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We’ve covered off two of the maps in the pre-order bonus Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand. Today, we have some early concepts from the two remaining maps for you, as well as some clarification on how to get your hands on them. Read on.

Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand contains four classic Battlefield maps reimagined with the power of the new Frostbite 2 game engine. We’ve covered off Strike at Karkand and Wake Island in our previous blog posts, which leaves Gulf of Oman and Sharqi Peninsula.

Below, you can see some very early concept art that we designed here at DICE to get a feel for what these new versions could feel like. Don’t read too much into them, though, as concept art will never be proof of features, content, or even final visual design.

By the way, there’s absolutely no way you can pre-order Battlefield 3 and not end up with the Limited Edition (with the exception of Italy, where the cut-off date for the Limited Edition is September 30th). Battlefield 3: Limited Edition in turn entitles you to the expansion pack Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand once it is released (after launch, date to be confirmed). If you pre-order, this bonus content will be yours at no extra charge. If you do not pre-order, you will still be able to buy it when it is released (price to be confirmed). The goal from the separate development team behind it is to make it every bit as ambitious and full of content as Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam. Closer to the launch of the base game, we will be able to show you just what that means.

Source: Battlefield Blog

Part II in a behind the scenes series on Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand

Battlefield 3 is our biggest production ever. We also have our biggest pre-order bonus ever: The complete Back to Karkand expansion pack at no extra charge, available after the base game is released. Read on for more info on this bonus content — and learn why Lead Designer Niklas Fegraeus shouted “IMBA!” the very first time he played Battlefield.

Hi Niklas Fegraeus! You’re Lead Designer on Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand, where the classic Wake Island map will be remade. How far do you and Wake Island go back?
— Wake Island was my very first Battlefield experience, like it was for so many others. In 2002, I was actually involved in a professional Counter-Strike clan. We had just trounced our opposing team, when they proposed a rematch – in the recently released Battlefield 1942 demo on Wake Island!

So what did you think of your very first Battlefield experience?
— Never having played anything like Battlefield before, my squad of Counter-Strikers ran along on the ground on Wake Island while the other team dive-bombed us with Zero fighters. I was like “IMBA! What’s the fun in this?” Pretty soon, though, I realized this was something completely new and different, and that it was in fact an awesome game. 🙂


Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand is still in heavy development. Above is an early piece of Wake Island concept art meant for inspiration only. You can still recognize the typical shape of this quintessential Battlefield map.

Fast forward 9 years to the present. What does it feel like being in charge of the reimagining of perhaps the most defining Battlefield map ever?
— It’s a weird mix of pressure in staying true to the heritage of Wake Island, while at the same time having new and exciting possibilities thanks to the Frostbite 2 engine.

— I feel that we have a shot at making our own unique interpretation of Wake Island. The map has seen so many iterations through so many games that we don’t feel constrained by some hard-coded template of what it must be.

One thing on our fans’ minds is why we are working with additional content for Battlefield 3 already?
— Well, with Battlefield: Bad Company 2, we did a lot of experimenting with DLC, and I think that we learnt a lot along the way. The goal is that any content for Battlefield 3 will be of the same quality as Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam. That means we have to start work early alongside the base game.

Finally, why do you think Wake Island is a great Battlefield map?
— I love the fact that Wake Island is so straight-forward, that you have such a good view of all the action, and that it has plenty of space for vehicle combat. It just screams Battlefield.

“A timeless classic with something for every type of player. A map of true, all-out war!”
— Twitter user @jcdean78 on why he loves Wake Island

Lars Gustavsson was Producer on Battlefield 1942 back in 2002 and worked on the original Wake Island. He probably knows more intimate details about the map than anybody working at DICE today.

Hi Lars! What guided the design for Wake Island back in the original game?
— The basic premise was that we looked at how real-life Wake Island [from the Pacific Theatre in WWII] looks today. We knew we couldn’t do it to scale, but that kind of one-to-one fidelity wasn’t really of interest to us. Funny thing is, it was in fact downscaled so much due to a decimal error in programming. The map was originally meant to be bigger, but the involuntary downsizing created a very cool and concentrated gaming experience.

— That concentration also comes from the fact that when fighting on land, because of the island’s U-shape, you cannot escape. If there’s a tank in your way, you will have to confront it head-on sooner or later. That’s something we have tried to recreate throughout the Battlefield series: To have some kind of clear frontline.

How do you mean, clear frontline?
— Well, on some maps, the frontline can be rather “slippery”, or almost like a merry-go-round. Which happens to work really well on maps like El Alamein. I mean I love that map, but the reason the merry-go-round gameplay works there is because you have an overview of the entire battlefield so you realize when you’ve been overrun. But on Wake Island it was super important to get the sense across of where the frontline is at all times.

