Armory Staff

One of the unique multiplayer features in Battlefield Hardline is the possibility to perform interrogations on downed enemies. With the hit of a button, players can extract information about the location of the interrogated foe’s team mates, making them visible on the map. http://eaassets-a.akamaihd.net/battlelog/prod/61d099d23fe104fe673091d470c96970/en_US/blog/en/files/2014/06/Battlefield-Hardline-2-WM1.jpg?v=1402680898.48 Now, we are looking for the top interrogators out there. On June 16 at 9AM PDT/6PM CET, we will check the Geo Leaderboards on Battlelog to see who the players with the most interrogations under their belts are. One winner per platform will be announced on the Battlefield Blog on June 16. Apart from the bragging rights, the winners will be awarded with a Battlefield Hardline E3 t-shirt. So get going. Hit the streets, bring down your enemies, and start asking some serious questions. The post Geo Leaderboard Challenge: Interrogations appeared first on The Battlefield Blog. View the full article

We have seen some truly inspiring gameplay videos from the Battlefield Hardline closed beta since it was launched, and it’s amazing to see the creative ways PlayStation 4 players have been using SHAREfactory, the new rich video editor app for PlayStation 4, to share them with the world. Below you’ll find two great examples of thrilling videos from the all-out cops and criminals warfare that is Battlefield Hardline – all edited and shared using SHAREfactory. BlackTrinity knows how to be a nimble Professional, capitalizing on his sniping-on-the-go tactics. Oscarseymour79 pulls together a montage of worthy Battlefield Hardline moments complete with a road kill, heavy fire fight and deadly RPG hits. Exclusive Battlefield Hardline SHAREfactory Theme To show off your participation in the Battlefield Hardline beta, just jump into SHAREfactory to create and share your best gaming moments. In Battlefield Hardline, you can set up a zipline from the top of a building to the ground, and hop on a bike to escape. Or, if you’re riding shotgun as a cop, you can lean out the window to take out suspects in a getaway van before they make off with the loot. The beauty of the game is creating your own moments to show off to the world. As a bonus, there is a new, exclusive Battlefield Hardline theme available in the app today! With this theme you can personalize your creations with official Battlefield Hardline videos, stickers and transitions. How to Use SHAREfactory Using SHAREfactory to create and share your best gaming videos is easy. Watch an or follow these simple steps to let us, and the world, be blessed with your creations! - Creating Videos From SHAREfactory After you have created your video project in SHAREfactory, press the OPTIONS button and select “RENDER MOVIEâ€. This will create the video and add it to your Capture Gallery. - Uploading to Facebook Once the video is created, you will be prompted to push the SHARE button if you want to immediately post to Facebook. If you decide to post later, you can always find the video in your Capture Gallery. (Please note: if you want to share this video with people outside of your friends list, on the upload screen change your “Facebook Audience†setting to “Publicâ€.) - Copying Your Video to USB and to YouTube Find your video in the Capture Gallery and press the OPTIONS button. Select “Copy to USB Storage Deviceâ€. Once the video is on your USB device, you can use your PC to upload the video to YouTube. For more Battlefield Hardline info, visit http://battlefield.com/hardline The post Powered By PS4 SHAREfactory: Battlefield Hardline Beta Videos appeared first on The Battlefield Blog. View the full article

At long last, Grand Theft Auto V is coming to PC along with a bevy of graphical improvements and a PC exclusive video editor. http://www.geforce.com/sites/default/files-world/styles/210x100/public/thumbnail_image/NVISION_GTA_5_PC.jpg?itok=sSj9aKVj View the full article

The Battlefield Hardline closed beta is in full swing and players from all over the world have thrown themselves into the all-out cops and criminials warfare. As you know, Battlefield is all about team play, and now we have the ultimate cooperative challenge for you: the very first Battlefield Hardline community mission. We want you to collectively perform 250,000 takedowns with the Stun Gun in 6 days. http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Battlefield-Hardline-2-WM.jpg The community mission will be active between June 10, 9AM PDT and June 16, 9AM PDT. If the goal is reached within time, all participating players will be awarded with an exclusive Battlefield Hardline in-game Patch, handed out at retail launch. Now, charge up your Stun Guns, hit the streets, and go for that 250k! View the full article

