Battlefield 3 Back to Karkand DLC dated for PSN

By Fred Dutton Published 1 December, 2011

Due out in the US next week.

Battlefield 3's Back to Karkand DLC arrives on US PSN on Tuesday 6th December, Sony has announced.

A European date hasn't been confirmed but it should follow on the Wednesday over here.

The pack includes four classic Battlefield 2 maps remastered in the Frostbite 2 engine: Strike at Karkand, Wake Island, Gulf of Oman and the Sharqi Peninsula. On top of that, you'll also get classic Battlefield 2 weapons and vehicles, as well as new achievements. See the trailer below for a glimpse of how it looks.

It sells for your local equivalent of $15, but it's free to those who picked up the Battlefield 3 limited edition.

Sony has snagged a one week exclusive on the pack so PC and Xbox 360 patrons will have to hold on until the 13th.

Picture of Fred.

About Fred Dutton

Fred Dutton is Eurogamer's US news editor, based in Washington DC.

Read more articles from Fred by visiting the Fred Dutton archive page.

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Comments (34) Latest comment 6 months ago

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  • stuarty_2003 #1 6 months ago

    I read that as "Sony has shagged a one week exclusive..."

  • coolbritannia #2 6 months ago

    Nice. I hate people who say this, but this is late coming. I read this yesterday evening on another site.

    I know, like I said, I HATE people who say "old news".

  • Chris1810 #3 6 months ago

    Cant wait!

  • ps-360 #4 6 months ago

    this will be one of the best dlc's ever for a shooter!

  • UkHardcore23 #5 6 months ago

    Roll on the 13th!

  • king26 #6 6 months ago

    Getting BF3 on 17th Dec, I'll no doubt get my arse handed to me for the first few weeks, now I'll have to learn an additional 4 new maps too? There's Xmas sorted

  • bodhi85uk #7 6 months ago

    Not only will you have to learn those new maps, youll have to pay for them too unfortunately unless you find a Ltd Ed

  • mattk84 #8 6 months ago

    @king26 There's new players arriving all the time. Yes the learning curve is steep but as with all BF titles give it time and then it starts snowballing.

  • FarbrorBaku #9 6 months ago

    Oh this will be great, a bit miffed that i'll have to wait a week more but that's fine, it will give me time to treat my massive skyrim addiction.

    Also it's no camaro but that tractor thing looks kicking rad! :D

  • cheeky_BILLY #10 6 months ago

    Can't wait for this. After all the hype and war of words with Acti/COD, DICE have done a cracking job with the MP on BF3 and these classic map packs should make a great game even better.

  • TheRealBadabing #11 6 months ago

    Is this the first time the PC has been regarded as a "format" for timed exclusives? Thought the point was for Sony to bloody MS's nose and vice versa, how did the Switzerland of gaming get caught up in the middle of this one?

  • king26 #12 6 months ago

    bodi85uk
    There's still plenty of limited editions left in my local GAME as well as Play.com, that should save me 10 quid

  • revan8 #13 6 months ago

    Awesome. Makes total sense to give the platform that sold half as many copies as xbox version exclusive rights.

  • Freakz #14 6 months ago

    @revan8 Fuck Xbox

  • Vortex808 #15 6 months ago

    A *ONE* week exclusive? Seriously? FFS. I despair, honestly, I despair. Who gives a monkey's about a one week exclusive? What's the point of that?

  • mukki #16 6 months ago

    One week exclusive is joke really, would be a better world for gamers if this dlc exclusive madness would end. Bring the stuff out on all platforms at same time, like the game.

    But ya excited, loving BF3 dare I say it... even more than MW3...
    and what the hell are those golf carts? Mine removal tractors? Looks fun! Soon there will even more maps to get my ass kicked in!!

  • Felbridge #17 6 months ago

    Wake Island you say? Most definitely getting it :D

  • ROCK-NYC #18 6 months ago

    Dice does make some good DLC content. Thinking back on BFBC2 VIETNAM and I just can't wait for this one.

  • kingcrowbar #19 6 months ago

    So if EU PSN users are lucky, they'll get it 6 days before.

    Or if EU PSN is on usual form, they get it the day after Xbox and PC :)

  • FireMonkey #20 6 months ago

    @coolbritannia - Yesterday evening! Wow this is SOOO late!

    If you hate people saying about old news then why did you say it!?!?

  • FireMonkey #21 6 months ago

    @mukki - One week exclusive is basically nothing for us gamers, but Sony would have paid a shed load of money for it. More money in for the game equals more support for the game and so more bug fixes and re-balancing and possible more expansions.

    If Sony want to chuck money at the devs for this type of exclusive then it's fine by me as it will just end up improving the game for all of us.

  • TheEarlOfZinger #22 6 months ago

    I've put 25 hours of conquest in and I'm quite bored now.

    This should hopefully give the game a well needed shot in the arm (from my perspective)

  • 00.00.01 #23 6 months ago

    @FireMonkey
    Agreed, one week is nothing, compared to the usual 30-days exclusivity that PS3 users have seen over the past years on every bit of MW DLC. Sony is unlikely to 'buy' exclusivity though, usually when there's a timed exclusivity deal it means that the dev/publ of that title has not complied to all technical requirements and instead of fixing issues they arrange an exclusivity deal.

  • Whizzo #24 6 months ago

    Seems a bit strange that an audience, most of whom have never "been" to Karkand, get to return to it before those who actually made the series a success in the first place.

  • DAN.E.B #25 6 months ago

    Didnt realize it was four maps!
    This is one limited edition that was actually worth buying!

  • DiamondIce #26 6 months ago

    After 50 hours of playing time, some new maps really are needed.

    I have never played these maps so it will be a nice surprise.

  • gooner77 #27 6 months ago

    bloody hell this is out the same day as the raams shadow dlc for gears 3.

    which do I play first ?? it's a nice problem to have though

  • Gartt #28 6 months ago

    PS3 before PC? What kind of twisted world do we live in?!

  • carlitoswagon #29 6 months ago

    The Vietnam DLC for BC2 was/is fantastic and cost 1200 msp. This is a very nice touch from Dice shows their class.

  • geox30 #30 6 months ago

    I usually end up playing the one or two maps conquest that I like the most in every BF game.For Bad Company 2 that was Arica Harbor.Now I got addicted with Seine Crossing.Strike at Karkand was my favourite BF2 map!
    Edited by geox30 at 02/12/11 @ 12:21

  • paulgardiner #31 6 months ago

    Gotta agree with the love for Seine Crossing, also really enjoying Grand Bazaar. Kind of ironic that neither of these maps have much vehicular action, which is what really differentiates BF3 from the crowd.

  • geox30 #32 6 months ago

    @paulgardiner
    That is partially true.Although BF3 offers some grand scale vehicular action,I think it is its difficulty curve that sets it apart from other games.I was ace in Bad Company 2 and it took me two weeks playing BF3 to score a 1:1 K/D ratio.

  • arcam #33 6 months ago

    I've been playing Battlefield for 5+ years and I still can't get a 1:1 KDR! But I don't care, I eat tanks, that's my job. May not get many kills but I leave smoking tank corpses littered around the landscape instead ;)

  • cheeky_BILLY #34 6 months ago

    I just have to come here and boast. I killed 4 players with one RPG yesterday! They were one squad all in cover around a van, which ,after I walked around the corner behind them and fired a rocket into it, exploded, taking them all out. And a couple of their claymores. And an anti tank mine! Single most comedy I've ever had on BF3!

    Just sayin'