Battlefield 3

Battlefield 3 (commonly abbreviated as BF3) is an upcoming Battlefield game made by Digital Illusions CE, and is a sequel to Battlefield 2. It is scheduled to be released in October 25, 2011 for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Battlefield 3 was revealed on February 4, 2011 with a teaser trailer, and was the cover story of the March 2011 issue of GameInformer. It was first showcased on March 1, 2011 during GDC 2011, which revealed unedited gameplay for the first time.

Beta access for Battlefield 3 was packaged with every Limited and Tier 1 Edition of Medal of Honor. DICE announced on February 3, 2011 that the release of Battlefield 1943 and Battlefield: Bad Company 2's Onslaught DLC were cancelled for the PC to concentrate all their workforce on Battlefield 3, and that they will make it their biggest Battlefield release yet, even going so far as calling it "the best Battlefield game ever." DICE also confirmed that the different versions of the game will not differ too much, but the PC version will be getting extra attention, in the sense that they would not limit themselves to the technical capabilities of consoles, and that the different versions are being developed separately.

Overview
Battlefield 3 will include both a singleplayer & co-op campaign and multiplayer modes.

Its multiplayer will most likely feature similar gameplay to the classic Battlefield 2. It was announced that jets will make their return as usable vehicles, that prone will become an available stance and that the PC version will be able to support 64 players in a same multiplayer match. The Xbox 360 versions and the PlayStation 3 version will be able to support up to 24 players in a multiplayer match. As seen in the Battlefield 3 gameplay trailer, it is confirmed that the player can now drag fallen soldiers and heal them from cover. However, it has also been confirmed that this gameplay feature will not carry over into the multiplayer aspects of the game. It will use a completely new engine, named Frostbite 2, which will be the successor to the Frostbite Engine used in the Bad Company series. With the help of the Frostbite 2 engine, Destruction 3.0 will be introduced into the game. An improvement over Bad Company 2's Destruction 2.0, Destruction 3.0 allows for a much larger range of destructible objects alongside buildings and more realistic destruction. For example, when the player fires their AT4 on the hotel in the Fault Line Series Episode II: Good Effect On Target trailer, they can see the entire façade of the building being completely ripped apart. In the earthquake prone city of Sulaymaniyah, players will experience tremors and earthquakes that will display the capabilities of Destruction 3.0.

Audio is another focus for the game. There will be audio cues that, for example, will let the player know if a tank is moving towards or away from them, or if it is having trouble climbing a slope. The developers have recorded real life sounds of vehicles and weapons from a military training exercise; their goal being to create "cleaner and brighter audio." Voice acting will also be extremely varied. 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."

Several sources confirm that console versions of the game will get smaller multiplayer maps than the PC version, though there will be little to no change in the graphics of the different versions.

Lead weapon designer for Battlefield 3 Alan Kertz stated in an EA PWNED interview (see video section):
 * "We're going for a really authentic feel in Battlefield 3. So the big thing that we're looking at is what guns are actually being used by armies, and obviously we have the Marines in Battlefield, so first thing we did is go in and look for the Marine weapons, but we also want that little bit extra special, because fun is still something really important in Battlefield. So, we went ahead and looked at other forces and said: "What sticks out? What looks cool? What is unique? What fills a role that we don't have?" And we went and we picked those guns and brought those into Battlefield, as well."

Singleplayer
A single-player mission was hinted at in the latest Game Informer.

The only confirmed playable faction at the moment are the US Marines, where the player will assume the role of at least one Marine, Staff Sergeant Henry "Black" Blackburn, of 1st Recon. The campaign, set in the year 2014, will take the player around the world, but the only confirmed location for one mission so far is Sulaymaniwah, Iraqi Kurdistan. Currently, the only confirmed enemies in the game are a fictional group known as the People's Liberation and Resistance, or PLR, which the player will first engage in said city, in an earthquake prone area, as the player will witness.

An unconfirmed location is the Al Basrah region in Iraq, which appears to be the label on the map in "Fault Line Series - Episode 1: Bad Part of Town."

