14 DAY TRIAL // The upcoming Battlefield 3 first-person shooter from DICE and Electronic Arts is set to really take the genre forward, but it might also be among the few shooters that receive a book tie-in, as a Battlefield 3 novel was spotted at two major retailers recently.
Battlefield 3 boasts some really impressive features, many largely due to the spectacular Frostbite 2 engine, which allows it, at least according to its developer DICE, to be a next-generation game for current-generation platforms.
After hearing a lot of details about the title, it seems that EA and DICE are also keen on expanding the Battlefield 3 experience into other areas, as two large book retailers, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon, have released listings for a novel with the same name as the video game, via BF3 blog.
According to the descriptions, the Battlefield 3 book has 400 pages and is written by Battlefield 3 executive producer Patrick Bach, in collaboration with Andy McNab, the famous pen name of a former British SAS officer who wrote several books about missions he underwent while serving with the service.
Bach confirmed earlier this year that McNab has helped with the development of Battlefield 3 and the team at DICE with his extensive knowledge on such military operations, so a book collaboration isn't out of the question.
"Andy McNab has been working with us for quite some time now, talking to our writers about authenticity when it comes to mission structures," said Bach at that time. "And he's been involved in motion capture; since he's been involved in, for instance, the movie Heat, consulting on gun handling matters, he knows what it takes to make his experience fit onto an entertainment product."
Neither EA nor DICE commented on the Battlefield 3 book listing, so fans should expect an official announcement soon about whether or not they'll be able to shoot others in Battlefield 3 as well as read about shooting others in the book, which is set to appear on October 25, one day earlier than the game.