Battlefield 3 Premium Announced

EA has confirmed earlier leaks concerning Battlefield 3's premium multiplayer service.

At EA's press conference today, the company revealed Battlefield Premium for all platforms. For $49.99 (or 4,000 MS Points) players will get all five expansion packs including Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand, Battlefield 3: Close Quarters, Battlefield 3: Armored Kill, Battlefield 3: End Game, and Battlefield 3: Aftermath. This knocks $25 off the normal retail price ($15 each) if all the packs were purchased separately. Additionally, EA says this premium package includes "exclusive in-game items, deeper personalization options, and advanced features."

Premium members will also get access to the maps earlier than everyone else. PlayStation 3 premium players get the Close Quarters map today with normal PS3 players getting it June 19. Xbox 360 and PC premium members will get the DLC June 12 with normal players receiving it on June 26.

Premium members will also get an exclusive ACB-90 knife and a set of Battlefield 3 Premium dog tags and "new exclusive soldier camos, weapon camos and unique Assignments." They can also reset their multiplayer stats, get queue priority, participate in exclusive double XP weekends and other events, and get strategy guides and videos straight from DICE.