Premiere of Battlefield Hardline's Multiplayer. Pull off that perfect heist or big time bust in this new take on Battlefield Multiplayer. Welcome to your new... From: Battlefield Views: 344411 http://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_full_11x11.gifhttp://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_full_11x11.gifhttp://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_full_11x11.gifhttp://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_full_11x11.gifhttp://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_half_11x11.gif 8604 ratings Time: 01:16 More in Gaming

UPDATE 6/9: PlayStation 4 – PS4 instant access for Battlefield Hardline has closed for the day. You can still sign up at for a chance to play at http://battlefield.com/beta PC – Due to a high demand, PC users who received successful beta sign up confirmation may have seen a delay in access. If you received confirmation, please log out of Origin and log back in to see beta in your game queue. Welcome to your new playground! We are very excited to announce that we have made the newly unveiled Battlefield Hardline playable now in a closed multiplayer beta, available on PC and PlayStation 4! This will be a unique chance for you to live out your cops and criminals fantasies – months before the official release on October 21. To sign up for a chance to play the Battlefield Hardline closed beta, simply head to www.battlefield.com/beta and follow the instructions. (Please note that beta slots are limited). Sign up for the Battlefield Hardline beta Battlefield Hardline E3 Live StreamTo experience the thrilling cops and criminals world that is Battlefield Hardline right now, tune in to the exclusive Battlefield Hardline E3 live stream. Coming to you live from the rooftops of downtown Los Angeles, the live stream features 32 selected players going head-to-head in Battlefield Hardline’s multiplayer mayhem. Watch the Live Stream – Experience the Future of Battlefield A special message from Steve Papoutsis, Executive Producer on Battlefield Hardline:To all BATTLEFIELD fans, The team at Visceral Games and I are stoked to be working on the Battlefield franchise. Taking on this project and the responsibility of creating an all-new Battlefield game is an exciting moment for us as developers, but almost even more so as gamers. A lot of us at Visceral are huge Battlefield fans and have been playing since Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2142, Bad Company and more. That’s the great thing about Battlefield – the settings have changed over time but have always retained that same core gameplay formula that we as fans love. And that’s what we’re hoping to do with Battlefield Hardline. When we first started thinking about what kind of Battlefield game we wanted to make, the cops and criminals theme immediately came up. At the time (about three years ago), there was a great group of modern military shooters out already and the new direction everyone was headed looked to be sci-fi. Having just worked on the Dead Space series, we were ready for a different setting. But, making a Battlefield game is a huge undertaking, and we didn’t want to immediately jump in. So, we started by developing the last expansion for Battlefield 3, Battlefield 3: End Game. We were really proud of what we accomplished there, introducing dirt bikes to the franchise and creating some fun new maps that added to that great experience. What End Game really helped us learn was what makes Battlefield so special – the rock, paper, scissors gameplay. Developing a game around that open sandbox in a cops and criminals world is tons of fun. Our daily playtests are always a highlight of the day. After all, who doesn’t like the action of a good crime drama or action movie like Heat, Die Hard, or The Town. We’re focused on creating a game that allows you to feel that rush of being a cop or criminal, by pulling off that big score or feeling that pleasure of making the huge bust. Imagine blowing open vaults, run-and-gun foot pursuits and near escapes via getaway choppers. This is the foundation of Battlefield Hardline. We’re introducing a lot of cool new twists, which some of you will be able to discover in the closed beta right now. But, we’re also saving some surprises for launch. New gadgets like grappling hooks and ziplines can take you across skyscrapers, and tear gas and gas masks can really affect the battle that’s going on in the streets. We’ve added fun new melee weapons in the game with bats and batons and added a new mechanic in multiplayer called interrogation that fits more in line with the cops and criminals fiction. Not to mention we have our own methods to destruction and set of police and getaway vehicles including a police bearcat armored truck, fast muscle cars and of course street bikes. We know it’s hard to believe us by just reading this so that’s why we are unveiling this game with a beta where you get to play the High Tension map on two new game modes, Heist and Blood Money. We want gamers to not only see, but also play the game for themselves. Even more important, having a beta this early will also help us test things on our end to help ensure a smooth launch. We are all aware of what happened with Battlefield 4 and we’ve been partnering with DICE to learn more from them and are working with them on things like the recent netcode patch (please note: improvements from this patch are not in the beta, but will be in for launch). We are definitely listening, so please send us your feedback whether it’s through social media or the Battlelog forums. Before you go, I wanted to quickly touch on singleplayer. We are bringing the Visceral story-telling pedigree that we learned with Dead Space to the campaign of Battlefield Hardline. This will be a more personal experience than your typical shooter with compelling characters, a deeper story and production value like a great crime drama. That’s all I can say about singleplayer for now but keep your eyes peeled for more in the months ahead. Welcome to Battlefield Hardline. Can’t wait to see you on the streets! Steve Papoutsis Executive Producer, Battlefield Hardline VP, GM Visceral Games View the full article

