Battlefield 3

THE BUZZ: It’s that time again: Another round of Twitter posting by DICE’s Alan Kertz, giving us more details, confirmations, and information about the upcoming Battlefield 3.

• On the topic of friendly fire: “Friendly Fire misunderstanding: FF is Off by default, On by default in Hardcore. Server option as well. Spread the word.”
• When asked to confirm there’s no “Dragons Breath” ammo for shotguns: “Yeah. And no bottle rockets. Both have similar effectiveness.”
• When asked if the SU-39′s cannon will have different balance/stats due to it being powered by gas-blowback (versus electricity for the GAU): “Given it fires 3000rpm and actually has less spin up than the GAU, they are very similar in game and life.”
• When asked if burst firing would be harder in Battlefield 3: “Tap firing has a larger recoil than the same rounds fired in full auto actually.” He then followed up with: “If you tap fired as fast as full auto the spread would’ve the same. Control recoil and pace your rounds it’s better.”
• When asked about the M1911 pistol, and who gets access to it: “The M1911 is available to both Gun Club [members] and Veterans, however there are additional Veteran bonuses.”
• When asked about Medal of Honor Limited Edition owners and the Battlefield 3 beta keys they should be receiving: “You don’t need a key, if your EA account is entitled to MOH LE then you get the beta access automatically early.”
• When asked about the under-barrel grenade launcher and its one-hit kill shots: “Much smaller splash, minimum arm timer, and only direct.”
• When asked about DICE’s support for the game once it’s released: “We’ve planned updates and additional content support, plus there is always other projects…”