The Battlefield 3: Aftermath release date has been revealed by EA’s DICE studio for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. As with Armored Kill, the fourth digital expansion pack has been made available to PS3 BF3 Premium members and is scheduled to arrive for Xbox 360 and PC tomorrow. Regular BF3 players will have to wait till next week for the DLC.
The content portrays an urban environment in Iran shattered in the aftermath of the earthquake that took place in the single player campaign; hence the name. It adds decimated streets and districts, a few modified vehicles and the all-new crossbow for silent kills, as well as a combination of horizontal and vertical gameplay.
First up, the new vehicles that make their way into players’ lives: The Phoenix and the Barsuk serve as light transport vehicles with a makeshift grenade launcher fitted at the back to compliment the machine gun on top. Then there’s the Rhino, a civilian vehicle patched up and “retrofitted” with armor and an RC machine gun, making it apt for heavy troop transport. In addition, helicopters and tanks return.
Aftermath also introduces a new mode of play titled Scavenger mode, in which players are tasked at staying alive in challenging environments with just a knife, one grenade and a sidearm to hold on to. And while EA says players will have to fight to survive with their squad and hunt for better weapons, exploring as much of the map as possible is imperative to stand any chance of running out eventual winners.
The other noteworthy detail is the addition of the crossbow. It is a combination of several things – most of all military ingenuity – and has been hastily put together from scrap found in the environment. It adds a scope to make the already quiet kills even deadlier. The expansion pack even supports all original game modes plus the Gun Master mode from Close Quarters.
Battlefield 3: Aftermath is included in Battlefield Premium and can also be purchased separately for a price of $15 on the PS3 and PC, and for 1200 Microsoft Points on the Xbox 360. It will be launched on December 11 to those who own a regular PS3 copy of BF3 and on December 18 to Xbox 360 and PC players.