Cops need backup and criminals need a crew. Either way teamwork is going to be essential if you're going to pull off that perfect heist or score the big time... From: Battlefield Views: 1583392 http://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_full_11x11.gifhttp://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_full_11x11.gifhttp://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_full_11x11.gifhttp://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_full_11x11.gifhttp://gdata.youtube.com/static/images/icn_star_half_11x11.gif 28974 ratings Time: 06:32 More in Gaming

Visceral Games brings its critically-acclaimed storytelling swagger to an all new cops and criminal fantasy inspired by some of the most popular TV crime dramas. For more Battlefield Hardline info: http://www.battlefield.com/hardline View the full article

The award-winning audio work of the Battlefield games is a vital part of what makes the franchise successful. In this installment of “Inside DICE”, we have a quick chat with Andreas Almström, Lead Sound Designer. Learn more about dinosaur sounds and trying to avoid noisy children… http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/andreas.jpg You’re the lead sound designer here at DICE, how did you end up here/in this role? - I started at DICE about 4 years ago. I got involved in the DICE f2p initiative, which turned into Easy and I helped ship two of their games. Then I got hired onto Battlefield 3, where I worked as a regular sound designer. I did a pretty good job so for Battlefield, I ended up as the lead sound designer. - I have a specific skill set when it comes to core systems and very technical type sound designs, and weapons and vehicles are my sort of main interest. So being a lead sound designer at this studio fits me very well. What is the biggest challenge when creating sounds for a video game? - The biggest challenge is to really capture the sound. Or in other words: to avoid disturbances – all the things that can distract from the performance. The audio team embraces working in “wild†environments so we accept there is some grit in the field recordings. But it can be challenging to get away from sounds of people, animals, and children. Children are the hardest ones to silence! Is there anything that people underestimate about sound design work? - I would say the actual amount of work that goes into creating a sound. If the sound works in a game, you take it for granted. But the amount of tweaking and handling, working with animation and VFX, making the systems, implementing them, creating the content, organizing it, keeping track of memory budgets – it all adds up. If you’re not involved in a studio that works with games, it’s easy to dismiss the sound as something that’s just there. Do you have a favorite sound from the Battlefield games? - The hidden dino roar on Rogue Transmission is a personal favorite from Battlefield 4. That one was really fun to design, and the reaction it got from the community was incredible. We wanted to create some kind of puzzle that had to be solved, so we had this idea of two buttons that had to be pushed simultaneously. The sound itself was a mixture of sounds from elephants, lions, moving bushes, and then we added some reverb. - When Battlefield 4 was released it took a few weeks before someone had gone through all the sounds of the game and finally found this roar. No one knew for sure how it could be triggered though, so there was a ton of discussions on the Battlelog forums. I think the thread consisted of 400 pages before someone had guessed the combination… It was great fun to follow this quest online! Want to learn more about the sound design in Battlefield 4? Read the article “Sounds of the Battlefield“. View the full article

