Wednesday, November 23rd 2011
Battlefield 3: Massive PC Only Update Released
It looks like developer DICE has been doing a lot of listening to its customers, as the large number of complaints over in-game glitches has produced an almighty patch, fixing just about everything, including the kitchen sink, while making lots of little tweaks to improve gameplay and the user interface. On top of that, the patch is PC only for now as the console versions are taking "a bit longer due to [the] console certification process".
Bugfixes include such goodies as a "Black Screen" fix for an issue occurring on some PC Configurations; spawn protection improvements; increasing the damage from the 44 Magnum slightly; sharing your profile and stats with new Battlelog functionality; profile integration with Facebook, Google+ and Twitter and lots more. The full list appears below.
Client side changes
General performance and loading time improvements
"Black Screen" fix for an issue occurring on some PC Configurations
Stereo and Rendering Support for Nvidia and AMD Graphics Cards
Adjusted the "stuttering" encountered on some PC configurations.
Fixed several Crashes when joining MP and Co-Op sessions
Fixed multiple problems when using multiple monitors (Eyefinity / Surround).
Fixed visual corruption issues on certain Nvidia Cards
Improved loading times for certain textures
Added console command "GameTime.MaxVariableFps" to limit max FPS
Added console command "UI.DrawEnable" to hide UI for screenshots / videos
Balance and Gameplay Adjustments (PC)
Fixed a problem with high speed mouse movement
Added back some missing Growlers on Kharg Island Conquest Large
Added back EOR sound for SQDM and TDM
You should no longer be able to damage a friendly vehicle when sitting in an open position
Grenades now drop to ground if you get killed while attempting to throw it(note the affect this will have on Hardcore mode!)
Spawn protection now should work in Conquest. You should no longer spawn on points too close to enemies
You should no longer spawn too close to enemies in TDM and SQDM
Combat areas on Kharg Rush tweaked in order to disallow defenders to access the carrier ship after 1st base is taken and being able to enter the AA gun
Fixed a problem with revived players not suffering suppression
Fixed a problem with the camera when being revived in COOP
Added joystick deadzone setting
Fixed sound for when climbing ladders
Fixed an issue with some weapon sounds in first person
Fixed a swim sound loop error
Increased the damage of Helicopter Miniguns, AA guns, and Jet Cannons against infantry
Increased the damage of Helicopter Miniguns against jeeps.
Reduced the physics impact of AA guns and Jet Cannons, players under attack from these weapons should no longer lose control.
Increased the damage of the 44 Magnum slightly.
Increased the range and minimum damage of the .357 Round from the MP412 Rex.
Increased the range of all .45cal and 9mm weapons.
Slightly increased the range of the P90 and MP7 and PDW-R.
Slightly increased the range of the 5.56mm PDW-R and decreased the minimum damage at long range.
Slightly increased the minimum range of the Mk11, SVD, and M39 EMR 7.62mm rifles.
Decreased the maximum damage and maximum range of the G3 and SCAR-H 7.62mm weapons.
Reduced the damage from FIM-92 and SA-18 IGLA missiles against aircraft.
Increased the damage and range of the 40mm BUCK rounds.
Reduced the damage .50cal weapons do against Helicopters.
Updated T90 canister shell tweaks to match Abrams canister shells
UI Changes (PC)
Added round duration and ticket summary at EOR
Advanced squad polish - should be more intuitive
Significant changes to the Join Squad functionality (see below)
Fixed a problem regarding keybindings while playing
ou should now get a better error message when being disconnected via Battlelog
Server Update Highlights
EOD Bot exploit fix
Several crash fixes
Anti-stat padding measures taken, disallowing ranked servers to run obscure settings
Improved team kill kick configuration
Support for unranked servers. Unranked servers do not report players' scores to Battlelog, but server administrators can freely control all settings
Share your profile and stats with new Battlelog functionality
Ability to share your Profile and Stats pages to Facebook, Google+, and Twitter
User Profile and Stats pages on Battlelog can now be accessed without being signed in to Battlelog if you know a user's URL
Single sign on from Battlelog to Origin. If you're not logged in to Origin and join a game server, Battlelog will automatically sign you in to Origin in the background and join the game server
Quick notes on Squad changes in the Nov 22 update
Removed FIND ME A SQUAD option
Allow players to join empty Squads alone, thus having 1/4 squad members
Change order of options to LEAVE SQUAD, INV A FRIEND, SWITCH TEAM
Disable Privacy flag when 1 man squad
Reset Privacy flag from Private to Public when squad drops to 1 player
All occupied Squads will now show up colored blue on the Squad Selection screen
Players who choose not to join squads will also show up as Blue in the "Not in a Squad" line
Squads that are currently empty will display as white -- if you wish to join an empty Squad, you can choose the first one marked with white text
A detailed look at Squad refinements
Today's PC client patch features numerous tweaks to Squad functionality and is part of our ongoing efforts to make it easier to play with friends and Platoon mates. These changes will also be implemented for consoles when we release the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 updates shortly. Stay tuned for the exact date of the console updates.
First, we need to look at how joining with Squads and Platoons affects the balance of teams. Initially, servers are commanded to equal out each side, so joining with friends can impact that balance while joining with Platoons further hinders this. As a result we have made some adjustments to the in-game Squad management screen.
For PC, you are now able to highlight the various Squads and select which one you wish to join by selecting a Squad and then clicking the Join Squad button. Please note that the Squad Privacy option still allows 2 man Squads which, during 64 player sessions, can lead to players with no squad position -- the number of people with no Squads will be shown at the bottom of the Squad selection list.
