Buy now, upgrade later. That’s the mantra behind Battlefield 4’s retail scheme that will allow gamers to upgrade their current-gen copy of the first-person shooter to a next-gen copy for a set fee. Given that the pricing scheme is ultimately decided by publishers – as outlined by Sony’s Andrew House during Gamescom – EA has currently pegged the fee around $9.99, and has also noted that it will apply to select retailers.
Here’s the official image from the publisher’s blog, which also details the list of retailers that endorse the upgrade promotion across the US and Europe.
Although GameStop will offer the most enticing trade-in offer; consumers who pick up specifically marked copies of Battlefield 4 for Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 will find a one-time use code in their retail box that will allow them to purchase next-gen, digital versions of DICE’s shooter through the PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE Marketplace, respectively.
Though the game won’t release until October 29th, fans eager to get in on the action will be pleased to hear that the open beta for Battlefield 4 will go live on October 1st across Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC. For the quality testing, players will be able to experiment with the Conquest gameplay mode within the Siege of Shanghai. What’s more, EA has confirmed that players can also unlock different items and bolster their stats in the beta, too.
Much like Call of Duty: Ghosts, Battlefield 4 will allow players to carry over their online progress and character progression to its next-gen iterations. These versions in particular were recently given release dates by the company; with the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of the game hitting stores on November 12th and 19th, respectively.
Battlefield 4 will launch on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC on October 29th.
Tell us, will you jump into the game’s open beta to put EA’s theatre of war to the test? Also, do you think the upgrade scheme will ease the transition to the next generation of consoles? Give us your thoughts below.