As discussed recently, the R11 patch release for Battlefield Bad Company 2 is here. Here are the main changes:

. Removed some memory leaks
. Fixed crashes when the game attempted to render lots of content (high detail, high FOV or multiple-monitor modes); this should particularly help multi-monitor users
. Chat window no longer causes lag spikes
. Chat window reworked opacity & visibility-time is controllable through settings in settings.ini
. Clantag is remembered when using auto-login
. Banner URLs can be up to 252 characters in length
. SecuROM wrapper removed from non-Steam version
. Minor performance enhancements
. Reduced rubberbanding on >24p servers
. PrintScreen takes a screenshot, file stored in Documents\BFBC2\Screenshots directory

If you're having problems with the in-game updater (as many apparently are), you can download the manual patch now locally from AusGamers (2.6GB!).

DICE have revealed that the upcoming Vietnam DLC for Battlefield Bad Company 2 will actually ship with five maps, rather than the previously promised four. The catch however, is that the new map won't be unlocked until players have completed 69 million in-game achievements.

The Battlefield Blog explains that the map is Operation Hastings, which players of the original Battlefield: Vietnam should recognise as a remake from the 2004 title.

If you didn’t play it back then, it’s one of the favorites among our fans, featuring everything awesome in one fantastic arena: boats, helicopters, tanks, jeeps, temples, and the signature bridge dividing the map into two strategic areas.

Don't fret too much about that dauntingly high achievement number however though, as it's a group effort spread right across all platforms (unlike BF 1943's 43 million kills goal which was platform specific).

You and all your friends playing on PS3, PC, or Xbox 360 need to perform 69 million team actions across Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam. So what’s a team action? Well, it’s any and all of these: resupply, revive, heal, spot, and repair. We start counting on December 21st, so make sure you contribute from the start!

The Operation Hastings map is previewed in a new trailer today and certainly makes the game look pretty damn fun. Watch it right here on AusGamers.

Battlefield Bad Company 2: Vietnam is due on PC (via both EA Store and Steam) on December 18 2010 (19th here in Aus), with Xbox 360 and PS3 offerings due to follow on December 21 and 22 respectively.

Following up last night's patch, EA DICE have released this new trailer of the upcoming VIP Map Pack 7 for Battlefield Bad Company 2. From the official Battlefield Blog:

VIP Map Pack 7 goes live tomorrow! This is your chance to relive the awesomeness of fan favorite map Oasis, plus three more maps never before available in Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer. For a complete rundown of everything VIP Map Pack 7, here are some posts we prepared earlier.

Also: December 21. Save the date. That is when Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam will launch (December 22 for PS3 in Europe). If you prefer your battlefielding on PC, you can get a three day headstart on EA Store and Steam, where it will be available on December 18.

Check out the new Map Pack trailer right here on AusGamers.

DICE have released a new patch for the popular Battlefield: Bad Company 2, gearing up for upcoming Vietnam War themed downloadable expansion.

The patch can now be found locally on Ausgamers Files (2.5GB) and will upgrade any previous version of Bad Company 2 to version R10.

The R10 update only addresses a small number of issues for PC gamers and the bulk of the size is due to its ability to upgrade all previous versions and adding the framework for the Vietnam expansion.

Xbox 360 owners should also be receiving an update soon that brings it up to the same bug-fixed standard as PC - more details on that here.

Battlefield Bad Company 2: Vietnam is due at a still non-specific date before the year's end.

EA DICE have released a new trailer from their forthcoming Vietnam downloadable expansion for Battlefield Bad Company 2. The latest clip features gameplay from the game's Hill 137 map with an infantry focus that serves as an ideal location to show off the flamethrower -- one of the 15 new weapons being introduced in the expansion. And of course, more psycadelic 60's rock.

Check it out right here on AusGamers.

Battlefield Bad Company 2: Vietnam is due during "Summer 2010" (U.S. Winter) for PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 at a USD$14.99/1200 MS Points price point -- No Australian pricing disparity has yet been revealed.

A standalone patch for Battlefield Bad Company 2 has been released, updating DICE's shooter to "R9". A snippet from the changelog:

- All Weapons Bronze Insignia requiring an unobtainable bronze star for the tracer dart – requirement removed.
- Improved Hit registration made through several fixes and some of the hitboxes themselves have been changed. This will increase the accuracy of guns.
- Blue box chat window removed
- The 2 second immunity when spawning/being revived will now be immediately removed either by firing, zooming, or any movement (move, crouch, jump). A Spawning Player can still orient passively in the Game World..
- 3D vision fixed.
- Fixed slug shotgun zoom crosshair on PC so they better represent the long range accuracy. Crosshairs now close more on PC, similar to consoles.
- Reduced slug shotgun hip accuracy to require zooming for consistent long range accuracy. Hip accuracy is now on par with the semi automatic weapons.
- Fixed a bug on PC where the G3 would do less damage than intended.

The full list of changes is available on the download page for the ~900mb update, which should work from any previous version of the game.

EA and DICE have released another new trailer for their upcoming "content heavy" Bad Company 2 expansion Battlefield Bad Company 2: Vietnam.

