The Caspian Border beta is over Shame as I never dug out my old joystick to test on the planes.
Whats the new password?
zh1nt0 said:It´s been 3 days full of win!
Thank you everyone who participated in testing Caspian Border with us during the Open Beta. We of course cherish and appreciate the time you have put into supplying is with good feedback. We will of course read it through and discuss it internally.
Testing has now been completed and we are shutting down the Caspian Border servers.
Battlefield 3 Retail Maps And Other Information Uncovered!
I've had a little sneak around the new Battlelog website and found some images of the full retail maps. I've also delved into the Battlefield 3 beta files and found a whole host of information regarding the upcoming retail release including retail map numbers and map names! Below are the Battlefield 3 MP maps as indicated by Battlelog. For Single player and Co-operative maps scroll down to the bottom.
Note: Battlefield 3 is currently in Beta status, the data files represent the Beta version of the game and do not represent the retail version. The lists replicated here are likely subject to change and do not represent the full version of Battlefield 3.
Battlefield 3 MP Maps (As displayed within Battlelog storage)
MP_001 - No information (Battlelog picture link)
MP_002 - No information (Battlelog picture link)
MP_003 - Tehran (Battlelog picture link) aka MP_Bazaar?
MP_004 - No information (No Image)
MP_005 - Rome (No Image)
MP_006 - No information (No Image)
MP_007 - Caspian Border (Battlelog picture link aka MP_Forest (Battlelog picture link)
MP_008 - No information (No Image)
MP_009 - No information (No Image)
MP_010 - No information (No Image)
MP_011 - Paris (Battlelog picture link) aka MP_Paris
MP_012 - ??? (Battlelog picture link) aka MP_Oilfields
MP_013 - No information (Battlelog picture link)
MP_014 - No information
MP_015 - Subway (No Image) aka MP_Subway (Battlelog picture link)
MP_016 - No information (No Image)
MP_017 - No information (No Image)
MP_018 - No information (Battlelog picture link)
MP_019 - No information (Battlelog picture link)
MP_020 - No information (No Image)
Battlefield 3 MP Maps (As displayed within the Battlefield 3 Open Beta game files)
MP_BAZAAR
MP_HIGHWAY
MP_FOREST
MP_PARIS
MP_OILFIELDS
MP_BASEJUMP
MP_SUBWAY
MP_CANALS
MP_KHARG
MP_OMAHA (WOOOOO??? Surprise returning map from Battlefield 1942???)
MP_TUTORIAL (The tutorial everyone voted for... but will this make retail release???)
Battlefield 3 Expansion Pack MP Maps (As displayed within the Battlefield 3 Open Beta game files)
XP1_Wake
XP1_Karkand
XP1_Sharqi
XP1_Oman
The exclusive Back to Karkand expansion pack weapons are listed as:
XP1_FAMAS
XP1_HK53
XP1_PP19
XP1_QBZ95B
XP1_L85A2
XP1_QBB95
XP1_MG36
XP1_JACKHAMMER
XP1_TYPE88 (seems to be the sniper variant)
XP1_L96
(Thanks to LoudGunZ for those)
Battlefield 3 SP Maps (As displayed within the Battlefield 3 Open Beta game files)
SP_BANK
SP_EARTHQUAKE - aka Fault Line
SP_FINALE (2 Part)
SP_JET (2 Part)
SP_NEW_YORK (2 Part)
SP_PARIS
SP_SNIPER
SP_TANK (2 Part) - aka Thunder Run
SP_VALLEY - aka Operation Guillotine (starts in a valley on the video)
SP_VILLA
It's also indicated that there are two maps SP_EARTHQUAKE2 and SP_TANK2 that exist in some form, possibly test versions or alternative versions for development.
Battlefield 3 COOP Maps (As displayed within the Battlefield 3 Open Beta game files)
COOP_A10
COOP_BREACHED
COOP_HOSTAGE
COOP_ROLLINGTHUNDER
COOP_BEHINDENEMYLINES
COOP_SUPERCOBRA
COOP_EXTRACTION
COOP_ASSASSINATION
COOP_EXFILTRATION
COOP_SUBWAY
According to the date each SP and COOP map will feature an Easy, Medium, Hard and Hardcore mode, whilst Multiplayer will feature a General (normal) and Hardcore mode. So Battlefield 3 will feature 10 Multiplayer Maps along with 4 Expansion Maps, 10 Single player Maps and 10 Co-operative maps, I think that's more than anyone could of wished for!