What is the gameplay generally like on the uniquely shaped Wake Island?
— It’s very dynamic. Its U-shape means that the water gameplay between the map’s two legs – whether it’s going by boat or swimming across – creates new alternatives for when you’re locked in a hopeless struggle against superior armor. There’s always an alternate solution on Wake Island, and for me personally, that’s what makes Battlefield Battlefield.

There was a special style and tone to that map as well.
— Yes. It was very much a case of “fun over realism”. We took reality and shaped it into something that suited our design ideas. There’s this neat kind of ‘Kelly’s Heroes’ thing going on in the clash between the paradisiac beauty of the map set against the frantic battles.

How do you feel now that Wake Island is set for a reimagining?
— I feel excited! What still grabs me about Wake Island is the fact that it really is all-out war. Aircraft are taking off from the carriers, anti-aircraft guns are firing, boats are coming in, tanks are rolling by… And sometimes you just have to stand there and look out across the glittering water because it’s so beautiful. There will always be a special place in my heart for Wake Island.

Souce: Battlefield Blog

BY: H Brun
Part I in a behind the scenes series on Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand

Containing four of the best Battlefield maps ever created by DICE, the first expansion pack for Battlefield 3 will be a treat both for returning fans and newcomers. Read on for more in-depth details on Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand and how to get it at no extra charge.

Meaty expansion pack. Click for meaty wallpaper in Full HD.

Anyone who preorders Battlefield 3 will receive our first themed expansion pack at no extra charge. When Lead Designer Niklas Fegraeus got the assignment to lead the expansion pack, his thoughts immediately went to the four most played and loved maps in the history of Battlefield: Strike at Karkand, Wake Island, Gulf of Oman, and Sharqi Peninsula. Combined, these four maps have been played for an incredible 25,000 man years!

It’s obvious returning Battlefield fans should be excited. What does the expansion pack offer to those new to Battlefield?
— It’s pretty simple, really. These are evidently some of the very best maps we have ever built. We have unquestionable data and feedback from the community saying so. You would be crazy turning down the chance to boost your game with these classic multiplayer maps.

An early piece of concept art for the Frostbite 2 reimagining of a true classic. Meant to represent lighting and color palette only. Actual map layout will be very similar to the original. Click for 1920 x 1080 version.

What does the Frostbite 2 engine and the Battlefield 3 gameplay bring to the reimagined version of Strike at Karkand?
— From a gameplay perspective, destruction is the biggest addition compared to the original map in Battlefield 2 back in 2005. I remember this particular building by the square in the original where players could defend very effectively. Now, with the destructive power of Frostbite 2, someone can just RPG that building and expose the defenders within. At the same time, we need to be careful not to add destruction that breaks the tried and tested game flow of the map.

You were also Lead Designer on last year’s expansion pack Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam. Do you see any similarities between that and Back to Karkand?
— Certainly from the perspective of scope and ambition, they are very similar. This is no simple map pack. Back to Karkand will also include iconic Battlefield 2 vehicles, weapons to bring back to the base game, new unlocks and persistence, and more content that we will talk about later. They are also similar in that they are both strongly themed.

In your mind, what makes Strike at Karkand still great?
— Strike at Karkand finds the perfect combination of tight urban infantry combat and traditional Battlefield vehicle combat, without any one side ever dominating the fight. I also think that the linear flag positions give you a clear idea of where you need to go, creating a strong sense of direction.

“It’s well designed and well balanced. The best map ever made”
— Twitter user @insane141 on why he loves Strike at Karkand

David Spinnier (formerly Göthberg) is currently Co-op Lead Designer for Battlefield 3 and the one who created the original Strike at Karkand map for Battlefield 2.

How do you feel now that your map is set for a reimagining in Battlefield 3?
— I’m super happy and proud that it became such a classic. I’m excited to see it remade with a whole new level of graphics and destruction and have given the developers of the expansion pack a few pointers on the map.

What was your original design idea for Strike at Karkand?
— I wanted almost to tell a story. In my mind when I started the design, I could see these tanks rolling downhill in a sandy desert into a city where defenders were scurrying around, setting up a defensive perimeter and then being pushed back further downtown. I also wanted to create an asymetric battlefield with a defensive focus. Infantry defenders meeting heavy armor. I just started painting the layout of the map in Photoshop and went from there.

What happened when you actually started play testing the design?
— I remember one of the first play tests. People were behaving exactly as I had imagined: Placing mines and C4, climbing onto roofs to get a clear view and clear shot of the tanks rolling in. It all just fell into place. It was a fantastic feeling.

Do you have any original design docs for Strike at Karkand lying around that we could have a look at, just for fun?
— Sure thing! Here is my original layout design, last saved in October 2004. If you know your Karkand, you realize that the layout here is mirrored from the actual in-game map. This was something I wasn’t aware of at the time, but when you entered your layout into the game editor, everything was reversed!

Bonus feature: The original design doc for Strike at Karkand from Battlefield 2!

Source: Battlefield Blog