On June 9, the newly announced Battlefield Hardline will be taking to the stage at the Shrine Expo Hall in Los Angeles for EA’s World Premiere: E3 2014 Preview Press Conference. Hosted by our CEO Andrew Wilson, this will be your first chance to get an exclusive sneak peek at Battlefield Hardline as well as new projects and never-before-seen content from other EA studios. To show off the thrilling cops and criminals theme of Visceral’s first entry to the franchise, we’re also excited to reveal an exclusive Battlefield Hardline E3 live stream. Coming to you live and direct from an undisclosed location in downtown Los Angeles, the Battlefield Hardline livestream will feature 32 selected players going head-to-head in all-out multiplayer mayhem. Without saying too much, we can promise you a truly spectacular event, true to the heart of Battlefield Hardline. Be sure to RSVP on Facebook to receive a live stream reminder when it starts. The Battlefield Hardline E3 live stream will begin at 1PM PDT/10PM CET on June 9 at Twitch.tv/Battlefield. Make sure to catch it to experience the future of Battlefield. Don’t miss any of the action from the E3 Press Conference that starts at 12PM PT on June 9th – you can watch the live stream broadcast at ea.com/e3 http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/bfhardline_keyart-640x413.jpg View the full article

We’re happy to announce that we’ve released an update for PC, PS3, and X360 consoles today containing the new improved “Netcode†for Battlefield 4. The update will be released later this week on PS4 and Xbox One. This update has been developed using the CTE (Community Test Environment) on PC (you can sign up if you haven’t done so already at http://cte.battlelog.com), and is the first update being deployed using your gameplay feedback. The number of changes possible in this update would be difficult to pull off without the continued support from our community, both through direct constructive feedback and telemetry data gathered on the CTE. High Frequency Network Update For the PC, PS4, and Xbox One platforms, we are adding something we nicknamed the “High Frequency Bubbleâ€. Within a certain radius of the player, we add the possibility to update the clients at a higher rate from the server. What this essentially means is that the server will update the client on what is happening more often than before. This normally results in a smoother, more “correct†player experience. http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/netcode-blog-640x400.png The High Frequency Update is by default turned OFF in this release. You will have to enable this setting to take advantage of the improved networking. To support players with a limited bandwidth connection, we support three different levels: LOW, MEDIUM and HIGH. Most players with a connection faster than 1Mbit should be fine using the HIGH setting. If you experience any issues, lower or turn off the setting completely. Playstation 4 & Xbox One Server Performance The High Frequency Update will be rolled out to all 48 player servers and on a small set of 64 player servers immediately. We will then keep a close eye on the larger servers to make sure server performance stays good in the live environment. If all goes well, all servers will be supporting the high frequency update after 24 hours or rollout and testing. PC Server Performance On PC the RSPs are responsible for enabling the feature at their discretion, we expect most to do so as soon as possible. Video Comparison When testing our “High Frequency Bubble†changes to the network layer in Battlefield 4, we made sure to employ a measurable end-user experience metric. To do this, we have been using a 60fps video camera to capture two clients connected over the internet, and counting frames to get before and after results: Future Plans This is the first release to contain CTE-tested “Netcode†fixes and improvements. We are still hard at work with additional improvements and tweaks to better our network experience that did not make this release. We hope to utilize the Community Test Environment for future release to ensure quality and stability across all platforms. If you wish to take part in this testing, the CTE still has slots open. The current requirement is to own a PC copy of Battlefield 4 with a Premium memebership to sign up at http://cte.battlelog.com Update Details PC • Improved/reduced explosion induced camera shake • Character collision improvements • Fix to reduce object damage mismatch between client/server. • Fix explosion packs not being able to be shot sometimes • Improvements for client side packet loss • Client crash fixes • AMD Mantle multi-GPU improvements • Carrier Assault game mode reports bug fix • High Frequency Network update - Added High frequency “bubble†updating player movement, stance, rotation, damage and projectiles at a separate rate on foot and in vehicles - Added option to control client side update rate setting PlayStation 3 • Improved/reduced explosion induced camera shake • Rental server bug fixes • Character collision improvements • Reduced object damage mismatch between client/server. • Fix for explosion pack not being able to be shot sometimes • Improvements for client side packet loss • Added controller option to swap functionality of the bumper and trigger buttons • Carrier – Invisible walls stopping bullets fix Xbox 360 • Improved/reduced explosion induced camera shake • Rent A Server bug fixes • Character collision improvements • Reduced object damage mismatch between client/server. • Fix for explosion pack not being able to be shot sometimes • Improvements for client side packet loss • Added controller option to swap functionality of the bumper and trigger buttons • Physics optimization for Naval Strike Wave Breaker rocks • Carrier – Invisible walls stopping bullets fix • Fix for issue where clients with low bandwidth would not be able to enter squad menu. PlayStation 4 • Improved/reduced explosion induced camera shake • Rental server bug fixes • Character collision improvements • Fix to reduce object damage mismatch between client/server. • Fix explosion packs not being able to be shot sometimes • Improvements for client side packet loss • Added controller option to swap functionality of the bumper and trigger buttons • Physics optimization for Naval Strike Wave Breaker rocks • Carrier – Invisible walls stopping bullets fix • High Frequency Network update - Added High frequency “bubble†updating player movement, stance, rotation, damage and projectiles at a separate rate on foot and in vehicles - Added option to control client side update rate setting Xbox One • Improved/reduced explosion induced camera shake • Rental server bug fixes • Character collision improvements • Fix to reduce object damage mismatch between client/server. • Fix explosion packs not being able to be shot sometimes • Improvements for client side packet loss • Added controller option to swap functionality of the bumper and trigger buttons • Physics optimization for Naval Strike Wave Breaker rocks • Carrier – Invisible walls stopping bullets fix • Fixed issue when using standby in Campaign • Fixed issue when using standby and reconnecting to game servers • Fixed issue with snapped application and matchmaking • Playgroup Matchmaking fix for Xbox One • Fixed incorrect error message for lost Xbox Live connection • Fixed issue for user name mismatch in rental server, ingame scoreboard and Squad Join menus • High Frequency Network update - Added High frequency “bubble†updating player movement, stance, rotation, damage and projectiles at a separate rate on foot and in vehicles - Added option to control client side update rate setting View the full article

