A few days ago, EA posted something that seemed too good to be true: pre-order Mass Effect 3 on Origin by March 8 and get a free copy of Battlefield 3. Well, it turns out it was too good to be true: EA has canceled the pre-order bonus. No reason as to why the pre-order bonus has been canceled, but to make matters more interesting, just before the bonus was cancelled, EA Origin assured gamers via Twitter that the bonus was valid until March. Go figure…

This isn’t the first time EA ventures into these territories — they’ve made quite a few false promises over the past year (like the free BF1943 for PS3 owners scandal). We can’t say that we’re surprised. And let’s not forget that something similar happened when EA offered a free copy of Dead Space 2 with a Battlefield 3 pre-order last year.

At least they could make up a story and say that they ran out of the allocated free copies of Battlefield 3 instead of just canceling the pre-order bonus out of the blue.

Today is Black Friday, day of great savings, and shoppers are busy emptying stores all around the US. Not to be outdone by other retailers, EA has discounted Battlefield 3 by 50% on Origin, selling it at $29.99. However, the deal is valid only for today, so strike while it lasts!

Link: Battlefield 3 Origin (Update: the offer is US-only)

Earlier this year there was a lot of fuss — and rightfully so — over EA’s Origin software and the amount of data it collected from the users’ computers. EA later updated its privacy statements, removing a few clauses.

Now there’s another privacy issue that may have huge implications for Battlefield 3 players. It concerns Battlefield 3′s anti-cheat software PunkBuster, made by EvenBalance, Inc. The license agreement gives PunkBuster the right to not only scan all files on a users PC system, but to take actual screenshots and to publicize those screenshots. When installing PunkBuster, part of the agreement reads:

Licensee understands and agrees that the information that may be inspected and reported by PunkBuster software includes, but is not limited to, Licensee’s Internet Protocol Address, devices and any files residing on the hard-drive and in the memory of the computer on which PunkBuster software is installed. Licensee acknowledges and agrees that if Licensee does not want Licensor to collect and process such information, Licensee should not use the PunkBuster software.

Further, Licensee consents to allow PunkBuster software to transfer actual screenshots taken of Licensee’s computer during the operation of PunkBuster software for possible publication.

While it’s understandable that anti-cheat software has to monitor certain files and processes for hacks, the license agreement goes far beyond that, much like Origin’s original licensing agreement.

To make matters more interesting, PunkBuster has a whole different, much more casual “Privacy Policy” on its website, where, among other things, it states:

“…our software will not perform “hard disk scans” looking through large portions of users’ directories and/or file systems.”

Which is contradictory to the real, legally binding License Agreement that users have to accept when installing the software, which permits PunkBuster to inspect any “devices and any files residing on the hard-drive and in the memory of the computer on which PunkBuster software is installed”.

To make matters worse, PunkBuster is technically “optional” for Battlefield 3, but it’s almost impossible to play online without having the software enabled. And it’s not just Battlefield 3 that uses PunkBuster — all previous Battlefield games and many Call of Duty titles use the software.

This is yet another case of PC gaming software that takes things too far, giving it a broad set of options and rights to collect and disseminate users’ information.

There are those who hate Origin, and there are those who hate Origin. As you know, EA’s Origin service is required to play Battlefield 3, something which many gamers have complained about ever since the ties between Origin and Battlefield 3 were revealed. Now, hacker group Razor1911, known for releasing pirated and cracked versions of PC games, have released a tool for which owners of genuine copies of Battlefield 3 can use to bypass the Origin software.

Origin has been under a lot of criticism lately, mainly the privacy policies that allowed EA to snoop users’ PC systems for all sorts of data and share it with third parties. EA has since updated the terms of service.

If you decide to use the tool, or any other such hack to bypass Origin, you should know that you are violating the Origin Terms of Service, which means you’ll probably get your account suspended.

We’ve heard a few times before that Battlefield 3 might make its way to the popular game service Steam, with EA and Valve reportedly in negotiations over the past month. Now new evidence has emerged that might give us some hope in seeing Battlefield 3 on Steam after all.

The new evidence comes from the latest Punkbuster update, which includes a new install directory at “C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\SteamApps\common\battlefield 3\“, in addition to the Origin install directory. This is by no means a conclusive piece of evidence, but it does bring some hope in seeing Battlefield 3 on Steam in the near future.

