Battlefield 3

THE BUZZ: DICE has introduced new ‘shortcut items’ to the in-game store with the latest update.

These allow players to purchase items that would usually only be available via playing the game. Ten different shortcuts are currently available to purchase.

“If you’re new to the game, this is the perfect way to gain some ground on the veterans online,” explains DICE. “Or if you’d love to get some more air time in the jets but want to equip those AA missiles straight away, this is for you.”

The shortcuts include:

Kit Shortcut Bundle: Immediately unlocks all items unique to the four playable classes
Vehicle Shortcut Bundle: Immediately unlocks all items for all vehicles
The Ultimate Bundle: Immediately unlocks all items from all other available shortcut packs

The items are currently available from the PlayStation Store or in-game Battlefield 3 store and will be rolled out to PC and Xbox 360 players once the latest patch launches.

EGM’s TAKE: We don’t see many hardcore Battlefield 3 players being very happy at these new cash shortcuts. Nobody likes seeing players get something straight away that others worked hard to unlock. On the flip side though it may encourage more players to join the game as now they can be on a level playing field from the start instead of struggling with inferior equipment. We’ll have to wait and see how the community reacts.