Battlefield 3

"The Best Battlefield Game Ever"

- DICE

Battlefield 3 is the twelfth installment in the Battlefield Series and was developed by DICE. It is the sequel to Battlefield 2 and was released on October 25, 2011 for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

A sequel, Battlefield 4, is currently in development by EA and DICE and will be the next iteration of the Battlefield franchise.

Overview
Battlefield 3 was revealed on February 4, 2011 with a teaser trailer called My Life, and was the cover story of the March 2011 issue of GameInformer. The game was first showcased on March 1, 2011 during GDC 2011, which revealed unedited gameplay for the first time. DICE announced shortly after that the development of the PC versions of Battlefield 1943 and Battlefield: Bad Company 2's Onslaught were cancelled to concentrate on the development of Battlefield 3, stating it would be their biggest Battlefield release yet.

The game includes both singleplayer and co-operative campaigns and features multiplayer gameplay similar to the classic Battlefield 2. Jets made their return as pilotable vehicles, along with prone as an available stance. The PC version is able to support 64 players simultaneously in multiplayer; consoles, however, can only support up to 24 players, resulting in smaller maps. This installment uses a completely new engine, named Frostbite 2, the successor to the Frostbite Engine used in the Bad Company series.

The engine introduced Destruction 3.0, allowing for a much larger range of destructible objects, other then buildings, for more realistic destruction. Audio was another focus for the game. There are audio cues that, for example, will let players know if a tank is moving towards or away from them, or if it is having trouble climbing a slope.

The developers had recorded real life sounds of vehicles and weapons from a military training exercise with their goal being to create "cleaner and brighter audio." As stated by Thomas Danko, voice over producer at DICE: "No FPS ever had this large amount of VO variations for Multi Play, not even close. Over 300 for the "Man down" event alone."

Overview
The gameplay in the singleplayer campaign differs greatly from the multiplayer component, with numerous quick-time events (QTEs) that are spread throughout the levels. DICE stated that levels are a mix of sandbox and linear though many reviewers later commented that they were moreover linear. The campaign takes place in numerous locations across the world, but is mainly set in Iraq and Iran, the latter country of which plays an important part in the storyline. The gameplay in the campaign varies wildly, including tank combat, acting as a member of a sniper team, and acting as the rear pilot of a F/A-18 Super Hornet jet fighter.

An article on Kotaku states that the single-player campaign was inspired by multiple war movies such as Generation Kill, The Hurt Locker, Black Hawk Down, and the television series 24. It is also said that there is a focus on the campaign's characters' (including the player's) personalities and dialog. Additionally, the date of 2014 was chosen to not politicize the story.

Plot
An unidentified U.S. Marine with handcuffs is seen evading law enforcement in New York City. The Marine hops over an overpass onto a subway train, manages to break into it, and engages the train's hijackers, who have also planted explosive charges throughout it. He works his way to the front car, where he is ambushed by Solomon, the man behind the attack.

Eight months prior, Sgt. Henry Blackburn's five-man squad, Misfit 1-3, attempts to find and safely return a U.S. squad investigating a possible IED in Sulaymaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan, whose last-known position was a market controlled by the People's Liberation and Resistance, an Iranian paramilitary insurgent group who have crossed borders into Iraq. They find the missing squad and discover they had been ambushed by the PLR; but while fending off enemies closing in on their position, a massive earthquake wrecks the city. Several hours later, Blackburn wakes up after being unconscious, listening to a frequency which announces that a major earthquake has affected operational capability in the Iran-Iraq region. Blackburn and other survivors fight their way out of the ruins of the city toward an extraction point.

On the same day, the PLR stage a coup in Iran, and the U.S. subsequently invades with fifty-thousand Marines. Lt. Hawkins takes part in an air raid against enemy fighters over Iran and an air strike over Mehrabad Airport. In the aftermath of the air strikes, Blackburn and Misfit 1-3 are sent into Tehran to perform a battle damage assessment and apprehend the leader of the PLR, Faruk Al-Bashir. While investigating an underground bank vault, Al-Bashir's suspected location, Blackburn and his team learn that the PLR have acquired portable Russian nuclear devices, and that two of the three devices are missing.

