**OFFICIAL** AT Battlefield 3 FAQ and News Thread

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scooterlibby

Senior member
Feb 28, 2009
752
0
0
Hey guys, I've Googled this, but can't find a comprehensive list of all map modes that have jets. If anyone has the knowledge and patience to list it, that would be great. We could probably add that to the info OP.
 

llee

Golden Member
Oct 27, 2009
1,152
0
76
Vanilla maps that have jets:

Firestorm large - large conquest, conquest, & rush
Caspian Border - large conquest, conquest, & rush
Kharg Island - large conquest, conquest, & rush
Canals - large conquest

Back to Karkand maps that have jets:

Gulf of Oman - large conquest, conquest
Wake Island - large conquest, conquest

I'm not sure about the Armored Kill maps.
 

DeadFred

Platinum Member
Jun 4, 2011
2,740
29
91
Vanilla maps that have jets:

Firestorm large - large conquest, conquest, & rush
Caspian Border - large conquest, conquest, & rush
Kharg Island - large conquest, conquest, & rush
Canals - large conquest

Back to Karkand maps that have jets:

Gulf of Oman - large conquest, conquest
Wake Island - large conquest, conquest

I'm not sure about the Armored Kill maps.

All of them have jets when playing conquest, except for Armored Shield.
 

raasco

Platinum Member
Feb 6, 2009
2,664
3
76
Judging by my experience this weekend, it looks like not many people are playing this anymore. Not many active servers out there...
 

skipsneeky2

Diamond Member
May 21, 2011
5,035
1
71
Everybody is back playing BF1942 since it was free :)

First time ever playing 1942,it honestly is in a sense a much better game and more enjoyable.

Dated as all hell but unlike my gtx670 with BF3 still dipping into the mid 50s at 1440x900,1942 uses nothing gpu wise,i bet my spare 9500gt ddr3 could play it maxed out with aa included.:p
 

Termie

Diamond Member
Aug 17, 2005
7,949
48
91
www.techbuyersguru.com
First time ever playing 1942,it honestly is in a sense a much better game and more enjoyable.

Dated as all hell but unlike my gtx670 with BF3 still dipping into the mid 50s at 1440x900,1942 uses nothing gpu wise,i bet my spare 9500gt ddr3 could play it maxed out with aa included.:p

Yeah, with vsync on my GTX670 was actually running at idle clocks, and total system wattage was 70w.

Having never played 1942, I can't say I'm going to actually go and play this game. Super-dated, and the sniping is just ridiculous. Totally insta-death, without a hint of where it's coming from.
 

DeadFred

Platinum Member
Jun 4, 2011
2,740
29
91
Ive spent what little time Ive had to play lately on MoH Warfighter. Ill probably stick with it until Aftermath releases.
 

darkewaffle

Diamond Member
Oct 7, 2005
8,152
1
81
Two weeks!

Man C4 is so much damn fun, I managed two double tank kills last night with it though one was... accidental at best lol. I'm also really looking forward to the crossbow w/ exploding tips, really curious to see how [in]effective it is vs vehicles.
 

GullyFoyle

Diamond Member
Dec 13, 2000
4,362
11
81
New Battlefield Blog Post: Inside DICE: Creating an arena for fierce competitive gameplay in Aftermath

[DICE] H Brun | 11.23.12 | 21 comments

While all four maps in Battlefield 3: Aftermath are themed around the same concept of a post-earthquake environment, they all play differently. In this map overview, we discuss how Talah Market brings fierce competitive gameplay into focus.

Team play is always at the forefront when designing maps at the DICE studio, and Talah Market – internally nicknamed simply “Rubble” – is no exception. A lot of the designers at the studio are big fans of classic competitive shooters like Counter-Strike, and some even have backgrounds as semi-professional or professional players. For Aftermath, we wanted to bring some of that old-school shooter tradition into the mix. Our goal: To create a fiercely competitive map where it’s kill or get killed. We created this blog-unique behind the scenes flythrough of Talah Market that shows some of its distinguishing features.

