Battlefield 3

[Activate: AMD]

64 players is sweet, esp after the 32's of BC2, but it would still be disappointing if they didn't include bigger servers. Either way, anything feels huge after BLOPS 18 man servers

[Brandito]

64 players is sweet, esp after the 32's of BC2, but it would still be disappointing if they didn't include bigger servers. Either way, anything feels huge after BLOPS 18 man servers

i remember when 16 players in MOH:AA was huge to me.

64 man in cod4 in shipment, now that is the benchmark i will be holding bf3 to

[Keven]

64 players is sweet, esp after the 32's of BC2, but it would still be disappointing if they didn't include bigger servers. Either way, anything feels huge after BLOPS 18 man servers

This is the 64-bit era! I want 128 v. 128 players! Everything else be damned.

[Activate: AMD]

This is the 64-bit era! I want 128 v. 128 players! Everything else be damned.

64-bits means 64 players... didn't you get the memo? God, its not the 128 bit era yet!

some people these days

[Keven]

64-bits means 64 players... didn't you get the memo? God, its not the 128 bit era yet!

some people these days

I guess only the power of the Cell processor in the PS3 can handle 128 vs. 128, since it was included in that MAG game.

[tjdehya]

It’s funny that I should say this but they have already let me down with the BF3 art released with the news... It’s not original; it’s a direct copy of BC2. Is this a sign of the laziness we can expect with the game developers?

Anyway aside from that I am actually feeling just as excited as when I was eagerly awaiting BF2. But seriously, WTF EA? Is this game supposed to be BF3 or BC2.1?!?

[Lenny]

64 is plenty IMO. Too many choke point nade fests the way it is.

[Brandito]

64 is plenty IMO. Too many choke point nade fests the way it is.

there was never any nade fests i recall in bf2.

more players would ultimately mean larger maps. you can't increase map size with 64 players. action would be far too spread out.

[Lenny]

I was thinking of BF2142. Hopefully the map design in BF3 is good enough to prevent that sort of thing.

[Keven]

I was thinking of BF2142. Hopefully the map design in BF3 is good enough to prevent that sort of thing.

Yeah, DICE would have to carefully design 256-player maps to prevent those sorts of issues. Well, something to hope for from BF4.

[Brandito]

i wasn't even hoping for 256 player servers, 128 or even 96 would have worked for me.

[AMDTurbo]

It’s funny that I should say this but they have already let me down with the BF3 art released with the news... It’s not original; it’s a direct copy of BC2. Is this a sign of the laziness we can expect with the game developers?

Anyway aside from that I am actually feeling just as excited as when I was eagerly awaiting BF2. But seriously, WTF EA? Is this game supposed to be BF3 or BC2.1?!?

I'm no longer pre ordering any games...

It will be just like MOH, update to BC2 engine.....

There is no way it can be DX11 designed engine as it will have to be supported by consoles, and EA won't go through the trouble of downgrading to make it playable.

Same can be said about Crysis 2....

[leroy329]

Yeah, DICE would have to carefully design 256-player maps to prevent those sorts of issues. Well, something to hope for from BF4.

sounds like MAG for ps3 256 player maps already been done quite fun

[Keven]

sounds like MAG for ps3 256 player maps already been done quite fun

Yeah, that's why I'm surprised they didn't do 128-128 for BF3. Oh well.

[Brandito]

http://www.vg247.com/2011/02/08/batt...eatures-co-op/

And off we go. Someone’s gone and put all over the internet Game Informer’s massive cover piece on Battlefield 3, with additional details coming from US retailer Best Buy.

Battlefield 3

Releasing this fall for PC, 360 and PS3
Multiplayer on PC will consist of 64 players, where 24 players will make up the numbers on consoles.
Battlefield 3 will run on DICE’s new Frostbite 2.0.
Locations in the game include Paris, New York and Tehran.

The main details from the new issue of the magazine (via GAF) is that the game will feature co-op, the story will be completely original and therefore unrelated to Bad Company 2, the lead platform is PC and that it’s planning more immediate and better post-release content.
The other stuff included in the issue is that BF3′s concept has been in the works for a good couple of years, but was waiting on the right tech to have it come together. DICE says that Frostbite 2 is the “culmination” of the tech with it entirely rewritten.
However, the PC version will not have mod tools at release. DICE said that Frostbite 2 was complex and that the tools would have to be dumbed down.
The game will also feature four classes, but will talk about squads “later.” DICE is also looking into a theatre mode, but won’t talk about it. It did confirm it will have a Killcam that can be turned off.
It’s already been confirmed the game will take place in Tehran, Paris and New York, but DICE also confirms that Sulaymaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan will be in the game.
DICE also said it is trying to find the sweet spot for character customisation and not having “pink rabbit hats”. It’ll also feature a lot more unlocks than what was in Bad Company 2.
“The more variation you have [in the characters], the less you can have in the rest of the world,” producer Patrick Bach told the mag.
“I think it also has to do with the way you play more professionally. You don’t want people to look completely different. It’s team A versus team B. It’s always a challenge – how do you personalise a uniform? Giving the pink rabbit hat to someone would make it fun, but if you’re running around and you don’t know what you’re shooting at, you don’t take the professional gaming seriously in my book.”
Bach continues: “There’s a challenge between personalising and keeping it uniform. We will do more in that area, making sure that you can get your character to be more personalised both in a visual way and more specifically in the way you gear up. We did a good job I would argue with Bad Company 2 with specialisations, different scopes and different weapons – you can kind of find your way of playing the game, which broadens the game for more people.”
Other bits of info include:

• One probe in Battlefield 3 on lighting will contain more info than an entire Bad Company 2 level.
• Level destruction will be “believable”, but everything is destructible.
• Character animation will be powered by a program used at EA Sports, ANT. AI and multiplayer characters will also different sets of animations and that there’ll be no more “gliding” animations that look off.
• DICE captured its own war audios – tanks, helicopters, bullets, etc – at various distances to capture realism. There’ll also be better audio cues for certain actions, with it more easily able to listen to incoming threats.
• Battlfield 3 dev team is nearly twice as big as the team was for Bad Company 2.
• DICE wants the single-player pacing to be balanced with highs and lows.
• “••••” will be used a lot, so expect an M-rated game from the ESRB.
• A significant narrative that will go with the single-player.
• No complaints from console gamers is why the PC version will support 64-player multiplay on PC SKU.

24-player console-multiplay confirmed by US retailer.
According to Best Buy (via X360A), BF3 will feature 24-player multiplayer on consoles, down by 40 on PC. The number was previously speculated over the weekend.
It also says you can “drag your fallen comrades to safety and mount your weapon on almost any terrain to defend them.”
Battlefield 3 releases this fall for PC, 360 and PS3.

other than the 64 player limit i'm pretty excited