Battlefield 2 brought a huge following to the competitive side of Battlefield on PC. I remember buying BF2 the day it released, and I couldn't stop playing it for hours into the night even though I had an 8 a.m. class the next morning in college. I was already involved in playing competitive Halo 2 for the past year, and I had no idea about the competitive side of BF2.

After finding out about the Cyberathlete Amateur League BF2 open 8v8 league, I started posting as a regular on the forums. A few older gamers from Minnesota noticed my post and I started playing pubs with them in BF2. From the pubs, the guys asked me to play with them on their BF2 team in CAL. Playing organized BF2 competitively was the most fun I've ever had in gaming.

Our basic strategy for the classic Strike at Karkand map was marked up just like the colors in the screenshot. I had a squad of myself and a teammate, we ran spec ops and took the U.S. humvee to the far left flank of the map. Our role was to destroy the opposing commander's assets and try to cap their starting flag. Meanwhile the rest of my team was split up into two-three other squads. We had a primary tank guy and an APC guy. Their responsibilities were to keep the armor for our team alive as much as possible, and if destroyed, remember the timing of the respawn of the armor and make sure to grab it as soon as it comes back to put it back into the battle.

The best part of Strike at Karkand was the middle flag called the Market. This was the hardest fought area of the map since it was the middle point for the armor of both sides. The depth of strategy was unreal on this map. Sometimes teams ran their tank on the high side of the Market to have good lines of sight on attacking infantry, and sometimes the tank would hide in the alleyways, there were countless strats that unfolded.

Many people who played BF2 probably didn't experience this side of Battlefield. It's very unfortunate because this is where the true essence and core of BF comes from. The game becomes very life-like when you play with an organized team communicating and managing squads within the team. Each BF2 map becomes a life-like warzone where the better team will always come out on top. True military tactics and strategies work wonders because of the core design of BF2. Many people prefer the infantry-only side of BF, but I say no thank you to that. Give me 1v1 tank battles fighting across the railroad track at Gulf of Oman. Give me the APC where I can pile a squad inside and drive them into Market at Karkand and deploy them into attacking the flag.

What we know right now about Battlefield 3 is very little. On paper the game looks like it will be BF2 all over again but better, more evolved. With the potential absence of the commander mode, it's one less layer of strategy taken away from the game. While the commander mode was a huge asset to the core strategy of BF2, hopefully its absence in BF3 will still provide many layers of strategy.

It will be interesting to see how Back to Karkand plays with destruction. If entire buildings can be taken down , then the strategy of using the alleyways for infantry flanks and armor peak spots will be tough to keep up, and that's exciting to imagine!

If someone were to ask me what am I most excited for in BF3, I would respond by saying I hope to get the same level of strategy and fun I had from BF2 when I played 8v8 competitively. While I may not play the game competitively in the future, I hope BF3 brings back competitive Battlefield. Staying up on a Friday night watching live casting streams of top Battlefield clans wage war on one another was so entertaining. Listening to the play by play and the communication of the teams was unbelievable!

Battlefield 3 has the potential to bring competitive Battlefield back to PC gaming like BF2 was in 2005. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

It is extremely easy to compare this title to any other generic shooter and that is because it is. While having destruction is a huge plus the game fails on fun. The game has plenty of features even for a small studio like Atomic Games but it is unpolished and could have used a bit more time...

The first week of February Oh Crap it's Monday, we talk about Battlefield 3 and more.

This post will be updated as more scans and details com in.

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It has only been a few days since Battlefield 3 finally got its formal unveiling and already there is tons of information both leaked and officially confirmed. DICE has released the first teaser trailer for the game along with the launch of the official website. You can also preorder the game now via the official site. They have also confirmed 64 player support for PC and the return of flyable jets ingame along with the ability to go prone. The game will also feature a full single player campaign and co-op features, and will also take place all over the world in such locations as New York, Paris and Tehran.

