Battlefield 3 preorder weapon and item bonuses annoy fans

Published on 06-13-2011 10:47 PM

There has been little reason to hide our enthusiasm for the upcoming Battlefield 3, especially considering the nearly sublime state of the game at this year's E3. EA has done everything right with making sure Battlefield 3is going to be a hit with PC gamers... until now. Over the weekend the "Physical Warfare Pack," was announced, and fans are annoyed at the idea of being forced to buy a retail product at a brick-and-mortar store in order to access some of the game's weapons.Right now this promotion has only been announced for the UK. If you preorder the game at GAME and Gamestation locations, you gain access to the extra equipment on the first day of release. Here's how EA described the content:

Players can storm the battlefield armed with powerful weapons and items only available in the Physical Warfare Pack including the Type 88 light machine gun with bipod for superior firepower and total zone control, the SKS sniper rifle flash suppressor that provides increased stealth abilities for Recon soldiers, and the lethal armour-piercing flechette ammo for the DAO-12 semi-automatic shotgun that is sure to tear through anything in its path. Also included is day one access to the highly versatile DAO-12 semi-automatic shotgun itself.

While it's possible this content could be released as a for-pay content pack for the game, the idea of being forced to pay early through select retailers for weapons that don't need to be unlocked and will represent a clear advantage on the first day of release isn't sitting well with anyone. Gaming forums, Twitter, and my own inbox have been filled with people complaining about this promotion, especially given many were hoping to buy via Steam or other digital distribution services.

We'll see if EA decides to reverse this decision, as the company has flip-flopped on this sort of promotion in the past. Retailer-specific content is one of the more customer-hostile trends in modern gaming, and as it stands now, this promotion will create a group of players with a clear advantage over everyone else. Let's hope EA sees the light.

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Gaming

3 Comments

darkmawl - 06-14-2011, 12:45 PM
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I always hated the DLC and these type of add-ons packs. It's just money milking and games like Battlefield 3 earn more then enough to provide this content to it's users without milking them dry. Shamefully this is what the industry is evolving to. day-0 DLC's you need to pay for.Pre-order bonuses are just borderline though. This might be the retailer wanting something special with there product as an incentive, because BF3 does not need an incentive to be pre-ordered. It will however be game-breaking for me and will not cancel my pre-order.

iLOVENZB - 06-14-2011, 03:17 PM
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darkmawl, look at the pre-order price of BF3 compared to other titles. Clearly they're not milking the franchise.

All you have to do is look at how much time and resources have gone into production - A fucking lot. Of coarse nobody wants to pay extra after paying for the game but it's a sacrifice we're all gonna have to make. It's not uncommon for Microsoft publishers to force AU$120 for a game and then on top of that charge for DLC. Consider yourself luck

proforma - 06-15-2011, 12:24 PM
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Well - I don't. And I won't buy such crap - regardless of the fucking lot of money they spent. When I buy a game I want the whole thing on BluRay. No missing weapons, no missing characters, no missing levels, no obligatory Internet connection and the right to sell the shit when I'm done.