battlefield-3 posts

The days are actually starting to get longer now. That's not good for PC gamers who want as much low light as possible:

• Game Informer has a couple of videos showing a chat with DICE's Karl-Magnus Troedsson about Battlefield 3.
• Duke Nukem, you may have met your match in Doug Huggem.
• The Indie Games Challenge named the winners of the 2011 edition this week but sadly both are Xbox 360 exclusives.
• All former Everquest players with their accounts in good standing can check out the MMO game, with newly added content, for free until February 21.
• The Video Game Bar Association (i.e. lawyers) has officially launched.

As expected, info from this month's Game Informer cover story on Battlefield 3 is making its way onto the internet. A post on the NeoGAF message board has some bullet points on what was revealed in the article which gives the first details on developer Digital Illusions' next first person shooter.

The article states that the PC version of the game is the lead platform which is good news for people who might have been afraid that we would be getting a dumbed down console port. We won't reveal too much more about the bullet points in the post but one that is mentioned is that the game might not get mod tools with the post stating that the new Frostbite 2 engine is so complex that any mod tools would have to be dumbed down. The post hints that DICE might not want to put in any resources for that to happen.

[Via VG247.com]

Battlefield 3 may have just been announced but developer Digital Illusions is also hyping up the new version of its in-house Frostbite game engine. Now a video from a Siggraph presentation has shown up on YouTube that shows off a little more of the engine,

The video, which doesn't show gameplay from Battlefield 3, does show off the real-time radiosity features of the new Frostbite Engine 3 through the use of a middleware program called Enlighten. DICE is still not talking about if Battlefield 3 will include an SDK for mod makers although previous games in the series have had such released. You can check out the video after the jump:

[Via VG247.com]

While we wait for the info from Game Informer's print preview of Battlefield 3 to pop up on the internet, one of the game's designers, Digital Illusions' Alan Kertz, has been giving some hints about the developer's next military shooter to fans via his Twitter page.

While he's not commenting on some issues such as if an SDK will be released or what anti-cheat methods will be used, Kertz is telling fans some small tidbits. Knifes will be in the game as well dogtags, according to Kertz, but there won't be any grapples or zip wires. The bullet drop in the game will be deeper than in Battlefield Bad Company 2. There's a little debate on whether gamepads will have an aim assist for the PC version with Kertz saying, "My concern is people turning on aim assist with a mouse. If we have it you either get aim+pad or mouse, not both."

Battlefield 3 details are starting to leak out to the internet following the multiplayer shooter's official announcement on Friday. Computer and Video Games claims in a new story that a leaked ad for the game shows that the Limited Edition of the Digital Illusions-developed game will provide gamers from content from the series' last installment Battlefield 2.

Specifically, the Limited Edition is supposed to give gamers access to a special four level map pack containing revamped versions of classic Battlefield 2 maps but redone in Battlefield 3's new Frostbite 2 graphics engine. In addition vehicles and weapons from Battlefield 2 will show up in the Limited Edition of Battlefield 3 along with "unique rewards, new Achievements/Trophies and more." Folks who don't pre-order the Limited Edition version of the game will apparently still be able to access its extra via paid DLC sometime after the game is released.

While we wait for the inevitable leaks from the upcoming Game Informer cover story, the official Battlefield web site has now offered up a little more info on the now officially announced Battlefield 3. The blog site states that the next game in developer Digital Illusions' military shooter series will have "a full single-player campaign and a co-op campaign" in addition to the game's popular multiplayer modes.

PC gamers can expect to have support for up to 64 players in online multiplayer. Jets will also be featured in Battlefield 3 and players who like to go prone will be happy to know they will be able to do that in the game as well. Much is being made about the powerful features of the Frostbit 2 graphics engine as well. If you want to go ahead and pre-order the game now you can do so at EA's online store to secure the Battlefield 3 Limited Edition. Details of what the Limited Edition will contain will be revealed later this month.

Update: We now have the teaser trailer for Battlefield 3 which you can check out after the jump.

Download the Battlefield 3 teaser trailer at Big Download

We cannot tell you how disappointed we are about Digital Illusions' decision to cancel the promised PC port of Battlefield 1943. Is it ultimately a minor occurrence in the overall scheme of things? Sure. Will we still want to buy and play Battlefield 3? Of course. But it once again shows that for the most part publisher EA treats the PC as a second class citizen when it comes to multi-platform games.

• Steam has new automatic updates for A.R.E.S (including a new suit), Crasher, and Team Fortress 2, Counter-Strike: Source, Day of Defeat: Source and Half-Life 2: Deathmatch.
• The latest Irrational Games audio interview has Ken Levine chatting with Gearbox Software's Randy Pitchford.
• Bethesda Softworks has reportedly fired its second law firm in its continued fight with Interplay over the Fallout game license.
• Game Informer has a new podcast where Bethesda Softworks' Todd Howard answers fan questions about The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim.

The first details on Battlefield 3 should be revealed very, very soon. Game Informer's web site has just revealed that its next print magazine issue, due in newsstands later this month, will feature a cover story on Digital Illusions' next game in the military shooter franchise.

Details are still scarce but the web site announcing the cover article states that the game will use the next version of DICE's in-house Frostbite Engine which will have new features like "deferred rendering, real-time radiosity, a new animation system borrowed from the EA Sports label, and an exponential leap in destructibility." As we reported earlier today DICE made the design to cancel the PC port of the long awaited Battlefield 1943 to concentrate its resources on Battlefield 3.

Battlefield 1943 for the PC has finally been officially cancelled after PC gamers have spent nearly two years waiting for the promised port of the multiplayer shooter. In a post on the Battlefield blog Karl Magnus Troedsson, the general manager of the game's developer Digital Illusions, stated, "I often need to make hard calls regarding where we put the studio's focus. Part of the challenge is to balance work on the new against the already shipped, prioritizing the amount of energy spent on the known franchises and the time spent on developing something entirely new."

Troedsson stated that while they will continue to support its previously released games such as 2010's Battlefield Bad Company 2, he added that DICE had made the decision to move forward with development of its next game Battlefield 3. He stated, "Our goal is crystal clear: we're going to build the best Battlefield game ever, and we'll do whatever it takes to make this the biggest launch in DICE's history." Therefore the decision was made to cancel development of Battlefield 1943's PC port along with a PC version of Battlefield Bad Company 2's Onslaught mode. Troedsson states, "Instead, our talented teams will focus on delivering the greatest possible gaming experience in our next behemoth release. We're confident this will lead to an even better experience in Battlefield 3, not only on PC, but on all platforms."

Battlefield 1943, basically a graphical remake of some of the maps and content of DICE's first game in the series, Battlefield 1942, was released back in July 2009 for the Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles via download. The game went on to become a huge sales hit for the developer and its publisher Electronic Arts. DICE promised a number of times in the that a PC version would be released, stating at one point that the delay was to give PC players more features such as DirectX 10 graphics support, 32 player support in multiplayer and more. As recently as last November a DICE team member said the PC version was still in development.

Battlefield fans can now go ahead and mark "March 1" on their calendars. That's the date that publisher Electronic Arts plans to finally reveal the first concrete details on Battlefield 3, the next game in the popular first person shooter franchise, according to an article on IGN. The game from developer Digital Illusions has been in development for some time and the PC version will require a DirectX 10-based rig to run.

The reveal will be part of an EA press event at GDC 2011 in San Fransisco which will also feature new hands-on previews of Alice Madness Returns, Crysis 2, and Kingdom of Amalur: Reckoning. EA is also expected to reveal more new games at the event.