Being overrun, Misfit 1-3 requests backup from an M1 Abrams column led by Sgt. Miller. The column heads towards Tehran from the southeast through the Kavir Desert, while engaging PLR tanks, as well as assaulting a PLR encampment housing rocket batteries. A few hours later, Miller's tank column arrives in Tehran and begins to facilitate Blackburn's helicopter extraction, but is subsequently captured while waiting for the arrival of the Quick Reaction Force. Shortly later, he is promptly executed on film by Solomon and Al-Bashir after the latter gave a brief monologue. Two days later, Misfit 1-3 resumes the search for Al-Bashir. They engage PLR soldiers patrolling the streets of Tehran, and come upon an apartment block which they suspect Al-Bashir is hiding in. While assaulting the building, Al-Bashir tries to escape via SUV, but ends up crashing after Blackburn fires on the vehicle. Blackburn and Campo manage to capture a fatally-wounded Al-Bashir, who realizes Solomon betrayed him and reveals his plot to detonate the nukes in Paris and New York City, before succumbing to his wounds.

Due to the info on Al-Bashir's mobile phone, Misfit 1-3 gets a lead on an arms dealer named Amir Kaffarov. They discover he was working with Solomon and Al-Bashir. A week later, they head towards northern Iran to capture Kaffarov, who is located in his villa on the coast of the Caspian Sea, near the Azerbaijan border. On the drive towards the villa, Misfit 1-3 is ambushed. They discover that they have just engaged Russian VDV troops. They move up a hill and encounter a massive presence of Russian airborne elements being airdropped into the fields ahead. They have no choice but to push on and engage the Russians. After clearing a batallion-size of enemy troops and destroying multiple BMP-2s, a Su-25 ground-attack jet begins to engage them. In the ensuing chaos, two of Blackburn's squad mates, Christian Matkovic and Steve Campo, are killed, which puts Blackburn and Montes at odds with their commanding officer, Cole.

Meanwhile, a GRU team led by Dimitri Mayakovsky assaults Kaffarov's villa. Kaffarov tries to bribe his way out, but Dima begins to interrogate him nonetheless. Later, Blackburn arrives at the villa and finds Dima and an unconscious Kaffarov. Dima reveals Solomon's plan to Blackburn and requests his cooperation to prevent a war between their nations. Meanwhile, Blackburn's commanding officer Cole arrives at gunpoint. This forces Blackburn to shoot and kill his superior before he could kill Dima.

Due to his actions, Blackburn and Montes are brought to New York City and interrogated by CIA agents Gordon and Whistler, to whom he explains all of his previous operations. During Blackburn's captivity, Dima's squad attempts to stop the attack in Paris. They engage PLR operatives through an office building and the EURONEXT stock exchange. French police and GIGN units arrive at the entrance of the stock exchange and engage both Dima's squad and the PLR operatives, all while Dima is chasing the nuke carrier. His squadmate, Vladimir, is killed during the chase. This, however, does not stop Dima. He continues the chase and finally catches up to the carrier. After securing the bag, Kiril opens it and discovers it was a decoy. The nuke then detonates in the distance at the EURONEXT building, killing eighty-thousand people. In the aftermath, Dima and Kril suffer from the effects of radiation poisoning due to the nuclear device's detonation. The CIA agents do not believe Blackburn's story, since Solomon is a CIA informant and there is no concrete proof of his involvement in the terrorist attacks. They instead believe that Russia is responsible for the attacks, and that Dima has tricked Blackburn.

With no other options, Blackburn and Montes break out of captivity to stop the attack in New York City. The events of the introductory mission play over again, revealing Blackburn as the man in handcuffs and the train's hijackers as operatives of the PLR. When ambushed by Solomon, Blackburn gains the upper hand by grabbing hold of a PLR operative with a detonator, allowing him to detonate the explosives, causing the train to crash. Blackburn then pursues Solomon through the sewers and engages the PLR along the way, before climbing up to street level. Montes, having obtained a police car, picks up Blackburn and engages Solomon and the PLR in a brief vehicular chase, which ends with both cars crashing in Times Square. As a bewildered crowd watches on, Montes is shot and killed by Solomon, but Blackburn catches him off-guard while reloading, which results in a brawl between the two. Blackburn manages to knock Solomon to the ground and begins to beat him to death with a brick. He then recovers the final nuke.

The epilogue depicts Dima, suffering from the effects of radiation poisoning, writing about the efforts of both him and Blackburn to stop Solomon's plan "to set fire to the world". As he finishes, there is a knock outside his door, prompting Dima to ready his handgun.