The single-player features pathfinding and reactive AI that has been heavily updated from Battlefield: Bad Company 2. As Battlefield 3 is not a sequel to Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Marlowe, Sweetwater, Haggard and Redford will not make an appearance in the game.

The gameplay debut of the campaign level mentioned above entitled: "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.

An article on Kotaku states that the single-player campaign was inspired by multiple war movies such as Generation Kill, Hurt Locker and Black Hawk Down. It is also said that there will be a focus on the characters' (including the player's) personalities and dialog. Additionally, it was confirmed that the date of 2014 was chosen to not politicize the story. Another single-player mission, called "Thunder Run," showing eight minutes of gameplay, was revealed during E3 2011. This time, the player controls Corporal Jonathan "Jono" Miller of the 1st Marine Tank Battalion as they engage and destroy PLR armor in the Dasht-e Kavir desert in Iran. At the time of this mission, at least, the game is set in October 31st, 2014.

Another single-player mission has been confirmed, with the player controlling a Russian undercover agent called Dmitri "Dima" Mayakovsky. The player must fight his way from the Paris Stock Exchange onto the crowded city streets in an attempt to stop People's Liberation and Resistance operatives from detonating a dirty bomb in the heart of Paris.

Multiplayer
The locations of the multiplayer maps, like the campaign, will include Europe, the Middle East, and North America. More specifically, the game is set to take place in the cities of Paris, Tehran, and New York.

In the magazine GameInformer, it was also hinted of various tweaks, some of which were mentioned above, such as player count, prone, etc. There will be an improved character customization system, with possibilities of limited personal soldier customization, although such a system would be limited to avoid players shooting at their own side. The "Commander" position of Battlefield 2 will not return, and it has been hinted that there will be open-access benefits for all players, as in Battlefield: Bad Company 2. The streamlined four class system and killcams of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 will continue, and a Hardcore mode will be present in the game, whilst a better pre-game lobby will be implemented (for squads and parties). A replay mode has been hinted at, to allow players to capture one-off moments from games, and a co-op mode will be included.

Additionally, 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 will instead have a quick-time event process that allows the player to throw left or right punches at an opponent, or counter an attack.

There will be a set of four playable 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 releation to their roles from Battlefield: Bad Company 2, utilising the same four class system. The Medic kit has been replaced by the Support kit from previous Battlefield games, with a light machinegun and Ammunition boxes, as well the ability to actually suppress opposing players, causing them to have no health regeneration and other effects. The Assault kit takes on the role of the Medic in the team, similar to the Medic kit in Battlefield 2, with an assault rifle as a primary weapon yet Medkits and Defibrillators for reviving and healing players, instead of ammunition boxes. though players can also opt for an underslung grenade launcher instead of medical equipment. 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 and are equipped with semi-automatic sniper rifles and C4. The Engineer Kit retains its functions of Battlefield: Bad Company 2, and can fix vehicles, and is equipped with a rocket launcher to destroy enemy vehicles. They also equip a submachine gun or carbine, which can have a Tactical flashlight to blind opponents.

In terms of game modes, three of them have been confirmed: Rush, Conquest and Team deathmatch. Jets will only be available in Conquest mode.

As of yet, there are two confirmed playable affiliations in multiplayer, these being the Russian Spetsnaz and the United States Marine Corps, and there will be faction-specific weapons. Other features include suppressive fire, which prevents health regeneration and blurs the opponent's vision,  squad leaders, ability to change weapon fire modes, the knife and grenades can be equipped, similarly to older Battlefield games, but players will also be able to do a quick knife move, similarly to Battlefield: Bad Company 2, and vehicles will be able to heal small bits of health on its own, and light vehicles will be less vulnerable. Players will also be able to spot enemies.

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

People who pre-order via the EA Store will also get 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.

