Battlefield 3 gameplay trailer debuts, Back to Karkand expansion confirmed

The Battlefield 3 teaser trailer did what good teasers do: made fans want more. Since then you've likely seen some print screenshots, but of course that's nothing compared to gameplay footage. We expected it to debut March 1, but surprisingly EA have released it today. We won't keep you.

DICE assures it's real-time footage, not CG.

You may notice a distinct influence from Mirror's Edge here with the 'body view' and all. Senior gameplay designer Alan Kertz says on Twitter, "Mirror's Edge is one of the best things to happen to FPS and DICE. We learned so much from it... scary just thinking about it. Glad for it."

Screens from the trailer are below; as it's in motion, they're not as high quality as they could be, but not too shabby.

Aside from that, the previously leaked news on the Back to Karkand expansion is now confirmed. Karkand brings a lot of content from series favourite Battlefield 2 in to Battlefield 3: four maps (including Strike at Karkand, presumably), weapons and vehicles, plus achievements, trophies, and other goodies to be detailed later. The maps will of course be enhanced with all the new Frostbite 2 engine has to offer, including destruction. Those who pre-order will receive the content free; we assume it will be available as DLC for those who do not.

For all Battlefield 3 confirmed features, head to our wiki.