Battlefield 4 set to launch in late 2013

Already? A representative of the Battlefield franchise announced today that gamers should expect a Battlefield 4 beta around fall 2013. The news comes several weeks after EA quietly noted that if you preorder Medal of Honor: Warfighter, you get a free beta invite to Battlefield 4.

"We are committed to providing an excellent Battlefield 3 experience well into the future, past the releases of Aftermath, End Game, and Battlefield 4," noted a DICE representative, hoping to calm speculation regarding such an early announcement. "DICE is continuing its work on Battlefield 3 alongside Battlefield 4."

After soothing the masses worried about BF4 coming sooner than later, the author of the blog post took the opportunity to detail some features coming in the next Battlefield 3 expansion -- Armored Kill -- due this September. Enthusiasts can purchase Armored Kill when they pay the one-time $49 fee for Battlefield Premium, a relatively fair value for five expansions and many in-game upgrades.

The main highlights of Armored Kill include 4 new maps (including one with snow), 5 new vehicles (mobile artillery, tank destroyers, ATVs, and more), 20 vehicle-specific benefits, "tank superiority" game mode, a new flying gunship that players can spawn and fire from, and more.

Make sure you also check out the lengthy blog post DICE designer Inge Joran Holberg wrote about Bandar Desert, "the largest map in Battlefield history," found exclusively in Armored Kill.