By now, many of you have probably heard about the next title in the Battlefield series, Battlefield Hardline. The Visceral Studio team has done an amazing job of bringing in a completely new concept while staying true to the Battlefield core gameplay pillars. I’ve been working with Visceral GM Steve Papoutsis and his team for several years on the cops vs. criminals concept and we think you guys are going to love it! We’ve always dared to try new settings and experiences with Battlefield and seeing this new one take shape is a long lasting dream come true. That said, I want to be sure you all understand that introducing Hardline in no way means we’re done working on Battlefield 4. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Visceral team is leading the development of Hardline, while the DICE team continues to drive BF4. We are committed to giving you the best BF4 experience possible. Let me tell you about a few ways we’re going to continue to improve the BF4 experience. Continued Support: There are dedicated BF4 teams in Stockholm, Uppsala and LA that will continue to address any issues that might occur. But more importantly will also look to make significant additions to the game. Netcode Patch: We are also working on a major update to the Battlefield 4 netcode. Community Test Environment: We launched and are planning to expand our Community Test Environment. You can see the CTE as our labs environment in which we’ll continue testing out new additions, improvements etc. before we go live with them. We’re expanding the CTE program to give more and more players the chance to test new additions. More Features: Other features rolled out recently such as Squad Join, Rent-A-Server and Loadout Presets, many which have been directly requested by you in the community. This trend will continue. The games we develop are services. We focus on taking care of the games post launch, delivering new content to those of you who want it and always working hard to increase quality of play. We also continue to work hard to keep investing in areas where you tell us you see opportunities for improvements and new features. Yes, we’re very excited to partner with Visceral on the development of Battlefield Hardline, but ongoing work to refine and enhance BF4 remains a top priority. Best regards, Karl Magnus Troedsson, DICE VP & Group GM http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/bf4_update_full.png View the full article