BF3 Aftermath Flythrough TalahMarket 1080p60

Symmetry brings energy
The way we bring competitiveness to the forefront is by carefully designing the map, deciding where to place walls, covers, streets, plazas, and buildings. One very important area for us was to make it as symmetrical as possible – the thought here being that symmetry brings a simplicity and with it a focused kind of energy into the game.

Symmetry brings an aspect to the gameplay that has always been important in competitive gaming: Once you learn the map, you know it by heart no matter where you are positioned on it. There are no real surprises in terms of the ways you can navigate the map – the challenge instead lies in using your skills within the clearly defined confines of the battlefield. It’s not necessarily “better” than the traditional vast and open Battlefield maps like Caspian Border or Operation Firestorm, but it’s a slightly different flavor of Battlefield.

The desired gameplay shaped how we built the map, rather than the other way around. We wanted to cater for the most competitive players out there by building a level with an extremely streamlined flow. So while the map Epicenter (that you could read about in this earlier blog post) is an exciting and sometimes unpredictable battlefield featuring post-quake tremors, Talah Market is free from anything that can bring an element of randomness to the game. The key to designing this map has been to provide exactly the right amount of cover options, and to make sure that the map has great maneuverability at all times.

Symmetry created some challenges that needed solving, though. Like how do you build a level that plays the same on both sides, but still has a varied look and feel to it? The answer in this case is that the level contains multiple art themes to make the different areas feel distinct from one another. The challenge becomes a bit more complicated than that, though. Traditional shooters have players spawn mostly on one side of the map, but Battlefield spawns work more like a grid, making it more unpredictable how the teams rotate in the map. With this in mind, all areas in Talah Market had to be built in such a way that they can function as standalone combat encounters.

Play it your way
The symmetry aspect shouldn’t be misread as an attempt to force everyone into playing the same way. Rather, we are making sure that the map encourages different play styles. If you enjoy sniping, there is a long street with an open area where you can make good use of your long range engagement skills. If you like big standoffs, the market and its courtyards will be great for mid-range encounters. In addition, there are very tight streets that form a maze with fast paced close quarters action.

In a way Talah Market plays more like an “arena” than your typical Rush mode “journey” (like Operation Métro from the base game, for example). This is the map where, more than any other, you play to show off your skills both as an individual and as a tightly knit team. The focus here is not on scanning a lot of areas for potential enemies, instead bringing focus back to the second to second firefight itself, and how to best use the easy to read environment.

We believe this map will be the perfect fit for players who like to be more competitive, where every step gained on the enemy feels like a victory in itself. When play testing the map at the office, there is always that intense tug-of-war between teams where you know that your every move matters.

We hope you will enjoy this map together with the other three we have created for you in Battlefield 3: Aftermath. This themed expansion pack is out this December and is included with Battlefield 3: Premium. You can also purchase it separately.

Battlefield 3 Aftermath - DLC and Patch Information Breakdown
 
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GullyFoyle

Diamond Member
Dec 13, 2000
4,362
11
81
Battlelog - New server update lets you tweak Gun Master weapon progression

By: trydling

A new server update rolled out last week for consoles and this morning for PC. Changes include the ability to tailor Gun Master mode to your liking. PC players have also received the latest game client update today. Full details below.

Server update change list
1) ADDED 5 NEW WEAPON LISTS TO GUN MASTER MODE

BF3_Close_Quarters_Ziba_Tower_010.jpg


We’ve seen a lot of interesting discussions in the community on which order you want the weapons to appear in Gun Master mode – Now we are giving server admins the choice to decide between six different presets, each bringing a twist to this popular game mode in Close Quarters and Aftermath. The available weapon progressions are: Normal (default), Normal Reversed, Light Weight, Heavy Gear, Pistols Only, Snipers Heaven, US Arms Race, RU Arms Race and EU Arms Race.