Along with the teaser trailer and website launch there also has been some information about the game found across multiple sites most of which from retail store websites. Some of the more interesting information from the retailers is the "drag your fallen comrades into safety, and mount your weapon on almost any part of the terrain."

From Webhallen:

Feel The Battle! This fall, prepare to feel the most physical shooter ever created, powered by the all-new Frostbite 2 gaming engine.

Battlefield 3 leaps ahead of the competition with the power of Frostbite™ 2, the next instalment of DICE’s cutting-edge game engine. This state-of-the-art technology is the foundation on which Battlefield 3 is built, delivering superior visual quality, a grand sense of scale, massive destruction, dynamic audio and incredibly lifelike character animations. As bullets whiz by, walls crumble, and explosions throw you to the ground, the battlefield feels more alive and interactive than ever before.

In Battlefield 3, players step into the role of the elite U.S. Marines where they will experience heart-pounding single player missions and competitive multiplayer actions ranging across diverse locations from around the globe including Paris, Tehran and New York

Features:
• Frostbite 2 – Battlefield 3 introduces Frostbite 2, the incredible technology that takes animation, destruction, lighting, scale and audio to new heights. Built upon this powerful game engine, Battlefield 3 immerses players physically and emotionally to the world around them like never before.

• Feel the Battle — Feel the impact of bullets and explosions, drag your fallen comrades into safety, and mount your weapon on almost any part of the terrain. Battlefield 3’s cutting edge animation, spectacular visuals and real as hell battle gameplay attack your senses and make you feel the visceral warriors experience like no other FPS.

• Unparalleled Vehicle Warfare — The best online vehicle warfare experience gets even better with a fitting sonic boom as fighter jets headline impressive lineup of land, air and sea vehicles.

• Urban Combat — Take the fight to iconic and unexpected places in the USA, Middle East, and Europe including claustrophobic streets, metropolitan downtowns, and open, vehicle-friendly landscapes as you fight your way through the war of tomorrow.

From Best Buy:

Synopsis

This street is quiet. Too quiet. You train your eyes on one of the only two points of entry. Surely this will be the way the enemy comes in for the assault. As soon as you've brought your weapon to the ready, you hear the whizzing noise of a bullet flying past inches from your ear. Suddenly the building to your right bursts into an explosion that sends you flying through the air. You smash into the opposite building with a resounding thud. You lie there helpless, watching bits of the crumbled wall roll toward you. You have to get up. You have to keep fighting. A fallen comrade lays beside you and you know you must drag him to safety if he's going to survive. You have to do this. Lives depend on it. Welcome to the Battlefield.

Join the elite U.S. Marines as you battle the enemy across claustrophobic streets, metropolitan downtowns and vehicle-friendly landscapes in the United States, Europe and the Middle East. Whether you're mastering the art of urban combat or piloting a land, sea or air vehicle, Battlefield 3 immerses you in incredibly realistic gameplay powered by the all-new Frostbite 2 game engine. The battlefield has become more alive and interactive than ever before. In heart-pounding single-player missions and massive 24-player online battles, Battlefield 3 immerses you in the fight with cutting-edge animation, destruction, lighting, scale and audio. Prepare for a war that not only attacks your country, but attacks your senses in incredibly physical, lifelike ways. Prepare for Battlefield 3.

Features

• Become an elite U.S. Marine as you fight across North America, Europe and the Middle East
• Powered by the all-new Frostbite 2 game engine for superior visual quality, a grand sense of scale, massive destruction, dynamic audio and incredibly lifelike character animations
• Incredibly real gameplay ensures you feel the impact of every bullet and explosion
• Drag your fallen comrades to safety and mount your weapon on almost any terrain to defend them
• Battle it out in an impressive lineup of land, air and sea vehicles, including powerful fighter jets
• Become a master of urban combat as you fight in claustrophobic streets, metropolitan downtowns and vehicle-friendly landscapes
• Take the fight online in massive combat with up to 24 players
• For 1 player locally; 1 to 24 players online

By the looks of it Battlefield 3 on console will support only 24 players in an online match.