Skimming the treetops in the legendary Huey helicopter, Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries" blasts through its loudspeakers. Down in the jungles and rice fields below, the enemy is waiting for a chance to take you down with their T54 tanks and RPG launchers. Battlefield: Bad Companyâ„¢ 2 just made the journey to a new place and time -- back to the 60's and the infamous Vietnam War.

Vietnam promises 4 new maps, 6 vehicles, 15 weapons and a "rocking '60's soundtrack" and examples of these can be found in today's trailer which feature's footage from the game's Phu Bai Valley Rice Fields scenario. Check it out here on AusGamers.

Although no formal announcement has been made yet, the trailer does reveal a US$14.99/1200MS price point for the downloadable content expansion. No word on specific Australian pricing or an exact release date as yet, however 1200MS Points is usually around AUD$20 and the release window is still "this Summer" (U.S. Winter 2010/11).

Want to know why DICE are continually having issues patching Battlefield: Bad Company 2, and want said explanation on the absolute opposite end of any PR or marketing spiel? DICE's own Mikael Kalms has what ails you, which it turns out ails him a lot more.

And that's where we finally ran into real problems. It was too difficult for one person to identify which changes were required and which were not, and how to update the patch generation process to accommodate the latest set of changes. Most of the delay of Client R8 was because there are very few people at DICE who have the in-depth knowledge of the far-spanning corners of the game engine *and* the cooking tools *and* the patch generation process, to work out what is going wrong, why, and how to fix it.

This quote is one small part of Kalm's overall conclusion, but he runs you through the issue from start to finish, and does not hold back on the heavy in the process. It's not really an indication of anything good regarding patches for the future, but at least it's an honest explanation.

Click here for the full run-down.

At E3, EA and DICE have announced that Battlefield Bad Company 2 will be sending gamers back in time to "an entirely new theatre of war" - Vietnam:

Fighting as either U.S. Marines or North Vietnamese Army (NVA), the hostile combat terrain of the Vietnamese jungle is brought dramatically to life via the Frostbite engine with a host of authentic vehicles and weapons with which to engage the enemy. The punishing jungles, powerful air invasions, and guerilla tactics of an unpredictable enemy deliver non-stop action in this sandbox environment, a signature design style of the award-winning Swedish studio. With more than 5M units sold, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 has been hailed as, “…a better game than Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” by Seth Schiesel of The New York Times.

The Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam digital expansion pack takes all of the intensity, action and addictive gameplay of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and ups the ante with enhanced persistence, new weapons, vehicles, unlocks, awards, achievements and trophies.

There'll be four new maps available as part of this DLC, with pricing to be announced later (seems safe to assume that it will be a paid download for PC users as well given the carefully chosen title of "digital expansion pack"). A teaser trailer is also available.

DICE and EA have released a new video showcasing the next map pack for their popular first person shooter, Battlefield Bad Company 2.

VIP Map Pack 3 is set to include Squad Deathmatch mode in the Nelson Bay map and Squad Rush in the Laguna Alta Map, various scenes from which can both be seen in the clip right here on AusGamers.

A release date for the pack has yet to be confirmed.

With more than five million copies sold worldwide, Battlefield Bad Company 2 is proving a serious mainstay in the series, which has prompted the dudes at DICE to throw in an all-new gameplay mode called Onslaught.

Onslaught is bringing co-op gameplay to Battlefield for the first time on console. The new game mode puts you and up to three friends against the enemy on Valparaiso, Atacama Desert, Isla Inocentes and Nelson Bay – redesigned with new lighting, time of day, added vehicles and other effects. Each map has a dedicated gameplay focus, requiring different levels of teamwork in order to complete the objectives against an onslaught of enemy AI.

So obviously the bad news so far is this has not been announced to be coming to PC, but it's a no-brainer it eventually will. You can check out more from the official blog, and stay tuned for an official trailer right here on AusGamers.

Bazajaytee from DICE recently announced the details of the next patch for Bad Company 2 which is currently in QA with an expected ETA of early next week. Here's some of the main changes; check the previous link for the full list:

Server - Some potential sources for lag/rubberbanding have been eliminated
Server - The old reserved slots has been replaced by a kick-on-demand system like in BF2
Server - Infantry only mode available per-level
Server - Banlist can contain up to 10.000 entries
Gameplay - Knifing people in the back works again (we backed out the change that we had done for Server R11)
Server Browser - Servers are sorted into 3 categories: Normal, Modified, Hardcore depending on their settings
Server Browser - Join queue system when attempting to join a full server
Server Browser - Pings are sent via an alternate mechanism, which should work for non-Administrator users as well
Client - Removed K/D ratio and Skill Level filters in the leaderboards
Client - Any points you get while being dead will be added to your score

It's great to see DICE are fixing the knife issue bought on in the last patch. Infantry only will certainly make for some interesting scrims :) No word on the M1 issue yet though :/

Edit: It should be particularly noted that this updated is expected to weigh in at around 500mb. Given the nature of the current patch system in place for Bad Company 2, this would definitely be a metered download for Australian users, making it a more-than-usually hefty impact on your monthly quotas (though Steam users might get away with getting it from an unmetered server, if they're lucky). We've contacted Dice to see if a manual patch is a possibility - stay tuned. promoted/edited forum item

Update: Dice have confirmed that there will not be a manual patch available for this release. So if you need to do things to budget 500mb in your monthly quota for this update, you have been warned!