Normal Reversed reverses the gun order but keeps the knife as the ending of the match. Light Weight is for players who love to play with PDW’s for a really fast paced round. Heavy Gear was added for the Assault and Support players out there wanting to only play with their favorite weapons – and to add a big bang we introduced the C4 just before the final knife kill requirement! Pistols Only is added for the pistol lovers, which also results in a bit of a slower paced version of Gun Master than the other lists. Snipers Heaven is for the skilled snipers out there wanting to prove their aim going from slow to medium paced games, ending with the new crossbow weapon that we’re bringing in from our latest expansion pack Aftermath. US Arms Race, RU Arms Race, and EU Arms Race all have unique weapon progressions focused only on weapons manufactured in each respective region.

We hope you will enjoy these new Gun Master options. Let us know what you think in the comments below!

2) NEW QUICK MATCH FUNCTIONALITY
It is now possible to Quick Match into Hardcore and Infantry Only servers on PC.

3) <4 PLAYERS = PREROUND
Servers where the number of players drop below 4 will go back to a pre-round state. Note that you will not lose any progression because of this – the current round will end, but a Battle Report will be sent as normal before the server goes into the pre-round state.

4) M-COM DISARM EXPLOIT FIXED
We now limit the number of times you can get scores for arming and disarming M-COM stations to 6 times per 180 seconds. This is to prevent people from taking turns on arming/disarming the M-COM stations to artificially boost their stats.

Matchmaking – How does it work?
There has been some confusion as to how our Quick Match matchmaking system works. We’ll try to clear that up below.

For your server to receive players from the Quick Match matchmaking system it needs to fulfill these requirements:

1) The server max player count must not differentiate more than 25% from any preferred game mode player count in your rotation. For example: A server that has Conquest Large (64 players) and Tank Superiority (24 players) in the same rotation cannot fulfill this requirement and will therefore not receive players from the Quick Match matchmaking system.

2) You need to be running the Normal preset on a console server and Normal, Hardcore or Infantry only on PC servers.

3) Game mode ticket count must be between 50% and 1,000%.

PC players can check if their server will receive matchmaking traffic with the RCON command: serverinfo (the last Boolean tells you whether it’s enabled or not). In addition to being match-makeable, your server will also need to have at least one player joined for the matchmaking system to send any Quick Matching players to it.

PC client update live
Today, we also rolled out the latest game update for PC. This is the same game update that console players received last week, featuring a number of tweaks and fixes. You can see the full change list in this earlier News post.

Battlelog - BF3 patch: PS3 input lag removed, weapons balancing, and bug fixes

By: trydling
We have been busy making some welcome fixes for our PlayStation 3 players, fine tuning a lot of weapons based on your feedback, and tweaking some gameplay mechanics. This update goes live November 27 on consoles, and no later than December 4 on PC. Full details below, including how to download this essential multiplayer update once it is live on your platform.

1) Addressed “input lag” on PS3
If you have been experiencing “input lag” playing Battlefield 3 on PlayStation 3, we now believe we have significantly improved this situation for all players.

2) Improved audio stability on PS3
The audio dropouts reported by some PlayStation 3 gamers playing Battlefield 3 should now be fixed for the majority of players .

3) Weapons balancing
Based on detailed community feedback and data analysis we have made some minor weapon tweaks to recoil and accuracy. The goal of these tweaks, and the overall goal in Battlefield 3, is to give each weapon a unique feel and competitive performance to other weapons of a similar type.

M416: First shot and horizontal recoil slightly increased. This should make the choice between M16 and M416 more interesting again.

L85A2: Slightly reduced horizontal recoil.

AUG: first shot recoil slightly decreased to increase weapon controllability.

FAMAS: Slightly reduced horizontal recoil.

G53: Vertical recoil reduced to make this weapon more controllable.

QBZ-95B: Slightly reduced horizontal recoil.

LSAT: Hip accuracy has been increased to highlight the weapon’s role as a highly mobile LMG.

Type88 LMG: Recoil has been decreased to make it a viable option when compared to the M249.

M5K: Increased horizontal recoil and decreased vertical recoil to focus this weapon as a high damage, low control PDW.

UMP45: Decreased fully automatic fire to differentiate this weapon from the PP2000.