A forum user Morczor on the EA UK forums has also unveiled the contents of the Limited Edition version of Battlefield 3, the details come from a leaked EA Store image that was not supposed to be live yet. The image says that anyone who preorders the Limited Edition will receive the expansion "Back to Karkand" for free on release, it goes on to specify that the expansion will "feature 4 legendary maps from Battlefield 2". It also states that "Completing the package are classic Battlefield 2 weapons and vehicles" along with including "Unique rewards, new achievements/trophies and more." For those who do not preorder the Limited Edition of Battlefield 3 they will be able to purchase the expansion approximately one month after the release of the game.

Later today starting at 12pm (noon) PST we will be hosting a Community Play Date, today's game will be Monday Night Combat by Uber Entertainment.

To participate all you have to do is hop on teamspeak and/or join the steam group.

Teamspeak 3 IP: gamersverse.com:9987

Steam Group: http://steamcommunity.com/groups/GamersVerse

So come play some MNC with us today!

Well it finally happened, DICE has come out publicly and talked about Battlefield 1943 for PC, but this time it is bad news. The project has officially been scrapped. Along with Battlefield 1943, Battlefield Bad Company 2: Onslaught for PC has also been canceled. Karl cites the main reason is to focus more on the development of Battlefield 3. He does assure though that news will be coming soon about Battlefield 3. Rumor says sometime this Friday.

There comes a time when we as a studio have to choose where to best put our efforts. At DICE we’re dedicated to taking care of our products after launch, and also hell bent on building new, innovative and high quality games.

 

In my day to day work, I look at our release schedule and the studio’s capacity, weighing them against our wild ambitions to create awesomeness. 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.

 

This is one of those cross roads where I need to make a hard decision. While we’ll continue supporting Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and previous games, it’s time to look ahead to the next giant leap for DICE – the release of Battlefield 3, powered by the mighty Frostbite 2 engine. 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.

 

We know some of you eagerly have been awaiting Battlefield 1943 and Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Onslaught on PC. I’m sad to say that these two titles are now officially cancelled. 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.

 

For an idea of what that means, watch this space for some exciting news I think you’ll like.

 

Best regards,
Karl Magnus Troedsson
General Manager, DICE

Battlefield Blog

Hey guys this is the first of a new weekly video segment called "Oh Crap it's Monday". Reason it is called such is because Mondays suck. Each Monday a new OCiM will go live and will be a short 3-5 minute video of me talking about what is going on for Gamers Verse this week.

This week we have a few game reviews, we have Dead Space 2, Breach and Monday Night Combat (PC). Along with that we will have daily news posts and hopefully some exclusives coming up.

On every Wednesday we will have another similar video segment for each sub-site called the "Weekly Wednesday". In which we will talk about what happened in the past week for that site, talk about news, rumors and so on.

Also announced that we are bringing back the LIVE GVCast every Thursday at 5pm PST. More information to follow on that.

And last but not least every Saturday at 12pm (noon) PST we will be hosting a Gamers Verse Community Play Date. This weeks play date will be Monday Night Combat for PC, we hope to have a server or two up in time but if not we will just all hop on teamspeak and find an empty server. The easiest way to take part in the play date will be to join the Steam Group http://steamcommunity.com/groups/GamersVerse. We will also be posting more information for the play date on Friday.

That is about it for now, expect a lot more cool things coming up for Gamers Verse in the coming weeks!

-Aaron

As promised KAOS Studios and Digital Extremes has posted a blog post on all the PC exclusive features.

The list is pretty big and has some surprises that far exceeds my expectations that fell after the news of the Xbox exclusive map and timed exclusive DLC, with features as demo recording and a slight hint at mod tools.

KAOS even says that the 32 player limit is not final and can be increased if there is enough demand for it.

Homefront is releasing March 8 on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3

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