Just Dance is officially entering its live-service era with Just Dance 2023. The latest iteration of Ubisoft's dance-along franchise will support online multiplayer for up to six people at a time, unlocking the full game to be played with friends. The studio promises regular free content updates "for years to come," including fresh game modes, songs and themed seasons.

Ubisoft

Just Dance 2023 is due to hit PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and Nintendo Switch on November 22nd. It'll come to Google Stadia at a later date.

This marks the first time in Just Dance history that players will be able to get down with friends live and online. The new Online Groups feature in Just Dance 2023 allows players to team up with people they know or other folks around the world, and it has an emoji communication system. The game supports cross-platform play. And, of course, there's always local multiplayer for in-person dance-offs.

Ubisoft

Just Dance 2023 will include 40 new universes and songs at launch, including "Physical" by Dua Lipa and "More" by K/DA. With a focus on transitioning Just Dance into a live service, rather than a series of discrete titles, Ubisoft will likely have a regular cadence of new material to drop on its dancers post-launch, so don't stress too much about the track list for now.

The game Assassin’s Creed fans have been asking for years is finally on its way. During its Ubisoft Forward event on Saturday, the publisher revealed Codename Red, a new entry in the series that will be set in feudal Japan. Franchise head Marc-Alexis Côté called Red the “next premium title” in Ubisoft’s open world series and said Ubisoft Quebec was leading work on the project, suggesting it will hew closer to Odyssey than next year’s Mirage.

Côté also shared a teaser for Codename Hexe and called it “a very different type of Assassin’s Creed game.” Ubisoft Montreal, the studio that first created the series is leading development on the project, with Clint Hocking involved as creative director. Hocking may not be a household name, but he’s probably among the most influential designers at Ubisoft, with credits that include Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory and Far Cry 2. According to a recent report from Bloomberg’s Jason Scheier, the game is set during the latter stages of the Holy Roman Empire.

Neither game has a release date yet, but Ubisoft said they would both integrate with Infinity, a service Côté called “not a game per se, but a single entry point into the series.” Ubisoft was cryptic about what Infinity would involve but Côté said the company was exploring the possibility of creating standalone multiplayer experiences within the hub.

Ubisoft is bringing Assassin's Creed back to mobile devices with Jade, a new title set in China. The game takes place around 215 BC, filling in the timeline between Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Origins, and it's designed to feel like a mainline entry, parkouring and all. There's no release date quite yet and all Ubisoft has shown is the classic eagle-flying-over-a-settlement sequence.

One thing we do know about Jade is that it will support the ability to create your own character, a first for the series. There's no word on pricing or potential micro-transactions for the game.

Ubisoft has tried to make Assassin's Creed a thing on mobile devices for nearly as long as the series has existed. The first mobile entry was Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles, and it came out for the Nintendo DS in 2008, with iOS and Android versions the following year. The original Assassin's Creed, meanwhile, hit PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in 2007. There have been a handful of mobile-first Assassin's Creed games since then, but Ubisoft hasn't released an iOS or Android title tied to the series in four years.

In addition to Jade, Ubisoft is building a game based on the live-action Assassin's Creed series heading to Netflix. Of course there's also Assassin's Creed Mirage, the new mainline title set in the Middle East.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage, the next entry in Ubisoft’s long-running action-adventure series, will arrive in 2023. The publisher announced the release date today during its Ubisoft Forward event. Set two decades before the events of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, the game will reunite fans with a Basim Ibn Ishaq and return the series to its stealth roots.

In a briefing held before today’s presentation, Ubisoft Bordeaux, the studio leading development on the project, described Basim as the most agile assassin in franchise history. He’ll have new abilities to assist him in avoiding detection, some of which you can see on display in the cinematic trailer Ubisoft shared today. An integral part of Basim’s kit is Enkidu, his pet eagle. Like Senu in Origins, Enkidu can scout ahead for you to spot potential threats, but new to Mirage is that there will be archers who can spot and take out your feathery friend. In addition to new gadgets, including smoke bombs and poison mines, Basim will also have the ability to briefly slow down time and plot out multiple assassinations.