Co-op Campaign
The mode supports two players online (no split screen play), spans six missions, and is a standalone section, separate from the single player game. The missions revolve around minor operations by marines of Snake 6-6 as they encounter the PLR. Missions include ground, air vehicle, as well as tight urban arid warfare, causing players to work together to complete objectives. It is through this that players will eventually unlocked weapons for multiplayer.



Co-op gameplay first debuted at EA's Gamescom 2011 Conference. It featured DICE general manager Karl Magnus-Troedsson and EA Games executive vice president Patrick Soderlund demoing the mission Exfiltration. The gameplay showcased the the new thermal weapons, smarter A.I., teammate reviving, and spot mechanic from Bad Company 2.

David Spinnier, lead co-op designer stated that the levels have randomized elements that change each time a co-op level is played, making it a different experience every time. He also said that the missions will be shorter, to aid replayability.

Multiplayer
The locations of the multiplayer maps, like the campaign, includes Europe, the Middle East, and North America. More specifically, the game  takes place in the cities of Paris, Tehran, and New York.

The streamlined four class system, killcams, and Hardcore elements of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 return, whilst a better pre-game lobby is implemented (for squads and parties). DICE confirmed at the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo that the size of multiplayer maps for the console versions of the game would be scaled down due to hardware restrictions, possibly having relation to the smaller player count. Also made known was the fact that players would be able to fly around in jets to the full extent of maps, even in otherwise "out of bounds" areas.

Another detail revealed was that the melee system was going to be considerably different than the standard knife stab. Battlefield 3 instead has quick-time event process that allows players to throw left or right punches at an opponent, or counter an attack.

Classes
Karl Magnus Troedsson at E3 2011 stated:
 * "Players will have a choice of four classes. For example, you have the classic Assault class, which goes in a destroys things and kills people. However, he always had to stay near his buddies. If he died, he would need to wait for a Medic to come. Now that didn't work out very well, and now, what we did is that we sort of mixed the classes together. So you can have a sort of assault medic."

The classes have also been tweaked in relation to their roles from Battlefield: Bad Company 2, whilst still utilizing the same four class system. The Medic class has been replaced by the Support class from previous Battlefield games. They are equipped with Ammunition boxes and a light machine gun, ideal to suppress opposing players with the new suppressive fire mechanic which causes them to have no health regeneration and debilitating visual effects. The Assault class takes on the role of the Medic in the team, similar to the Medic class in Battlefield 2, with an assault rifle as a primary weapon yet Medkits and Defibrillators for reviving and healing players, instead of ammunition boxes. Players can also opt for using a grenade launcher instead of some medical equipment however. The Recon has also been changed, with the speed of scoping in reduced and requiring players to hold their breath in order to fire an accurate shot. Claymores and C4 have also been given to Support. Recon players are equipped with either a bolt action or semi-automatic sniper rifle. The Engineer class retains its functions of Battlefield: Bad Company 2: they are able to fix friendly vehicles and are equipped with a rocket launcher, either an anti-armor or an anti-aircraft launcher, to destroy enemy vehicles. They also equip a submachine gun or carbine, which can have a Tactical flashlight to blind opponents.

For the Weapons and Gadgets' sounds, click here.

Game Modes
In terms of game modes, there are currently six available modes. All game modes except Conquest Assault, Tank Superiority, and Air Superiority are available in all nine multiplayer maps for the base game. Attack Helicopters and fighter jets are available in Rush as well as in Conquest and Conquest Assault. Hardcore and infantry-only options are also present (Note that the The infantry-only option only removes all classes of vehicles except transports, such as the HMMWV, RIB, etc.)

Ranks and Unlocks
There are a total of 145 ranks ranks. After rank 45 (Colonel), Colonel service stars are introduced, requiring 230,000 points for each. In comparison to Battlefield: Bad Company 2 ' s multiplayer, Battlefield 3 has 10 times the unlocks over weapons, weapon attachments, gadgets and an unlock tree for vehicles alone. In addition, unlocks are more spread through the ranks, instead of ending after rank 22.

There are also Battlefield 3: Ribbons and Medals (similar to BC2's Pins and Insignias) with examples being Rush Ribbon, Shotgun Medal, etc.