Friday, 30 September 2011 07:00
Create a personalized Platoon in Battlefield 3, invite your friends, and show the world who is the best of the best. This is how Platoons will change the way you fight and rank up together.
Battlelog Features Trailer
With Battlelog, we are expanding the social aspect of playing Battlefield 3, and Platoons is one of the central concepts in doing that. Check out the Battlelog video above for a closer look at the social platform Battlelog as a whole. Read on for the full details on why being in a Platoon is the most engaging and rewarding way to play Battlefield 3.
A Platoon is essentially the classic concept of gaming clans, only taken to the next level of flexibility and social interaction. Anyone can start their own Platoon easily in Battlelog. Give your Platoon a name, a description, and an abbreviation, and then youre ready to start inviting friends through the slick Battlelog interface.
To personalize your Platoon, you can use the built-in emblem feature in Battlelog, where you pick and choose from ready-made shapes and templates and then place and format them to your liking. Up to 100 players can be part of a Platoon at any given time, and you can be a member of three different Platoons at the same time you just need to select which of these you want to be active at any one time.
Play for the glory of your Platoon
Every game you play when part of a Platoon (whether you play on your own or with other members) will count towards your Platoons aggregate statistics, scores, and rank. Having a large pool of skilled players who play a lot of games is a good idea if you want to rise to the top in the Platoon-specific leaderboards.
Just like on an individual player level, the Platoon page will have detailed stats on how you are doing collectively. Whats your record for winning and losing online? Whats the breakdown of classes within your Platoon? Who is the most valuable player in your Platoon? What is the mean rank of your Platoon? and so on.
You also have a Platoon specific feed in Battlelog that will show everything that concerns your Platoon people joining, internal chats, new match records for your members, and anything else you need to keep track of what is happening in your group of players.
Battlelog users can search for Platoons in their country or area, become fans of Platoons, or apply for membership. In the regular news feed for Battlelog, fans and friends can follow your latest progress and awards.
With Platoons, we are making it easier and more fun than ever to play together. Its not just a group of people playing together, either its a large group of people where everything you do will ultimately have an impact on your Platoons standing and be reflected in their statistics.
You can get a first taste of the Platoon functionality in Battlefield 3 right now in the Open Beta.* While not having every feature turned on, this is a great chance for you to try it out, and see how it will give you that extra incentive to play and to contribute to the greater good of advancing your Platoon.
Stay tuned for Battleblog #13 soon
For more information on Battlefield 3, visit the Official Site.
To learn about the Frostbite 2 game engine, visit the Frostbite 2 section on the Battlefield 3 site.
For the latest news on everything Battlefield, follow us on Twitter and our Facebook page.
This game is not affiliated with weapon/vehicle manufacturers.
*Please note that we will wipe all stats after the Open Beta.
"They got rid of Caspian? Fools. I only got one full game on it plus a few partial disconnect games, but man was it enjoyable and very similar to BF2."
I played to 03:30 am this morning must of had a feeling it would end.
-tried playing tank's only ,they really nerffed them , 4 tank shots to kill another tank only 2 rpg's to stop your tank. and no splash damage to defend your self. might as well jump out of the tank shoot the engineer ,hop back in.
-tanks felt clunky , worst tanks I've ever driven in bf
Metro ran good on my Q9650 & GTX 260. Can somebody tell me where the video settings are located?
I spent most of my Caspian play in tanks as well. I think the damage is fine vs other tanks, but it's way too easy for engineers to take you out.
I don't know that they felt clunky in handling. I kind of found them to feel 'loose' I much prefer the feel of tanks in BFBC2. Not that I have any idea how a tank actually is to drive, but they feel more 'tankish' in BFBC2 to me.
I also like the new idea of first immobilizing a tank and then laying in the killing strike. I mostly spent my time at huge ranges out, getting a feel for aiming at long distances in the new game, it's how I like to use the tank.