With the action returning primarily to a single city – Baghdad circa 861 CE – parkour will play a much bigger role than in more recent games. Ubisoft Bordeaux said Basim would be one of the fastest free runners in franchise history, with a move set that includes both new and returning tricks. The story, meanwhile, will focus on The Hidden Ones, the organization that predates the Assassin Brotherhood and will see Shohreh Aghdashloo (The Expanse, Destiny 2) play Basim’s mentor, Roshan.

When it arrives next year, Assassin’s Creed Mirage will be available on PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Amazon Luna and PC. In the meantime, fans can look forward to The Last Chapter. The free DLC will arrive later this year and complete the story of Valhalla. 

With D23 underway this weekend, Disney had a lot to share with Star Wars fans. In all, the company debuted three trailers at the expo. First, there was a final look at Star Wars: Andor ahead of the show’s Disney+ premiere on September 21st. Then, we got to see Tales of the Jedi, a new animated anthology series that will begin streaming on October 23rd. But what you can here to see is the first trailer for season three of The Mandalorian.

The clip is the same one that was shown behind closed doors at Star Wars Celebration. Spoilers for season two of The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett follow. 

After he left to train at Luke’s Jedi Temple, Gorgu and Din (Pedro Pascal) are reunited and back to their usual hijinks, but Mando’s decision to take his helmet off at the end of season two has damaged his relationship with the Armorer and what’s left of his clan. The fact he also took the Darksaber from Moth Gideon is also a source of conflict between him and Bo-Katan (Katee Sackhoff). Based on the trailer, it looks like season three will tell a more focused story with fewer detours for Mando and Gorgu to get into trouble.

The Mandalorian season three will arrive on Disney+ in 2023.

The Federal Communications Commission wants to do something about space junk in low Earth orbit. On Thursday, the agency published a proposal (via Ars Technica) that, if adopted, would put a deadline on how long non-geostationary satellites can stay in space.

As things stand, voluntary NASA guidelines published in the 1990s recommend that dead satellites should be deorbited within 25 years. The FCC wants to adopt a five-year rule that would require domestic satellite operators and companies that want access to the US market to dispose of their non-functioning satellites as soon as they can. “We believe it is no longer sustainable to leave satellites in LEO [low Earth orbit] to deorbit over decades,” the FCC states in its proposal.

Satellites already in space would be exempt from the FCC’s guidelines. The Commission is also proposing there be a two-year grandfathering period that start on September 29th, the day it plans to vote on the regulation. That carveout would give organizations that previously obtained approval for a future satellite launch time to develop a disposal plan for their spacecraft. The FCC said it would also grant waivers case-by-case after NASA expressed concern that the five-year limit would impact its CubeSat missions.

The proposal comes as the number of satellites in low Earth orbit is expected to increase over the next few years dramatically. With contributions from companies like SpaceX, Amazon and OneWeb, as many as 18,000 new satellites could be floating above the planet by 2025. Those satellites will not only make it more challenging to observe the night sky, but the probability of a potential crash will increase too.

If Apple’s announcement of the Series 8 didn’t do much for you but you would still like to buy an Apple Watch, you might be in luck. Amazon has discounted its remaining Series 7 stock. At the moment, you can find a handful of the cellular models for as much as $150 off. For instance, the 41mm variant with graphite stainless steel case and abyss blue sport band is $550 currently, down from $699, while the 45mm model with silver stainless steel case and starlight sports band is $99 off, making it $650 instead of $749.

Engadget deputy reviews editor Cherlynn Low gave the Apple Watch Series 7 a score of 90. Apple’s smartwatch was already one of the best fitness trackers you could buy in 2021, and the Series 7 made it even better with a larger screen, faster charging and overnight respiratory tracking.