A new feature in Battlefield 3 are "Service Stars." These are added to the player's weapon skill badge, kit, vehicles, and their overall rank, and allow for further promotion.

Weapon unlocks obtained from the co-op campaign are carried over to Multiplayer.There are currently over 50 weapons to unlock, and also each primary weapon contains three attachment slots ranging from foregrips to optics. Weapon accessories are unlocked per weapon unlike in Bad Company 2. Unlocking an attachment such as a Red Dot Sight while using one class still enables it for every other class that can use that weapon. However, the attachment will not be available on other weapons until it is unlocked.

DICE stated that it will take over "100 hours" to unlock everything for a kit in Multiplayer. They also said that there are over 20 vehicles at the player's disposal with the vehicles split into 12 different "classes".

Assignments
Assignments were first mentioned via the Battlelog and were introduced in the Back to Karkand expansion pack. Players must complete a series of tasks for each assignment to unlock either new weapons, camos, dog tags, or other assignments. For example, a player must get 10 heals and revive 10 people to unlock the FAMAS. There are currently a total of 60 assignments, 10 BtK, 10 CQ, 5 AK, 10 AM and 25 Premium. Excluding Armored Kill, whether a player is playing the base game or any expansion pack, the game will automatically track their progress. That means that a player can fulfill the criteria for any assignment on any Battlefield 3 map, as opposed to just the maps of the expansion the assignment came from.

Factions
There are currently two multiplayer factions; The Russian Army and the United States Marine Corps. Like with previous Battlefield games, their default kits are equipped with faction-specific weaponry until others are unlocked.

New Features
Battlefield 3 includes a number of new and/or improved multiplayer features:


 * Destruction 3.0: With Frostbite 2.0 comes the Destruction 3.0 engine. This engine allows debris that can injure/kill players and micro-destruction, as well.
 * Suppressive Fire: Firing at enemies causes their health regeneration to stop and reset, their accuracy drops, and the edges of their screen become blurred. While suppression is most effective with the Support class and their LMG's, any weapon is capable of suppressing an enemy.
 * Disable Vehicles: Vehicles can now be disabled before they are destroyed. This makes land vehicles immobile (but turrets are still operable), while air vehicles become extremely difficult to control. When a vehicle is disabled, it can be repaired, but will also slowly bleed health.
 * Vehicle Health Regeneration: Vehicles now slowly regenerate health when damaged. Repairs from an Engineer are still far more effective, and regeneration is cancelled if the vehicle is disabled. Vehicles will start regenerating when they are under 75% health (server option).
 * Console Server Browser: At Gamescom 2011, DICE confirmed that all consoles have a server browser option.
 * Immense Customization System: DICE claims that there will be years worth of unlocks and specializations to use in multiplayer.
 * Each kit (all weapons, gadgets, attachments, etc.) will take roughly 100 hours to unlock
 * Over 80 vehicle specializations (one secondary weapon slot, one gadget slot, and one upgrade slot)
 * Pistol variations available
 * Weapon Fire Modes: Returning from Battlefield 2, the player now has the option of choosing what fire-mode some weapons can fire in, instead of a single fixed mode.
 * Prone: The ability to go prone returns from Battlefield 2. The player is also able to dive, though there is a delay in the ability to fire as the player does so.
 * Scope Glare: If a player is using a high power scope (6x and above ) and is aimed in the direction of another player, a visible glare/glint shines off of the scope. This was added to balance the addition of the prone position.
 * Commo-Rose: Also returning from Battlefield 2 is the Commo rose, or communication rose.
 * Colorblind: A feature originally exclusive to PC players that changes the colors of teammates, squadmate, and enemies to better differentiate between them and adds a black border.

Open Beta
An Open Beta for Battlefield 3, announced at E3 2011, ran across the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC starting September 29, 2011 and ending October 10, 2011. The maps featured were Operation Métro and gamemode Rush (the same as in the Alpha trial), and Caspian Border in 64-player Conquest gamemode (PC only). DICE, during the announcement of the Beta, stated that there would be no level or unlock cap in the Beta, allowing players to unlock any weapon in the game.

Owners of Medal of Honor: Limited Edition and Medal of Honor: Tier 1 Edition, as well customers who pre-ordered Battlefield 3 on EA's Origin service, got 48-hour early access to the beta. This early access was originally intended to be a closed beta for owners of the special editions of Medal of Honor, although for an unknown reason this was changed to the early access.

