-platform pick for the age that struggles with a health bar. From the backlog, Ghost of Tsushima (4/5) is the PS5 pick, and Kingdom Hearts Collection and Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen follow later in the week.
🎬 Movie & TV News This Week
What to Watch in October, Picked by Someone Who Has Seen the List
New Movies & Shows Coming in October 2026 is the shortlist across every platform, and this month is built as much from endings as from arrivals. Ted Lasso and Slow Horses both wrap within two weeks, VisionQuest closes the story WandaVision opened five years ago, and the Bourne Collection is the one catalogue drop worth clearing an evening for. It also names the three films we would leave the house for, so read it before the month gets away from you.
Toy Story 5 Is a 4.5, and the Gentlest One Yet
Toy Story 5 Review: The Tablet Arrives, and Pixar Finds Its Heart gives it 4.5/5, a clear step up from Part 4. The first half takes its time, then the second half becomes the warmest Toy Story since Part 3, with nothing scary in it and a great opening for a family talk about tablets. The review answers whether kids need the older films first, and why the animation is worth the biggest screen in the house.
In the Grey Earns Its Slow Start
In the Grey Review: An Hour of Planning, Then 30 Minutes That Rock gives Guy Ritchie’s heist with Jake Gyllenhaal and Henry Cavill 4/5. It is rated R and it is an after-bedtime film. The review explains why the critics shrugged, why we did not, and what to expect from a first hour that is almost all planning.
Amazon Wants a Spider-Man Show About Clones
After Spider-Noir, Amazon Is Reaching for the Clone Saga is a report, not an announcement: Deadline says Amazon MGM is closing in on a series order with Ben Reilly and Kaine as the leads. Nothing is ordered, it arrives three weeks after Spider-Noir was cancelled, and the rating is unknown, so assume it is not the Spider-Man you put on for a small child. Our Spider-Man ranking for dads covers what is safe in the meantime.
Schwarzenegger Plays Santa and Ritchson Robs Him
Schwarzenegger Plays Santa, Ritchson Robs Him covers the first teaser for a Christmas heist comedy that streams on Prime Video on December 2. Santa hires a thief from his Naughty List to get his bag back, and Alan Ritchson is the thief. The teaser is funny, but a heist with a thief at the centre is not The Santa Clause, so do not promise it to the young ones yet.
Endgame’s Rerelease Answers the Hulk Question
Endgame’s Rerelease Just Answered What Brand New Day Left Hanging explains the three new post-credit scenes bolted onto Avengers: Endgame Encore, in theaters since September 24. If your family left Spider-Man: Brand New Day wondering why Bruce Banner was rampaging, that is the answer, and it sets up Avengers: Doomsday. Read it before paying for a second ticket to a film you have already seen.
🎮 Gaming News for Dads
The Witcher 3 Is Back, and Owners Pay Nothing
The Witcher 3 Remastered Is Out Today, Free, With a Rebuilt Skill Tree covers the September 29 launch on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, with a native Switch 2 version alongside. Owners get the upgrade free with both expansions, and the patch notes run past ninety changes. We have not played the remaster yet, so it is a read of the notes rather than a verdict, and the game underneath is still a 5/5 in our Witcher 3 review. Never owned it? The Complete Edition bundles the base game with Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine.
AdThe Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Complete Edition (PS5) (opens in a new tab)
For anyone who never owned it: the base game plus Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine.
Is It OK for Kids? No, and the Rating Is Honest
Is The Witcher 3 OK for Kids? A Dad’s Honest Age Guide is the answer to the question your teenager is about to ask. The Mature rating is accurate rather than cautious, and nothing in the remaster softens it. For an older teen it is a judgment call that belongs to you, and the guide lays out what is in the game so you make it with the facts.
GTA 6’s Map Is Twice the Size of GTA 5’s
GTA 6’s Leonida Is Twice the Size of GTA 5, With 170 Animal Species rounds up Rockstar’s new batch of details ahead of the November 19 launch: six regions, localized weather with hurricanes, and ride-share fast travel to cross all that map. It is a long list of claims from the publisher, so treat it as marketing until someone plays it. If a teenager is asking for it, is GTA 6 OK for kids has the parent version.
October’s Games, Short and Honest
Gears of War Goes Back to Day One, Plus October Games Worth It is the month’s shortlist: Gears of War: E-Day in the first week, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 in the fourth, and a run of Switch 2 catch-up ports in between. It also names one game every calendar swears is coming that we could not confirm, which is worth knowing before you promise anyone anything.
🧱 LEGO & Family Round-up
The First Dragon Ball LEGO Set Costs $179.99
The First LEGO Dragon Ball Set (11390) Is Shenron and Kid Goku settles what the teaser left open: 1,764 pieces at $179.99, with LEGO Insiders first on November 1 and everyone else on November 4. The leaks said roughly 1,760 pieces and about $200, so it came in a little bigger and a little cheaper. It is rated 18+ and a display piece, so it belongs on a shelf rather than in a seven-year-old’s hands, and you can see the set here.
AdLEGO Icons Dragon Ball: Shenron & Goku (11390) (opens in a new tab)
1,764 pieces, rated 18+, Kid Goku on the Flying Nimbus and Shenron above seven Dragon Balls. $179.99, LEGO Insiders from 1 November, everyone from 4 November 2026.
The Executor’s Free Gift Ends Wednesday
New LEGO Sets October 2026 is the month’s buying guide, and its one deadline is on the calendar this week: the Executor Super Star Destroyer ships with a free Darth Vader lightsaber only if you order by October 7. After Wednesday it is the same set with nothing extra.
🏠 Smart Home, Camera & Tech Round-up
Prime Big Deal Days Starts Tuesday, and Most of It Is Noise
Prime Big Deal Days October 2026: What a Dad Should Actually Buy is the plan for the two days of 6-7 October, built around what to spend on, what to push to Black Friday and how to spot a decoy discount. It deliberately quotes no prices, since the sale has not started and a number printed today would be a guess. The sale is members only, so the 30-day Prime trial is the way in if you are not one.
AdAmazon Prime (30-Day Free Trial) (opens in a new tab)
Prime Big Deal Days is members only, and the 30-day trial is the way in if you are not one.
Nikon’s New Full-Frame Body Has No Viewfinder
Nikon’s New Full-Frame Camera Ditches the Viewfinder Entirely covers the Z5IIC, announced September 24, the first full-frame Nikon body ever to ship without one. It costs $1,399.95 body only and ships in mid-October, which makes it a smartphone shooter’s way into full frame. For most families the viewfinder-equipped Z5 II at $300 more is still the better buy, and the Z5IIC itself is for someone who has never lifted a camera to their eye.
Dadnology Take
The week’s real decision is the one nobody advertises: whether the free game your teenager just discovered is one you want in the house. Answer that before Friday, make your Prime sale list before Tuesday, and skip anything on it that you only wanted because a timer was counting down.
The Dadnology Week archive: missed last week? Catch up with Dadnology Week 39.
❓ FAQ
What were the biggest dad-relevant releases in week 40, 2026?
Is The Witcher 3 Remastered OK for kids?
When is Prime Big Deal Days in October 2026?
When does LEGO Dragon Ball Shenron and Goku (11390) go on sale?
What did Dadnology publish this week?
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