Patch notes were released yesterday for the next Client coming for BFBC2 - here's a snippet of the extensive changelog:

# MP – New Server browser
# MP – Added 15 second spawn timer for Conquest/Rush gamemodes at the start of round to prevent high end machines getting the upper hand before other machines load in.
# MP – Crash fixes relating to ALT+TAB at different times throughout the game
# MP – Hang fix when trying to connect to a full server multiple times
# MP – Deletion of soldiers now possible through the account pages in game
# MP – Removed screen flash during loading
# MP – Added support for colour blind players
# MP – Fixed crashes relating to faulty server banners
# MP – Servers closing during connection no longer cause the client to hang

Primarily MP fixes in the list, most popular will be the new Server Browser! Keen for this to roll out soon. promoted/edited forum item

For those who have been on the fence about it or can't justify forking over USD$70 for it on Steam, EB have Battlefield: Bad Company 2 for 50% until Sunday. This means you'll be paying $44.97 for the PC version and $54.97 for the XBox 360/PS3 versions.

Edit: Our pricing page for Bad Company 2 indicates that this is probably one of the best deals in town at the moment!

promoted/edited forum item

Dice have a new forum post which lists all the issues with Bad Company 2 that they're currently aware of and tracking (and, hopefully, fixing). Today's update has corrected a couple of smaller issues, but there are still a bunch of problems plaguing the game.

If you're experiencing problems make sure you head over and check out the list to see if your issue is on there - if it's not, it's probably worth dropping a note in their forums to let them know what's going on.

A Dice employee has posted to the official Bad Company 2 forums letting everyone know that EA has approved more servers to go online:

So we have approval from EA to add more servers. However we are working with RSP's to make this work smoothly.

• As such, only back ordered servers can be brought online at this point.
• Only 50% of the server providers back orders can be put online tonight, the other 50% will be allowed to be started within the next 48 hours. This is to make sure the EA servers hold up to the new servers over night.
Thank you for your patience and understanding

Hopefully this will alleviate some of the problems with the server shortages and improve the online experience.

EA have made it no secret that they want to offer incentives to first-hand purchasers of their games. Their project ten dollar initiative aims to package launch-day bonus downloadable content extras redeemable from a coupon-code provided in the retail box. With secondhand buyers having to fork out US$10 if they want the goods (in the case of this BF:BC2 content, it's US$15).

While some see it as just stuff that should have been in the game to begin with (yours truly included) it is still extra content none-the-less and sure to add more longevity to the game.

Here's what the official Battlefield Blog had to say about the Day One Map Pack:

The map pack contains two new maps which are the Rush map, Nelson Bay and the Conquest map, Laguna Alta which you can check out in the video now. The maps will be available from March 2nd which will allow the lucky North America players to get access and practice while us Europeans wait a few days more.

Watch the trailer right here on AusGamers.

Battlefield Bad Company 2 lands in Australia on March 4th 2010 for PC and Xbox 360 with PlayStation 3 following on March 11th.

While a lot of studios appear to be losing PC-focus on their multi-platform titles, it's good to see the folks at EA DICE still giving the desktop version the extra attention it deserves in the hotly anticipated Battlefield: Bad Company 2.

Today's video takes a look at the PC-specific features of the game such as a powerful game-server browser and a re-worked user interface to better cater mouse input. Then of course, there's the performance graphical benefits afforded to the higher horse-power PCs - unlocked framerates and field of vision, higher resolutions and both fullscreen and widescreen aspect ratios.

Couple that with higher player number support (32 vs max of 24 on consoles) and it's clear that much more care has been taken with the PC version than some other recent shooters.

Watch the PC features walkthrough video right here on AusGamers.

Battlefield Bad Company 2 is due on PC and Xbox 360 on March 4th 2010 with PlayStation 3 following on March 11th.

For those of you having trouble getting into the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer beta, DICE have released a new video for the hotly anticipated first person shooter.

The video, narrated by Producer Gordon Van Dyke, offers a walkthrough of the demo's multiplayer rush game-mode with information equally applicable to PC and console players alike. Check it out here on AusGamers.

Bad Company 2 drops on March 4th 2010 for PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

For those that missed out, we have a bunch of Battlefield Bad Company 2 beta keys available. They will go fast, so get in quickly. An AusGamers account is required to get a key, and we've temporarily disabled registrations to let existing users get first dibs. Grab one now before it's too late!@#

Don't forget to download the 1.5gb client file as well - our download page includes links to other Australian gaming ISPs as well.

Update: Key allocation has been exhausted, thanks for playing.

Update #2: More keys are now available!!@# At 12.30pm AEST registration will be enabled again, so existing users better hurry.

Update #3: We're out of keys - for now. Stay tuned.