I spent most of my Caspian play in tanks as well. I think the damage is fine vs other tanks, but it's way too easy for engineers to take you out.
The only real issue I found with tanks is the splash damage seems like it is almost non existent. I'd shoot at a guy and hit a few feet away from him a couple of times and he is still alive. I think if you take a couple of close rounds from the cannon you should be dead.
Otherwise I was happy with the tanks, I'm a tank junkie.
Grenade splash damage seems non existent too. At least compared to BFBC2. Fortunately splash damage is an easy patch and I'm sure those balance issues will be changed fairly regularly after the full release.
Now that Caspian is shut down, I'm not sure how much of the beta I'll play. I hope they open it up for everyone but I won't hold my breath.
The only real issue I found with tanks is the splash damage seems like it is almost non existent. I'd shoot at a guy and hit a few feet away from him a couple of times and he is still alive. I think if you take a couple of close rounds from the cannon you should be dead.
Otherwise I was happy with the tanks, I'm a tank junkie.
haha yeah, I haven't even bothered opening the battlelog up when I saw caspian was taken down. I wont play anymore of the beta if all we have is metro left
I dunno, maybe against a group of engineers, which is how it should be, but its very difficult to take on a tank vs 1 engineer. Its not like an engineer can run out in the open and take out a tank. Its more annoying that an engineer can repair so damn fast. I get two shots on a tank, it gets disabled, then the driver just gets outs and repairs. I have used all my rockets and didn't blow it up because the guy is repairing while I'm shooting it. If another team engineer isn't around to help me it'll just drive away when my rockets are gone.
September 29, 2011
By James Wang
Today, the Battlefield 3 Beta will be released to gamers worldwide. For many gamers, the first question on their mind is: can I run this game? And if so, at what setting? This will be primary focus on this article. Along the way, we'll look at the graphics options offered in Battlefield 3, how they affect image quality, and the some upgrade options if you're looking to purchase a new graphics card.
A Quick Primer on the Battlefield 3 Graphics Engine
The last time a graphics engine or game generated this much discussion and anticipation was with the launch of the original Crysis. So let's take a moment to review why Battlefield 3 is such a milestone for 3D graphics on the PC.
Prior to Frostbite 2, DICE used two different graphics engines in its games.
The graphics engine behind Battlefield 3 is called Frostbite 2. Prior to Frostbite 2, DICE, the developer behind Battlefield 3, worked with two graphics engines. The first engine, the original Frostbite, was created for Battlefield Bad Company. Frostbite was powerful in handling dynamic destruction but lacked a detailed lighting model. The second was Unreal Engine 3, which DICE licensed from Epic for use in Mirror's Edge. Mirror's Edge was noted for its beautiful lighting which was created using offline global illumination software, but since everything was pre-computed, none of the levels were destructible. DICE's goal with Frostbite 2 was simple: to create a graphics engine that combined the rich, global illumination lighting of Mirror's Edge with the dynamic destructible environments of Battlefield Bad Company.
GI, or Global Illumination, refers to lighting models that capture the complex interaction of light as it bounces around in an environment. The challenge with Battlefield 3 was to combine GI with destructible environments.
With Battlefield 3, DICE has fully achieved this goal. The engine makes use of such a dizzying amount of technologies that we will be devoting a whole article on the subject in the coming days. But for now, suffice is to say that Battlefield 3 is the first game that successfully combines full destruction with realtime radiosity lighting, deferred rendering with robust antialiasing, and richly lit indoor scenes with massively scaled outdoor levels. There are other games that make use of one or more of these technologies but none that use all of them. And no other game has that unique Battlefield 3 look.
That Battlefield 3 was built for the PC is clear the moment you open its video options menu. Eleven graphics quality settings can be individually adjusted and four presets are available: Low, Medium, High, and Ultra. We will be publishing a detailed tweak guide when the game launches to go through each of the individual options. For this article, we'll focus exclusively on the image quality and performance of the four presets.
