Battlefield 3

Battlefield 3 (also known 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 Fall/Autumn 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.

Content
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 been confirmed that this gameplay feature will not carry over into the multiplayer aspects of the game. It will also 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. A step up from Bad Company 2's Destruction 2.0, 3.0 allows for a much larger range of destructible objects (aside from buildings) and more realistic destruction. For example, in the Fault Line Series Episode II: Good Effect On Target, when the player fires their AT4 on the hotel, they can see the entire facet of the building being completely ripped apart. In the earthquake prone city of Sulaymaniyah, players will experience tremors and earthquakes that will display the destructive 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."

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.

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. The only confirmed enemies in the game so far are a fictional group known as the PLR, or People's Liberation and Resistance, which the player will first engage in said city, in an earthquake prone area, as the player will witness. 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.

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 singleplayer 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.

Multiplayer
The locations of the multiplayer maps, just like the campaign, will include Europe, the Middle East, and North America. More specifically, the setting takes 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 (player count, prone, etc.). There will be a better character customization system, with possibilities of limited personal soldier customization, although such a system would be limited to avoid players shooting 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, but it is unknown whether it will be in the style of Onslaught from Battlefield: Bad Company 2, or a local split-screen gametype.

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, possibly having relation to the smaller player count. Also made known at this expo was the fact that players would be able to fly around in jets 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.

Limited Edition and downloadable content
A 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, a multiplayer expansion based on Battlefield 2 content, including four classic maps, vehicles, and weapons, all at no extra cost. The expansion will include Strike at Karkand, Sharqi Peninsula, Gulf of Oman and another remake of Wake Island. For those who will not preorder the Limited Edition, the content will be released for all platforms approximately a month after the game's release.

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 different in different environments, different angles, and different distances.
 * A dev console will be present.
 * When a firearm is reloaded before the magazine is emptied, there will now be an extra round present, because the cartridge is still in the chamber of the weapon.
 * The player gains an ability to use weapon-mounted flashlights, although it is not known whether this is intended to be used in Multiplayer or solely Singleplayer.
 * 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. Whether or not the player is able to see their body when controlling the character or only during certain cutscenes is unconfirmed.
 * A full 12-minute reveal, featuring more in-depth gameplay footage, will be shown on April 17, 2011.

Videos
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

Video:Battlefield 3: Teaser Analysis|An analysis of the teaser trailer

Video:Battlefield 3: Released Screenshots|Scans of a Game Informer article

Video:Battlefield 3: Gameplay Analysis  New Screenshots|Gameplay Trailer Analysis + New Screenshots