On behalf of everyone at EA and Visceral Games, I’m fired up to confirm our next project – Battlefield Hardline. This is a brand new series in the Battlefield franchise, set against the backdrop of a genre we all love – the war on crime and the battle between cops and criminals. Several years ago, I was at an internal EA meeting in Barcelona with creative leaders from across the company. It was here I met Karl Magnus Troedsson, the GM of DICE, for the first time, and we immediately began talking about games. I’ve always loved Battlefield and KM was a huge fan of Dead Space, so we started talking about different ways we could work together, different ways we could take Battlefield and action games in a new direction. And from that point, the project that would become Battlefield Hardline was born. I wish I could tell you more now – more about the ways we are adding new twists and turns to the foundation of Battlefield multiplayer, more about how we’re bringing our strengths at Visceral to single player. But the wait won’t be too long – we’re looking forward to sharing more with you on June 9. Stay tuned for more information about Battlefield Hardline at E3 and sign up for updates at our web site www.battlefield.com/hardline. Thanks, Steve Papoutsis General Manager, Visceral Games Executive Producer, Battlefield Hardline @leveluptime http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/bfhardline_keyart.jpg View the full article

Have the skills to impress the world? Prove it! Share your TITANFALL video for two chances to win GeForce GTX TITAN Blacks and TITANFALL Collector's Editions. http://www.geforce.com/sites/default/files-world/styles/210x100/public/thumbnail_image/14-NV-GFE-ShadowPlay-984x400-GF-AppHeader-3.jpg?itok=_fvyhneM View the full article

Starting today, we are introducing a new way to acquire Battlepacks, the bundles of content that provide a mix of in-game items including accessories, emblem shapes, profile pictures, dog tags, XP boosts, knives, and paints. Battlepacks can still be earned through normal gameplay progressions, but we are now giving players the option to purchase Battlepacks as a shortcut to catch up with their friends on the Battlefield. http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/battlepacks-all.png Learn more about Battlepacks Bronze, Silver and Gold Battlepacks will be available for purchase at Origin.com, Battlelog.com, through the in-game store, at Xbox Live Marketplace and at the PlayStation Store. Pricing will be $1 for Bronze Battlepacks, $2 for Silver Battlepacks, and $3 for Gold Battlepacks. If you have any questions or comments about Battlepacks, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. View the full article

The upcoming Battlefield 4 expansion Dragon’s Teeth will bring the all-out war of Battlefield 4 into new exciting vistas, together with new game modes, weapons, and gadgets. Now, you can get a taste of the first gameplay footage from Dragon’s Teeth in our new Battlefield 4 Premium trailer. Look closely for another glimpse into the future… View the full article

Once again, we would like to share some Battlefield 4 ringtones with you. This time, you’ll be able to download the loading screen music from the 4 levels of Battlefield 4 Naval Strike. The sounds are available for download on Android and iPhone devices. Find them on the Battlefield 4 Soundcloud page (where a bunch of other ringtones are waiting for you) or below. Download Instructions for Android: 1. Click on the Download button for your desired Ringtone. 2. Save the Ringtone to your phone. 3. Select your new Ringtone in your phone’s Settings (experience will vary per phone model). Download Instructions for iPhone: 1. Please refer to this easy guide on how to download the desired Ringtone to your PC/Mac and create a Ringtone using iTunes. Enjoy! View the full article