Glitches and Bugs
Like other Installments in the series, Battlefield suffered from many glitches and bugs upon its release, pertaining to the campaign, multiplayer, and co-op game modes. They are detailed on the Battlefield Series Glitches and Bugs page.

Limited Edition
The Battlefield 3 Limited Edition was formally announced at GDC 2011. A post on the Battlefield Blog confirmed that it would include early access to Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand (see below), at no extra cost.

People who pre-ordered via the EA Store received a unique version of the 870 Combat shotgun and an exclusive beret for use in Battlefield Play4Free, although the unique shotgun only differs aesthetically, and stats-wise is exactly the same as the normal 870 Combat available from the game's store. Also, pre-ordering from EA's Origin Digital Download or Gamestop included the Physical Warfare Pack, the Back to Karkand expansion, and pre-loading the game, which meant the game could be downloaded before release and played as soon as it is released. 48 hour early access to the Beta was also granted to everybody who pre-ordered the Limited Edition from the EA Store.

Anyone who also owned a new copy of the Limited edition was given early access to the Mass Effect 3 demo in January 2012.

Premium Edition
Battlefield 3 Premium Edition was announced on August 14th, 2012 at Gamescom 2012. It is set to be released in September 2012 at a price of $69.99/€69.99.

It includes Battlefield 3, Battlefield Premium along with all of the service's features, and the Multiplayer head start kit. The head start also includes access to 15 more weapons in advanced along with gadgets and vehicle upgrades. Premium Edition also released almost a year after the initial release of the game which sparked controversy similar to the ultimate edition of Battlefield: Bad Company 2. It allows for players to purchase previous content in the game for a much lower price making other players feel cheated.

Downloadable Content
Battlefield 3 features many downloadable content in the form of promotional offers, short cuts, expansions, etc.

Exclusive Pre-orders
Players who pre-ordered the Battlefield 3 Limited Edition from worldwide select retailers got exclusive access to eight multiplayer dog-tags and SPECACT skins. They were released on the Playstation store on January 16th, 2012 in a bundle for $2.99 or 240 Microsoft points and were released a week later to the Xbox LIVE Marketplace.

Promotional Offers
Many Battlefield 3 Promotional Offers were given out following the game's release that gave players specialized dog-tags for use. They were used to promote upcoming games and movies as well being rewards for the community completing challenges set by DICE.

Vehicle and Weapon Shortcut Packs
On March 30th, 2012, along with the 1.04 update, DICE released 10 Kit Shortcut packs for weapons and vehicles. They unlock all: weapons, attachmets, gadgets, and vehicle perks.

Physical Warfare Pack
The Battlefield 3: Physical Warfare Pack is a weapons pack available to anyone who preordered Battlefield 3 Limited Edition from select retailers. It was later made free on the PlayStation Store on December 15th and later for the Xbox 360 and PC on December 20th.

Back to Karkand
Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand is available for free to anyone who preordered the game. It is a multiplayer expansion based on Battlefield 2. It was released on December 6th, 2011.

Close Quarters
On March 7th 2012, Battlefield 3: Close Quarters was announced to be released in June which would then be followed up by two other map packs. It was released on June 4th, 2012 for Premium Members.

Armored Kill
On March 7th 2012, Battlefield 3: Armored Kill was announced along with two other expansions. It was released on September 4th, 2012 for PS3 Premium Members.

Aftermath
On May 30th 2012, Battlefield 3: Aftermath was revealed through a leaked fact sheet pertaining to Battlefield Premium. It was officially revealed to be released before End Game at the EA Press Conference in December 2012 at E3 2012. It was released on November 27th, 2012 for PS3 Premium Members.

End Game
Battlefield 3's fifth expansion pack, Battlefield 3: End Game was announced on March 7th, 2012 and was released a year later on March 5th, 2013 for PS3 Premium Members.

Battlefield Premium
Battlefield Premium was revealed on May 30th, 2012 through a leaked fact sheet. The package was revealed to be released on June 4th, 2012 for a onetime cost of US$49.99/£39.99/€49.99/AU$79.99.