MP412: Increased its accuracy to better distinguish it from the .44 Magnum.

M26: Increased aimed accuracy to be in line with the other shotguns.

4) Weapons bug fixes
Fixed the MTAR’s range not being correctly reduced when equipped with the sound suppressor.

Fixed a bug where suppressive fire had reduced effect on the M16 and M5K when compared with other weapons.

Fixed a bug where the M5K’s Flash Suppressor had no effect on accuracy.

Fixed the L86A2 Heavy Barrel’s hip accuracy penalty being far larger than other weapons.

Fixed an issue with the Mk3 shotgun’s ACOG being low resolution.

5) M-COM disarm fix
Fixed an issue where M-COM stations couldn’t be disarmed from the left side while standing up.

6) Alborz Mountains rock fix
Rocks and stones collision tweaked on Armored Kill maps. Players should no longer be able to exploit a collision issue that allowed them to hide inside rock formations.

7) Operation Shield/Alborz Mountains Tank Superiority area fix
Tank Superiority visual combat areas fixed on Operation Shield and Alborz Mountains. There was earlier a 10×10 meter patch on the mountain that became out of combat for US. This was technically already fixed server side, however this will update the actual visuals to be correct.

8) Death Valley collision fix
Collision tweaked on the railroad tunnel roof. This fix prevents players from being able to hide inside the railroad tunnel roof.

9) Sharqi Squad Rush spawn fix
Players would sometimes spawn out of combat if spawning shortly after the first M-COM explodes on Squad Rush on Sharqi Peninsula. With this fix, spawn points have been moved back to prevent this from happening.

10) Alborz Mountains Squad Rush fix
Cameras were incorrect in the spawn menu, pointing to old locations and not where you would actually spawn in. This has now been fixed.

11) Gunship balancing changes
We have now removed the gunship FLIR view (the position is still available, just not the black/white view) and decreased the damage radius of cannon explosions. This was done because of balancing reasons. Previously it was too easy for the gunner to get visual contact on enemy soldiers on the maps, and the splash damage is reduced to make it harder to kill infantry from the cannon seat.

12) Mobile Artillery spawn bug fixed
Two players can no longer spawn into the Mobile Artillery. This was a spawn-in-menu bug on the Operation Shield map which has now been fixed.

13) Tweaked hard to get medals
Looking at the persistence system, we could see that a number of the hard to get medals were actually too hard to achieve (in our opinion based on our intended design). While we never meant for all medals to have an equal distribution, the hardest ones were still intended to be more achievable than they have proven to be so far. Therefore, we have slightly decreased the prerequisites to achieve a number of the hardest to get medals in the game. One positive side effect (if you like playing Recon) is that we will likely see a slight bump in the Recon kit’s average Score Per Minute overall.

How to download the latest update (Multiplayer Update 5)
PLAYSTATION 3 SPECIFIC INFO
Patch goes live: November 27
How to download patch once it is live: When starting the game, the patch will automatically download. It is mandatory to accept this download if you want to play the game.

XBOX 360 SPECIFIC INFO
Patch goes live: November 27
How to download patch once it is live: When starting the game, you will get a popup notifying you that Multiplayer Update 5 is available. It is not mandatory to accept this, but we advise you to do so. Otherwise, you can find Multiplayer Update 5 both on Xbox Live Marketplace and in our in-game store as a manual download.

PC SPECIFIC INFO
Patch goes live: No later than December 4
How to download patch once it is live: As soon as you start your Origin client, the latest game update will automatically start downloading (unless you’ve disabled the option “Automatically keep my games up to date”, in which case it will start downloading when you try to run the game). In Battlelog, you will be notified from the Game Manager. Once you acknowledge the update, it will start downloading within the Origin client.
 

darkewaffle

Diamond Member
Oct 7, 2005
8,152
1
81
I still haven't played Gun Master mode, but that sounds pretty fun. I used to love gungames on CSS and I love that they included a C4 kill in the heavy mode lol.

Also finally found a hardcore no mini-map server with people on it <3