Who are the top guns in Battlefield 4? The Geo Leaderboards have the answer. Found on Battlelog, these top lists display anything from who has the best Kill/Death ratio in Battlefield 4, to the player with the most hours in-game. Now, we have a Leaderboard challenge for you. http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Capture-640x433.png Get the Highest Score per MinuteWe are challenging the Battlefield 4 community to fight for the #1 place in the Score per Minute section of the Geo Leaderboards. The players that have the highest Score per Minute on PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One (Division 1 section, worldwide) on May 14, 8AM PST will be crowned as winners, earning immense bragging rights. The winners will be officially announced in our channels later on May 14. http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/SPM.png You can achieve a good Score per Minute in many ways. Anything between killing enemies and repairing vehicles will earn you points, and keep in mind that playing the objective is key. In other words, capture control points in Conquest or help out with holding down/attacking an M-Com Stations in Rush, and you’ll see that score soaring. So what are you waiting for? Jump in Battlefield 4, get that SPM up, and fight for top place! View the full article

Since the launch of Battlefield 4, our players have been pivotal in giving us valuable feedback. Today we’re launching the Community Test Environment in our continuous efforts to make the game even more enjoyable and engage with our fans in new ways. http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/cte.png Improve Battlefield 4 with Us The Community Test Environment (CTE) will provide passionate fans the chance to evolve Battlefield 4 with us and become a part of the development process. We’ll be able to test new ideas and solutions to current issues before we roll them out to all Battlefield players. Among the first things we will work on is the “Netcode,†which is what the player experiences with the game world including player-to-player interactions like damage registration. This involves tweaking to the “tickrate†servers and networking in general. By launching this new program, not only will we be able to address player feedback at an early stage, but also increase the overall quality of the game. We are excited to explore the possibilities together with you. How to Access the CTE This community program will be available on PC only. However, the goal is for our learnings to benefit all platforms when possible. To access the CTE, you will need to be a Battlefield 4 Premium member. Players will have to download a separate game client, then connect to an infrastructure and Battlelog version solely set up for testing purposes. Visit http://cte.battlelog.com/bf4/communitytest/ Read and accept the Terms of Service and Agreement Log into Origin with your existing account username and password (your account must have Premium activated in order to proceed) Start Origin and download the new Battlefield 4 CTE game client that now should be visible Install the Battlelog browser plugin Get familiar with the guidelines by visiting the Forums on http://cte.battlelog.com/bf4/forum/ Initially, only Battlefield 4 Premium members will be able to opt-in, and there will be a limit to how many can join. We do have plans to expand to a larger player base in the future after we test this new program. If you feel that you want to provide constructive feedback to make Battlefield 4 an even better game – then you’re more than welcome to apply to the CTE. View the full article

Connecting and playing with your friends has always been a central aspect of the Battlefield multiplayer experience. To help make this easier, we are now releasing Squad Join Beta for Battlefield 4. This is something we know our fans have been asking for – and something we wish we could have provided at launch – so we are now happy to present the first iteration of Squad Join. Squad Up Before Battle Squad Join Beta allows you to set up a squad for up to 5 people before joining a multiplayer server. This means that you and 4 of your friends can join a Battlefield 4 match as a squad, and deploy directly in the game together. Once in-game, you and your squad mates are guaranteed to stick together over rounds. We would like to add that Squad Join Beta is the first iteration of the feature. We will continue to add features and tweaks based on your feedback and comments, and are aiming to release the next version of Squad Join when Battlefield 4 Dragon’s Teeth arrives this summer. Also note that Squad Join Beta is available for PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. Before digging into the details, check out this Squad Join Beta tutorial video (note that this clip shows a work in progress). How It’s Done To join Battlefield 4 as part of a squad, simply choose “Squad Join Beta†in the game’s multiplayer menu. Here you will be able to see a list of active squads, or create your own. A list of the five slots will appear, with the squad leader indicated by a star. When you’re good to go, just initiate quickmatch to join a game, and you’ll be in-game with your squad mates, ready to bring your team to victory. Also, if you’ve left your squad and want to re-join it, you can do so – if the squad has a free slot. Joining this way will enable you to both join the squad and the match at the same time. Other Squad Join Features As mentioned, this is the first iteration of Squad Join and other features for it are planned, with the first major update coming within the next months (a more exact date will be communicated later). In this multi-release process, we are working on features like managing party members, and making Squad Join available for all game modes. Initially, Squad Join Beta will be available in the Battlefield 4 base game maps in the Conquest, Team Deathmatch, Obliteration, Rush, and Domination game modes. All the other Battlefield 4 maps and more game modes will be supported in later iterations of Squad Join. Give us Your Feedback Your comments and feedback are valuable to us. We’d really like to hear your input about Squad Join Beta and make you a part of improving this feature. Please leave your comments below. We hope you will enjoy trying out Squad Join Beta, and that it will make your time in Battlefield 4 even more enjoyable. View the full article