After the patch is applied to consoles (in the near future) you will be able to join Squads by cycling through the list and selecting which Squad you wish to join.
Bugfixes include such goodies as a "Black Screen" fix for an issue occurring on some PC Configurations; spawn protection improvements; increasing the damage from the 44 Magnum slightly; sharing your profile and stats with new Battlelog functionality; profile integration with Facebook, Google+ and Twitter and lots more. The full list appears below.
Client side changes
General performance and loading time improvements
"Black Screen" fix for an issue occurring on some PC Configurations
Stereo and Rendering Support for Nvidia and AMD Graphics Cards
Adjusted the "stuttering" encountered on some PC configurations.
Fixed several Crashes when joining MP and Co-Op sessions
Fixed multiple problems when using multiple monitors (Eyefinity / Surround).
Fixed visual corruption issues on certain Nvidia Cards
Improved loading times for certain textures
Added console command "GameTime.MaxVariableFps" to limit max FPS
Added console command "UI.DrawEnable" to hide UI for screenshots / videos
Balance and Gameplay Adjustments (PC)
Fixed a problem with high speed mouse movement
Added back some missing Growlers on Kharg Island Conquest Large
Added back EOR sound for SQDM and TDM
You should no longer be able to damage a friendly vehicle when sitting in an open position
Grenades now drop to ground if you get killed while attempting to throw it(note the affect this will have on Hardcore mode!)
Spawn protection now should work in Conquest. You should no longer spawn on points too close to enemies
You should no longer spawn too close to enemies in TDM and SQDM
Combat areas on Kharg Rush tweaked in order to disallow defenders to access the carrier ship after 1st base is taken and being able to enter the AA gun
Fixed a problem with revived players not suffering suppression
Fixed a problem with the camera when being revived in COOP
Added joystick deadzone setting
Fixed sound for when climbing ladders
Fixed an issue with some weapon sounds in first person
Fixed a swim sound loop error
Increased the damage of Helicopter Miniguns, AA guns, and Jet Cannons against infantry
Increased the damage of Helicopter Miniguns against jeeps.
Reduced the physics impact of AA guns and Jet Cannons, players under attack from these weapons should no longer lose control.
Increased the damage of the 44 Magnum slightly.
Increased the range and minimum damage of the .357 Round from the MP412 Rex.
Increased the range of all .45cal and 9mm weapons.
Slightly increased the range of the P90 and MP7 and PDW-R.
Slightly increased the range of the 5.56mm PDW-R and decreased the minimum damage at long range.
Slightly increased the minimum range of the Mk11, SVD, and M39 EMR 7.62mm rifles.
Decreased the maximum damage and maximum range of the G3 and SCAR-H 7.62mm weapons.
Reduced the damage from FIM-92 and SA-18 IGLA missiles against aircraft.
Increased the damage and range of the 40mm BUCK rounds.
Reduced the damage .50cal weapons do against Helicopters.
Updated T90 canister shell tweaks to match Abrams canister shells
UI Changes (PC)
Added round duration and ticket summary at EOR
Advanced squad polish - should be more intuitive
Significant changes to the Join Squad functionality (see below)
Fixed a problem regarding keybindings while playing
ou should now get a better error message when being disconnected via Battlelog
Server Update Highlights
EOD Bot exploit fix
Several crash fixes
Anti-stat padding measures taken, disallowing ranked servers to run obscure settings
Improved team kill kick configuration
Support for unranked servers. Unranked servers do not report players' scores to Battlelog, but server administrators can freely control all settings
Share your profile and stats with new Battlelog functionality
Ability to share your Profile and Stats pages to Facebook, Google+, and Twitter
User Profile and Stats pages on Battlelog can now be accessed without being signed in to Battlelog if you know a user's URL
Single sign on from Battlelog to Origin. If you're not logged in to Origin and join a game server, Battlelog will automatically sign you in to Origin in the background and join the game server
Quick notes on Squad changes in the Nov 22 update
Removed FIND ME A SQUAD option
Allow players to join empty Squads alone, thus having 1/4 squad members
Change order of options to LEAVE SQUAD, INV A FRIEND, SWITCH TEAM
Disable Privacy flag when 1 man squad
Reset Privacy flag from Private to Public when squad drops to 1 player
All occupied Squads will now show up colored blue on the Squad Selection screen
Players who choose not to join squads will also show up as Blue in the "Not in a Squad" line
Squads that are currently empty will display as white -- if you wish to join an empty Squad, you can choose the first one marked with white text
A detailed look at Squad refinements
Today's PC client patch features numerous tweaks to Squad functionality and is part of our ongoing efforts to make it easier to play with friends and Platoon mates. These changes will also be implemented for consoles when we release the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 updates shortly. Stay tuned for the exact date of the console updates.
First, we need to look at how joining with Squads and Platoons affects the balance of teams. Initially, servers are commanded to equal out each side, so joining with friends can impact that balance while joining with Platoons further hinders this. As a result we have made some adjustments to the in-game Squad management screen.
For PC, you are now able to highlight the various Squads and select which one you wish to join by selecting a Squad and then clicking the Join Squad button. Please note that the Squad Privacy option still allows 2 man Squads which, during 64 player sessions, can lead to players with no squad position -- the number of people with no Squads will be shown at the bottom of the Squad selection list.
After the patch is applied to consoles (in the near future) you will be able to join Squads by cycling through the list and selecting which Squad you wish to join.