Players who preorder the Battlefield 3 Limited Edition from worldwide select retailers will get temporary exclusive access to the Type 88 light machine gun with deployable bipod, a flash suppressor for the SKS sniper rifle and flechette ammo for the DAO-12, as well as day-1 access to the DAO-12. Having sparked widespread controversy because it would deprive players that will not receive the pack of some in-game, DICE addressed the issue and announced that it was a time-based exclusive, meaning it will be released to the general public later for free.

Downloadable content
Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand is the only confirmed downloadable content set to be released for Battlefield 3. It is a multiplayer expansion based on Battlefield 2 content, including four classic maps, vehicles, weapons to carry on to the base game, and new achievements/ trophies, all at no extra cost. The expansion will include Strike at Karkand, Sharqi Peninsula, Gulf of Oman and Wake Island, newly enhanced with Frostbite 2. As of yet, the only confirmed way of acquiring Back to Karkand is by preordering the Limited Edition (see above). The Back to Karkand expansion is slated for release to the general public a month after the game's release.

A post on the Battlefield Blog hints that there will be more downloadable content to be developed following the game's release, all more or less the same size and quality as Battlefield: Bad Company 2: Vietnam. Niklas Fergraeus, lead designer of Back to Karkand, states: "Well, with Battlefield: Bad Company 2, we did a lot of experimenting with DLC, and I think that we learnt a lot along the way. The goal is that any content for Battlefield 3 will be of the same quality as Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam." Other sources state that Battlefield 3 will have three times the DLC of Battlefield: Bad Company 2.

At Sony's conference at E3 2011, it was revealed that for every PS3 copy of the game, Battlefield 1943 will be included for free on the game's disc.

Trivia

 * 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 animations and smoother transitions for AI and multiplayer characters.
 * A profile system, possibly similar to Battlefield 2 and Battlefield 1942, will be present.
 * Sounds such as weapons firing will be unique in different environments, at different angles, and at different distances.
 * A dev console will be present.
 * When selected weapons are reloaded before the magazine is emptied, there will be an extra round in the weapon when reloaded. Reloads of the weapon also differ between when the changed magazine is empty or when it still has rounds in it.
 * For the first time in the Battlefield franchise, the player is able to see their body, as one can see in the gameplay trailer when the character jumps down from a ventilation shaft.
 * 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.
 * According to a GamerSpawn analysis of the "Thunder Run" trailer, the soldier who is with Jono in the tank wears a helmet saying "Don't Panic!" This could be a reference to numerous things, including the book series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, and the character Jack Jones from the TV show Dad's Army.
 * Battlefield 3 ' s and Battlefield: Bad Company 2 ' s cover arts look remarkably similar.

Videos
Video:Battlefield 3: Thunder Run Gameplay Trailer|Thunder Run gameplay trailer

Video:Battlefield 3 BF3 Live From E3 2011 HD|E3 2011 Battlefield 3 conference

Video:Battlefield 3: E3 Frostbite 2 Features Trailer|E3 Frostbite 2 trailer

Video:Battlefield 3: Operation Metro Multiplayer Gameplay Trailer|Operation Métro multiplayer gameplay trailer

Video:EA PWNED - Battlefield 3 Special|EA PWNED interview with DICE, featuring information on Frostbite 2, Back to Karkand, Battlefield 3 weapons, and more

Video:Battlefield 3 Fault Line Full length and Commentary with Executive Producer|Full length Fault Line trailer with developer commentary

Video:Battlefield 3 - Full Length Fault Line trailer|Full length Fault Line trailer

Video:Battlefield 3 - "My Life"|My Life trailer

Video:Battlefield 3: Gameplay PC Ep3 |Fault Line Series - Episode III: Get that Wire Cut

Video:Fault Line Series - Episode 2 |Fault Line Series - Episode II: Good Effect On Target

Video:Fault Line Series - Episode I: Bad Part of Town| Fault Line Series - Episode I: Bad Part of Town

Video:Battlefield 3 Premiere Gameplay Trailer|Premier gameplay trailer

Video:Battlefield 3 - Teaser Trailer|Teaser Trailer