Once again, you did not let us down. After we asked you to submit your best Battlefield 4 moments for the second round of our Top Play competition, tons of thrilling gameplay clips have been sent in. We thank you all for sharing your great deeds on the Battlefield. As usual, we’ve selected four Top Play submissions and now it’s up to you to decide on the best one of these. Vote for your selection – A, B, C, or D – below in the comments, on the Battlefield Facebook, or Twitter. A. The Broken Machine – Opening a Round Like a Boss B. MitchDoss – With a Flick of the Wrist C. AZPacmane – C4 Above the Seashore D. sn3gaming – 1619m longest headshot View the full article

Today, the Rent-A-Server program has started to roll out for console versions of Battlefield 4. This will let you set up your own private and public Battlefield 4 servers, with control of different options from player count to map rotation. Thanks to these customization options, you’ll be able to create games that suit the play style for you and your friends. We’d also like to inform you that with today’s server update, we are deploying a fix for the issue being referred to as “Death Shield,†where an invisible “shieldâ€Â would appear around killed enemies, blocking weapons fire. Thank you for being patient as we worked to get this resolved. http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/5-640.png How to Rent a Server Start up Battlefield 4, go to the Multiplayer menu and select “My Rented Servers”. Here you’ll be able to rent a new server and manage the ones you’ve already rented. After choosing server location and duration of the rental, the purchase is complete. You can find your server under MULTIPLAYER / MY SERVERS. After this, server settings like game modes, map rotation, and much more can be altered. http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/4-640.png Rental Periods and Prices You can rent a Battlefield 4 server on console for a number of different days. The price for renting a server is as follows: 1 day ($1.49) 7 days ($6.99) 30 days ($24.99) 90 days ($59.99) http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/3-640.png Server Amount Will Increase Please note that this is a soft launch of the Rent-A-Server program. This means that we initially will have a limited amount of servers. We will however increase the numbers gradually when we see that everything is running as intended. We hope you will enjoy the Rent-A-Server program. Don’t hesitate to give us your feedback and comments. Thanks for your support, and see you on the Battlefield! View the full article

A couple weeks ago we asked you to submit your best Battlefield 4 Top Play video. Many entries were received, only one winner claimed all of the glory – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Zjho4GKB0Q. We are excited to bring you Round 2 of the BF4 Top Play Competition series. Submit your best Battlefield moment video by Thursday, May 1st where we will select the top four entries and allow the rest of the community to vote. The winner will be announced on Friday. Submit your video by tagging #BF4TopPlay on the Battlefield Facebook and/or Twitter. Good luck! View the full article

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Hi everyone, As you know, we’ve been looking into resolving the “rubber banding†that some players on certain platforms have experienced with Battlefield 4 after the recent release of Naval Strike. We’ve found that the root cause of the issue was a configuration of certain hardware types dedicated to 64-player matches. We have invested in new hardware to resolve this issue and deployed new higher-performance servers this week. In preparation, we conducted a significant amount of testing before installing the new servers to ensure they would correct the issue. We are already seeing performance improvement with 64-player matches and expect this to continue. While the process took longer than we would’ve liked, we wanted to be 100% sure it was done right and that the long-term solution was properly in place. Our objective is to deliver the best player experience possible. We feel this solution helps us deliver that to you. Stay tuned to our official channels for more information. Thanks, Karl Magnus Troedsson, DICE VP & GM http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/keyart-KM.jpg View the full article