With the Series 8 arriving in stores on September 16th, you may not think it’s worth buying the older model. For what it’s worth, the Series 8 is an iterative update on its predecessor. New features are limited to a temperature sensor, crash detection and a low-power mode that can extend the life of the wearable by up to 18 hours. Those are valuable additions, to be sure, but there’s also something to be said about saving a bit of money on some of the more premium Series 7 models still in stock if cellular connectivity and a stainless steel case are important features for you.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on Twitter and subscribe to the Engadget Deals newsletter for the latest tech deals and buying advice.

Cyberpunk 2077 now has an official modding tool. CD Projekt RED has launched REDmod, which provides players integrated support to easily install and load mods onto the PC version of the action RPG. As the developer's official announcement notes, it will also allow players to modify and personalize their game by using the custom sounds, animations and scripts that come with the tool. CD Projekt Red promises to update the tool alongside future patches to ensure that it remains compatible with the game. It is a free DLC, though, and players don't have to install it at all if they don't want to.

As popular mod website Nexus Mods clarifies, while new mods are required to use a specific format to be compatible with REDmod, old mods will continue to work just fine. Older mods that aren't compatible with the tool simply won't show up in the new REDmod menu. That's also were players can toggle mods that are compatible with the tool on or off. 

The free DLC is now available for download from the official Cyberpunk 2077 website, but players can get also get it from GOG, Steam or Epic.

A judge recently ruled that Elon Musk can use the allegations made by Twitter whistleblower Peiter Zatko as part of the arguments in his countersuit against the company. As it turns out, Musk intends to use not just Zatko's claims to win his case, but also the fact that the former Twitter executive received a settlement to get out of the $44 billion acquisition deal he made with the social network. As The Washington Post reports, Musk's lawyers sent a letter to Twitter, telling the company that the severance payment worth $7.75 million that it made to Zatko in June violated a provision in their sales agreement. 

In the letter uploaded to the SEC website, Musk's lawyers cited Section 6.1(e) of the merger agreement, which says Twitter promised not to "grant or provide any severance or termination payments or benefits to any Company Service Provider other than the payment of severance amounts or benefits in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and subject to the execution and non-revocation of a release of claims in favor of the Company and its Subsidiaries." Former employees are considered Company Service Providers.

Musk and Twitter entered the purchase agreement in April, and it wasn't until June when Zatko received his severance pay. The company didn't seek Musk's consent before making the payment or notify him of the transaction, the lawyers said in the letter. Musk apparently only found out about the settlement when Twitter included the information in its court filing on September 3rd. As such, Musk's camp argues that the settlement serves as an additional basis to terminate the parties' purchase agreement. As The Post notes, it's now up to Twitter to prove that such a big payout to a former employee wasn't out of the ordinary. We've reached out to Twitter for a statement, and we'll update this post when we hear back.

Also known as "Mudge," Zatko accused the the social network of having "extreme, egregious deficiencies" in security. He said in a complaint filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission that Twitter violated the terms it had agreed to when it settled a privacy dispute with the FTC back in 2011. The whistleblower also claimed that he couldn't get a direct response from Twitter regarding the actual number of bots on the website. If you'll recall Musk previously accused Twitter of fraud for hiding the real number of bots on its platform and told the court in a legal filing that 10 percent — not just 5 percent as the social network maintains — of its daily active users who see ads are inauthentic accounts.

Twitter and Musk are set to face off in court in a five-day trial scheduled to start on October 17th.

Marvel has teamed up with Pokémon Go developer Niantic to create an augmented reality mobile game that will be available worldwide next year. In Marvel World of Heroes, you can create your own superhero in a Marvel game for the first time, according to a Niantic blog post. 

Players will be able to forge their hero's identity and origin story. They'll be tasked with patrolling their neighborhood to thwart crimes, take on missions and fend off interdimensional threats and super villains. As you level up, you'll unlock more gear and abilities. You'll be able to team up with your friends, as well as the likes of Spider-Man, Captain America and Wolverine. It seems players can also visit multiple alternate realities — in a virtual sense, anyway.

If you're interested in checking out the game, you can pre-register on the Marvel World of Heroes website. As it often does, Niantic will soft launch the game in select markets before rolling it out more broadly.