EA has released Battlefield 3 on dozens of digital distribution services, with the exception of Steam, which places restrictions on publishers regarding downloadable content and expansion packs — the main reason EA decided against offering Battlefield 3 on Steam.

Via Kotaku. Thanks, Will!

At ease, men!

It has come to my attention that a certain game publisher under the name “EA” has issued an announcement to North American Battlefield 3 players. It states that the release of Battlefield 3 has been moved up to 12AM EST/ 9PM PST. That’s 12AM on the East Coast and 9 PM on the West Coast. In other words, less than an hour from now, you maggots will be gutting it out on the battlefield!

And let me remind you that you are to join the BF3Blog platoon, the penalty of failing to do so will result in imminent pwnage of your sorry ass on the battlefield.

As you were.
- BF3Blog

UPDATE: Looks like platoons are limited to 100 members Hopefully EA will increase the size. In the meantime, you can add our platoon creator and chief BF3blog PC player as a friend. But be warned: he’s crazy on the Battlefield and often goes Kamikaze on everyone.

Finally, some good news after all the heartbreak we’ve had to endure with EA’s Origin, Battlelog, lack of multiple soldiers etc. Now EA has released an online service where users can change their Origin username. It still looks like we’ll be able to have only one soldier in Battlefield 3, so chose your username wisely. Previously, players could update their name through an iOS app. Either that, or write to EA support, which, given its sheer incompetence, didn’t seem to provide much help to many players.

You can change your Origin username here.

UPDATE: we’ve updated the post with the correct link. Sorry for the confusion.

Over the past few months, DICE has expertly dodged questions whether PC gamers will be able to create several soldiers per Origin account in Battlefield 3. During the beta, we saw there was “room” for multiple solders on Battlelog, and we’ve heard conflicting news whether we’ll be able to create multiple soldiers. However, according to DICE, those “slots” are for console accounts, meaning that you cannot create a new solder on PC, but if you play Battlefield 3 on a console, you can add your console soldier (e.g. via Xbox Live Gamertag), and track the stats in Battlelog. This is according to DICE’s Daniel Matros, who tweeted the news.

Not only that, it’s been confirmed (again, via Matro’s Twitter) that your name in Battlelog is your Origin username, which will also be the name of your soldier, presumably. What makes this situation worse, is that players cannot change their Origin account name via the settings, instead, they have to contact EA tech support and request a name change. Which sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t.

We dunno what else to say other than we’re disappointed over this, especially if all of Mr. Matros’ Tweets turn out to be true. The integration between Origin, Battlelog and Battlefield 3 has taken a step too far, slashing away features that PC gamers have enjoyed for years. Simple features like creating different soldiers and choosing your in-game name.

Not to mention that since your Origin username is publicly displayed, it’s a potential security risk as would-be hackers now only have to guess the password. Other services, like Steam, don’t publicly display the username/login name of the account.

EA’s pre-order offer on Origin is already pretty good: it includes the Back to Karkand expansion pack, Physical Warfare pack and a 48 hour head start on the beta. Now, the deal just got a lot better: it includes a free copy Dead Space 2. The deal expires on September 19 (tomorrow), so act fast if you’re interested.

For all the current Battlefield 3 deals, check out our comprehensive Battlefield 3 pre-order page.

Over the past week, there has been a huge backslash towards EA and their Origin End User Licensee Agreement, which gave EA the right to snoop your computer for all kinds of information and sell it to third parties. The news quickly spread across many gaming sites, including BF3blog.

Apparently, EA has listened to the complaints and has updated their EULA for Origin. It now includes the following addition:

“EA would never sell your personally identifiable information to anyone, nor would it ever use spyware or install spyware on users’ machines. We and agents acting on our behalf do not share information that personally identifies you without your consent, except in rare instances where disclosure is required by law or to enforce EA’s legal rights.”

In addition to that, while EA will still collect data about your PC system, they removed the clause that gave them the right to use the data for marketing purposes.

The new Origin EULA went into effect last Wednesday, and is the result of an outcry from gamers and the gaming community, including us here at BF3blog, EA’s forums, and a group on Reddit. While the EULA still gives EA the right to collect vast amounts of data from you, they won’t sell it to third parties. At least, that’s what they say.

Origin is a big part of Battlefield 3, as it will be required to play the game regardless of where it’s purchased.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!