Marketing
In a similar fashion to Battlefield: Bad Company and Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Battlefield 3 was heavily marketed since it's official announcement, thanks to a marketing budget of nearly US$200 million from owner Electronic Arts. The first set of trailers after the Teaser Trailer was the introduction of the Fault Line series, starting with the Battlefield 3: Gameplay Trailer and ending with the full twelve minute Battlefield 3: Fault Line Gameplay Trailer, as well as a developer commentary by Patrick Bach and being the setting of the Battlefield 3: My Life Trailer, which has commonly been shown as a TV advert during popular TV events such as the FA Cup final in the United Kingdom. During E3 2011, the Thunder Run trailer was unveiled, alongside two gameplay trailers set on the multiplayer map Operation Métro. Following the huge success of the three trailers after E3, a new trailer, the Caspian Border gameplay trailer, was released after being shown at Gamescom 2011, showcasing jet and vehicle gameplay. In late September 2011, during the build-up to the Open Beta, a new trailer, set to the rap song "99 Problems" by artist Jay-Z, was revealed to be a new TV ad. The final three trailers for the game were released in the week before its release - a multiplayer trailer, a story trailer, and a live-action/gameplay trailer - each being well-received by the gaming community. In the live-action/gameplay trailer, a new tagline was introduced - "Is it real? Or is it Battlefield 3?"

Criticism
The marketing from certain senior EA executives and staff hasn't been met without some criticism. A number of high-level EA staff began attacking main rivals Activision and, in particular, the Call of Duty series, saying, on several occasions, that Battlefield 3 would soundly defeat the Call of Duty franchise, or words to that effect. However, Activision employees, including publishing boss Eric Hirshberg, responded negatively to these statements, saying EA's attitude was bad for the industry as a whole.

PS3 Owners vs EA Lawsuit
At Sony's E3 2011 press conference, EA announced that for all PlayStation 3 players, each new copy of Battlefield 3 would come with a free code of Battlefield 1943. This resulted in many to buy/pre-order the game, greatly boosting the game's overall sales. It was later revealed that EA and DICE had decided to retract their offer, stating that many of those who had pre-ordered Battlefield 3 already owned Battlefield 1943 and had been playing it for years. To compensate for this, EA and Sony announced that all PSN users would get a week early access to Back to Karkand. In spite of this, several PlayStation 3 owners filed a class action lawsuit against EA. Edelson McGuire, head of the group, alleged that EA ”misled and profited from thousands of their customers by making a promise that they could not keep". EA has since apologized for this and later issued codes for PS3 users to download Battlefield 1943 (now expired) in response to the lawsuit, and also kept the one-week early access deal for not only Back to Karkand but all future expansions for the game as well.

Reception
Battlefield 3 has received generally positive reviews from critics at launch. The game currently holds scores in Metacritic of 89, 85 and 84 for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, respectively. It also holds scores in GameRankings of 86.82% for PC, 84.71% for PlayStation 3 and 84.80% for Xbox 360. Critics praised the game's nice graphics, realistic audio and enjoyable multiplayer. It was criticized, however for its many bugs, glitches, and boring singleplayer campaign. DICE moved quickly, however, and the game is now practically bug-free.

GameSpot gave the game an 8.5 out of 10, saying that "Battlefield 3 may not offer much beyond the multiplayer, but there are so many ways to contribute and feel like a powerful soldier that after hours and hours of playing, all you'll want to do is play more."

IGN gave the game a 9 out of 10, saying that "Regardless of the narrative missteps or the occasional glitches, Battlefield 3 offers an unforgettable, world-class multiplayer suite that's sure to excite shooter fans, whether they fired their first bullet in Battlefield 1942 or have just now heeded Battlefield's call of duty."

GameSpy gave the game a perfect score of 5 out of 5 stars, saying that "It would be a shame for such an amazing interactive entertainment experience to be marred by technical issues. In the long run, though, it won't matter, because once players step out of that troop carrier and see the sun shining in their eyes like never before -- once they see the light -- they'll understand what a special game Battlefield 3 is."

Soundtrack
The sound track for Battlefield 3 changes somewhat from previous installments, but returns to the "classic" Battlefield theme tune that was absent from Battlefield: Bad Company 2. The entire soundtrack features a more techno-feel to the music, and can be heard throughout the game.

An official soundtrack album was released on 24 October, one day before the game was released. It is available on iTunes and Amazon. The music and all tracks were composed by Johan Skugge and Jukka Rintamäki.