Graphics Quality (Preset) Low Medium High Ultra
Texture Quality Low Medium High Ultra
Shadow Quality Low Medium High Ultra
Effects Quality Low Medium High Ultra
Mesh Quality Low Medium High Ultra
Terrain Quality Low Medium High Ultra
Antialiasing Deferred Off Off Off 4x MSAA
Antialiasing Post Off Low Medium Medium
Motion Blur Off Off On On
Motion Blur Amount 50 50 50 50
Anisotropic Filter 2x 4x 16x 16x
Ambient Occlusion Off SSAO HBAO HBAO
The four graphics quality presets in Battlefield 3 and how they translate into individual settings.
How Battlefield 3 Looks At Different Quality Settings
Low Quality
Even at Low Quality, Battlefield 3 looks very decent. The game uses the same realtime radiosity lighting engine is used across all graphics presets so even at low, there are tons of dynamic lights, colors reflect and bleed, and high dynamic range (HDR) lighting is in full effect. But the picture, though realistic, is fairly coarse. Shadows are jagged and can look like saw teeth. Textures are blurry unless viewed up close (a higher resolution loads when things get too blurry). And trees and grass look very flat without the rich self-shadowing that's provided by ambient occlusion. Fence aliasing is also very distracting at Low Quality.
Medium Quality
At Medium Quality, the fidelity and detail is significantly improved. The most noticeable difference is that all shadows are now soft; there are no more chunky pixels to be found. Ambient occlusion is also now enabled in the form of SSAO or Screen Space Ambient Occlusion. This means trees and grass cast shadows on themselves, giving them a richer, lusher look. "Antialiasing Post", which refers to antialiasing done as a post process using shaders is now set to Low. This removes most of the jaggies in the scene, making the image much smoother.
High Quality
Now this is what Battlefield 3 is suppose to look like. High Quality adds an extra layer of architectural detail on the beautiful Parisian buildings in the Metro level. Windows and columns are rendered with real geometry which in turn cast shadows on themselves thanks to ambient occlusion. Overall, objects and structures look a lot more 3D. Textures are also much sharper thanks to 16x anisotropic filtering. The game is simply beautiful at this point.
Ultra Quality
At Ultra Quality, everything looks better but in a more subtle than dramatic way. The most obvious improvement comes from the 4x MSAA setting which gets enabled at Ultra Quality. Up until Ultra Quality, all antialiasing is handled by a post processing shader , which though powerful, can miss certain objects. For example, at High Quality, fences and thin lines form crawling patterns when you move pass them. At Ultra Quality, the addition of 4x MSAA removes most of the offensive crawlies and moiré patterns.
At Low Quality, shadows are not filtered, resulting in hard edges and saw tooth patterns. At Medium, shadow edges are smoothed out. At High or Ultra quality, the resolution of the shadow map is higher, resulting in detailed but smooth shadows.
These set of images show the benefit of high quality ambient occlusion. At the Low and Medium, the buildings lack proper self shadowing. High and Ultra settings enable HBAO, or Horizon Based Ambient Occlusion, a self shadowing technique developed by NVIDIA that's now used in various games. Note the detailed shadows under the windows and arches.
One of the most obvious differences between the quality levels is in texture detail. At Low Quality, the sign is barely readable. At Medium, the text becomes clear. At High, even fine details such as the bolts become razor sharp.
At Ultra Quality, 4x MSAA (Multisampling Antialiasing) is enabled. This cleans up distracting crawling artifacts in fencing and thin wires.
How Battlefield 3 Performs
In this section, we look at how Battlefield 3 performs from three different perspectives. First, we look at how a wide range of GeForce graphics cards perform in the game. Second, we determine what the optimal playable settings are for the most popular graphics cards based on the four quality presets. Third, we look into how Battlefield 3 scales in SLI.
How Different Cards Perform
How we tested: We tested on the Metro level using an internal version of the beta that supports timedemos, allowing us to perform repeatable benchmarks.
To keep testing to a manageable level, we picked one resolution and setting that gets us the bulk of the Battlefield 3 look without going overboard. 1920 x 1080 High Quality captured this fairly well. This also enabled us to test a large number of graphics cards to get a better sense of relative performance.
The first take away from the chart is that Battlefield 3 is a very scalable game. Higher performing GPUs have plenty of room to stretch their legs. At forty frames per second, the game plays very well and rarely dips below thirty. The first card that satisfies this level is the GeForce GTX 560. The GeForce GTX 570 and 580 progressively perform better. The GeForce GTX 590, based on two Fermi GPUs, take the crown at just over 100 frames per second.
It's interesting to note that those who invested in the flagship GeForce GTX 295 almost three years ago can still play Battlefield 3 at near peak settings, though without the benefit of DirectX 11 features such as tessellation.
Optimal Playable Settings For Popular Cards
GeForce.com publishes optimal playing settings for all major games after launch and will certainly do the same for Battlefield 3 when it launches in October. For now, we've kept things simple and focused on finding the optimal playable settings for popular GPUs based on the game's quality presets.
To find the optimal playable setting, we toggled resolution and graphics quality until the framerate fell between the 40-60 fps range. We aimed for a minimum framerate of no less than 30 fps.
Graphics Card Resolution Graphics Quality Framerate
GeForce 8800/9800 GT 1280 x 1024 Low
GeForce GTX 260 1680 x 1050 Medium
GeForce GTX 460 1680 x 1050 High Average: 40-60 fps
GeForce GTX 560/570 1920 x 1080 High fps
GeForce GTX 580 1920 x 1080 Ultra Minimum: >30 fps
GeForce GTX 590/580 SLI 2560 x 1600 Ultra
GeForce 8800/9800 GT
We start the performance evaluation with the GeForce 8800/9800 GT—the most popular graphics card according to the Steam Hardware Survey and the GPU that is listed in the minimum system requirements of Battlefield 3. True to DICE's word, the GeForce 8800 GT does indeed play Battlefield 3, though at a humble resolution of 1280 x 1024 and at Low Quality settings. Needless to say, this is not how Battlefield 3 looks in the trailers, but the game does run, as promised.
GeForce GTX 260
The GeForce GTX 260 is the fourth most popular graphics card on Steam, used by 4.19% of gamers on the service as of August 2011. Though three years old, the card puts up a respectable performance. You can play the game at 1680 x 1050 at Medium Quality. As noted in the graphics quality section, at Medium, the game looks quite a bit better than Low but doesn't have the polish of higher quality settings.
GeForce GTX 460
The GeForce GTX 460 is the first card that gives you that unique Battlefield 3 "look" while maintaining solid framerates. At 1680 x 1050, the card lets you play at High Quality settings, which gives you most of the graphical bells and whistles, including antialiasing, ambient occlusion, detailed geometry, and detailed textures. The GeForce GTX 460 performs very well at this setting.
GeForce GTX 560/560Ti/570
With any of these three graphics cards, you are getting a full Battlefield 3 experience. Simply put, this is 1080p at High Quality at 40 fps or more. With the GTX 570, you can bump individual settings a little higher (for example, Ultra quality Textures or Effects) or you can opt to play at higher framerates on the same preset. If your budget is more limited, the GTX 560 is a perfectly sound option.
GeForce GTX 580
For those who are lucky enough to own a GeForce GTX 580, expect a near-perfect experience. We're talking about 1080p at fully maxed out settings (Ultra). You have to hand it over to DICE for their lighting engine; at Ultra quality, the radiosity lighting, soft shadows, and ambient occlusion come together and play off each other to produce scenes so rich and nuanced that they look like they had been art directed. At this quality, the game plays like a trailer.
With two Fermi GPUs, the game plays at maximum quality but at the expanded resolution of 2560 x 1600. Needless to say, the game is startlingly beautiful. Do not show this to your console friends. They will hate you.
SLI Performance
As you probably guessed from the performance of the GeForce GTX 590, Battlefield 3 scales exceptionally well in SLI. Scaling refers to the performance benefit that results from adding an additional GPU to the system. On the GeForce GTX 560, Battlefield 3 scaled just shy of 90% with the addition of a second graphics card. Two GeForce GTX 580 GPUs in SLI exceeds over 100 fps at 1920 x 1080 High Quality settings. Both setups can play Battlefield 3 at Ultra Quality without breaking a sweat.