Battlefield 3 (Original Video Game Soundtrack) (Digital Release) (35:59)

 * 1) Battlefield 3 Main Theme (1:56)
 * 2) Thunder Run (2:51)
 * 3) The Red Wire (0:33)
 * 4) Solomon's Theme (2:51)
 * 5) Spark (0:43)
 * 6) Frostbite (0:49)
 * 7) The Death of Vladimir (2:17)
 * 8) Fire From The Sky (3:06)
 * 9) Kaffarov's Villa (1:05)
 * 10) Operation Metro (2:03)
 * 11) La Bourse (0:53)
 * 12) Tremours (2:04)
 * 13) Choked (2:15)
 * 14) Black Gold (1:23)
 * 15) The Great Destroyer (2:22)
 * 16) Hunters Point (0:54)
 * 17) Brawl (0:48)
 * 18) Interrogating Blackburn (6:39)
 * 19) Battlefield 3 Dark Theme (0:32)

A further Premium edition soundtrack was released on the 26th of March 2013 which featured 10 new tracks

Battlefield 3 Premium Edition Original Soundtrack (Digital Release) (17:25)

 * 1) Close Quarters (1:35)
 * 2) Point Blank (0:44)
 * 3) Epic Tank (2:06)
 * 4) Sharp Jet (1:45)
 * 5) MMT (2:10)
 * 6) Post Apocalypse (1:43)
 * 7) Frostbite Pillars (2:06)
 * 8) Premium Launch (2:02)
 * 9) End Game (1:38)
 * 10) Signing Off (1:36)

Novel
The novelization of the game, Battlefield 3: The Russian, written by respected author Andy McNab, takes place during the Global War of 2014. Unlike the game's campaign, there are noticeable differences in the story, as well as telling the story through the points of views of Dimitri "Dima" Mayakovsky and Henry Blackburn.

Trivia

 * The Marine on the cover of Battlefield 3 is portrayed by Dennis Lennartsson, who also portrayed the U.S. Army soldier on Bad Company 2's cover art.
 * One lighting probe from Frostbite 2's lighting system contain(s) more lighting information than an entire level from Bad Company 2.
 * This is the first non-EA Sports game to utilize ANT, an animation program that powers EA games like FIFA, to create realistic third person animations and smoother transitions for AI and multiplayer characters.
 * Sounds such as weapons firing is unique in different environments, angles, and distances.
 * A developer's console is present.
 * "Fault Line Series - Episode 1: Bad Part of Town" was released the morning of March 2, 2011; 1 day after a reveal event by EA and DICE showcasing 15 minutes of gameplay.[17]
 * Unlike previous installments, weapon reloading differs when a changed magazine is empty or when it still has rounds in it.
 * When Battlefield 3 got 800,000 likes on Facebook, the 12 minute, full-length trailer originally supposed to be uploaded on April 17 was released early. The producer's commentary was released on April 22.
 * According to a GamersSpot article, the dinosaur at the beginning of the E3 demo and Thunder Run trailer was placed in response to a 4chan thread in which a supposed Activision sales manager wondered why their Call of Duty game didn't sell as well on PC as it did on consoles, with several responses saying it was due to a lack of dinosaurs. Gustav Halling, a gameplay designer for Back to Karkand, tweeted about it.
 * A tweet by senior gameplay designer Alan Kertz stated the detail in the shell casings are different based on US and RU weapons. He later tweeted that shotguns and personal defense weapons would be all-kit weapons.
 * In the Multiplayer of Battlefield 3, the player can actually engage in a small kill animation when attacking an enemy with his knife. If successful, the player will stab the enemy and snag the dogtags hanging around the victim's neck.
 * Vaulting, and the player being able to see their own legs and arms, was inspired by Mirror's Edge, a game that was also developed by DICE
 * On the back of the online pass in the Battlefield 3 case, there was a possible teaser for a new Medal of Honor game. This was later revealed to be Medal of Honor: Warfighter.
 * Battlefield 3's version of the infamous Wake Island is much larger and "darker" than in earlier counterparts.
 * Battlefield 3 is considered illegal to own or sell in Iran due to the game's portrayal of U.S. forces invading the country, though, even with the ban, it is still a very popular game with many Iranians.
 * Players who own Battlefield 3 will automatically unlock the Swedish SOG Spec Op soldier in Medal of Honor: Warfighter and a bonus Daniel Defense Mk18 for that particular soldier.