Conclusion - Upgrade Recommendations
Performance and image quality are very personal preferences and only you know if an upgrade is needed for your PC. That said, if you are looking to upgrade, here are a few basic recommendations.
If your budget is under $200, the best upgrade is to a GeForce GTX 560. The GeForce GTX 560 lets you play Battlefield 3 at 1920 x 1080 at High Quality settings which delivers the bulk of the game's graphics fidelity without being too taxing on the hardware. The GTX 560 is essentially the modern incarnation of the GeForce 8800 GT—it's fast and affordable. Don't be surprised if three years for now, it replaces the GeForce 8800 GT as the most popular GPU on Steam.
If you want a bit more performance, for $249, the GeForce GTX 560 Ti is a solid offering. For a bigger boost in performance, consider the GeForce GTX 570; it gives you an 18% performance boost over the GTX 560 and is available for under $349.
If you want to play Battlefield 3 with everything maxed out at 1080p, the GeForce GTX 580 is the one to get. You can find it for less than $499 on Newegg.
Finally, those who want simply the best performance and image quality will want to take advantage of SLI. DICE has gone to great lengths to make the game scale well with SLI and the performance results reflect this. If you own a GeForce GTX 460 or higher, adding a second GPU is probably the easiest and most economical way to improve your Battlefield 3 performance.
Conclusion
In the history of PC gaming, only a handful of games have had a truly profound impact on 3D graphics. Wolfenstein 3D ignited the genre of the first person shooter. Quake introduced fully polygonal game characters. Unreal pushed the limits of lighting and high resolution textures. FarCry liberated shooters from the constraints of dark corridors and introduced lush, open ended worlds. And finally, Crysis came along in 2007 and put everything together to create a near perfect first-person shooter. Each of these games left a lasting impression on the genre and the games that followed.
Since then, many of the same pioneers of 3D graphics have shifted their focus to consoles. But DICE decided to do the opposite. In an interview with GeForce.com in April, Patrick Bach, the Executive Producer of Battlefield 3 stated emphatically that the goal of Battlefield 3 was to create the most advanced shooter possible given the power available on modern PCs. Looking at the Beta today, it's clear that DICE has succeeded at just that.
Frostbite 2 is not about this effect or that effect. It's not a lighting engine nor a destruction engine. It's all of the above. Like Crysis, it synthesized all the knowledge that had been built up over the years into a single, pristine package. And years from now, when we look back, it will be Battlefield 3 that will be remembered as the game that defined the look for a whole generation.
<follow the original link to see the full article with images.>
by HBrun
The amounts of people flocking to our Open Beta is fantastic! We are happy to see so many players enjoy this Open Beta, and giving us their valuable feedback on the experience on the Battlelog forums.
This blog post is the first in a series of posts that will outline some of the changes we are making in the final game thanks to your feedback and participation in the Open Beta.
Come back regularly and stay tuned to the Battlelog forums and the News section in Battlelog for daily news and updates from DICE on how your playing the Open Beta is helping us make the final game better.
A SELECTION OF CHANGES FROM OPEN BETA TO FINAL, PART 1
(Not a complete list - for up to date news, visit the News section in Battlelog)
* Fixed occasional client crash when reviving.
* Fixed killcam showing glitched area under map if your killer is dead.
* Issue with spawning on dead squad mates fixed.
* Fixed a bug where shooting at a moving enemy could cause more than the intended amount of damage.
* Crosshairs for shotguns have been replaced with a new, thinner, art.
* A subtle low health screen effect has been added.
* Tweaked scores of Medals and Service Stars.
* Tweaked the Rank progression.
* Pushing prone on console will not play the animation twice.
* Fixed loss of Squad Leader after EOR at some times.
* Framerate stability fixes.
* The 3D spotting icons has been tweaked to better match the target's visibility. Icons will show frequently less on mostly obscured targets.
* Fixed issue with crosshair disappearing after round transition.
* Fixed issue with crosshair disappearing after trying to deploy while the countdown timer still active.
* Squad list now shows specializations chosen, VOIP activity and dead squad mates.
* Non working options in squad menu fixed: "Private" flag and "Switch Teams".