EA announced today that fans who pre-order the Battlefield 3 Limited Edition at UK retailers, GAME and Gamestation UK will receive the Physical Warfare Pack. This pack includes the Type 88 LMG with bipod, the SKS sniper rifle flash suppressor and armor-piercing flechette ammo for the DAO-12 semi-automatic shotgun. Also included is day one access to the DAO-12 semi-automatic shotgun. Since this is the Limited Edition it will include the Back to Karkand expansion pack.
 
We haven't heard anything about U.S. retailers offering the Battlefield 3 Physical Warfare Pack, but EA has partnered with Gamestop in the past. We'll keep our eyes out for announcements.
 
    BATTLEFIELD 3 LIMITED EDITION: PHYSICAL WARFARE PACK AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY FOR PRE-ORDER AT GAME AND GAMESTATION UK
 
    Claim battlefield superiority this Autumn! The Battlefield 3™ Limited Edition: Physical Warfare Pack is now available for pre-order exclusively at GAME and gamestation in the UK. Players can storm the battlefield armed with powerful weapons and items only available in the Physical Warfare Pack including the Type 88 light machine gun with bipod for superior firepower and total zone control, the SKS sniper rifle flash suppressor that provides increased stealth abilities for Recon soldiers, and the lethal armor-piercing flechette ammo for the DAO-12 semi-automatic shotgun that is sure to tear through anything in its path. Also included is day one access to the highly versatile DAO-12 semi-automatic shotgun itself.
 
    In addition to the launch day exclusive weapons, the Physical Warfare Pack also includes the Battlefield 3™ Back to Karkand digital expansion pack. Players can wage all-out war on four of the most celebrated maps from Battlefield 2, including Strike at Karkand, Gulf of Oman and the Sharqi Peninsula, all stunningly re-created using the power of Frostbite™ 2. DICE’s state of the art game engine serves as the power center for Battlefield 3 to deliver superior performance in character animation, visual rendering, audio and physical destruction unlike anything ever seen before.
 
    All of this amazing content is available at no extra charge to gamers who pre-order the Battlefield 3 Limited Edition: Physical Warfare Pack exclusively at www.game.co.uk and www.gamestation.co.uk.
 
    Battlefield 3 will be available for the Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system, the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and the PC. For more information on Battlefield 3, please visit www.battlefield.com, and for the latest news on Battlefield please visit http://www.facebook.com/battlefield or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/battlefield.

https://twitter.com/#!/zh1nt0/status/72741677298761728
"We will reveal Battlefield 3 preorder bonus items in other countries soon"

Battlefield 3 Senior Gameplay Designer, Alan "Demize99" Kertz has been busy field questions on twitter. Below are some of the more interesting and informative responses.
 
rcenters : You said no magnum ammo or body armor a long time ago, but now we see "DAO-12 armor piercing flechette rounds"?
 
Demize99: There is a trade off to their armor piercing: lower base damage.
 
Power2ouse : The flechette rounds I assume have less damage but more penetration than buckshot, or how is that going to work?
 
Demize99: Indeed
 
tfk777: No Physical Warfare pack for the U.S.? We better get something exclusive too...
 
Demize99: Wait for it.
 
Demize99: Before the forums goes all "omg magnum ammo" Armor Piercing comes at the expense of lowering damage. It's also unique to flechettes.
 
GamerOfFreedom : So what about Armor? I remember you saying there wouldn't be Magnum Ammo or Body Armor
 
Demize99: No body armor spec. Standard buck can't penetrate a thing. Flechettes can at lower damage values.
 
rcenters: So does that mean there will be body armor perks anyway, or class based automatic armor like in BF2?
 
Demize99: No, standard buck shot has no penetration. That's all it means.
 
ConorPFitz: I have a question about the DLC for BF3. Will the maps work like the VIP map system in BC2? Are the weapons unlockable?
 
Demize99: No comment on how DLC works right now.
 
JGrasli: Let me get this straight for ALL; #BF3 NO body armor, NO magnum ammo (except shotgun flech..), NO EXPLMK2-spec etc? And acc-spec?
 
Demize99: Shotgun Flechettes are lower damage. NOT MAGNUM. No Body Armor. No Explmk2. #NoComment other weapon stuff yet...
 
rcenters: So how will the kits in BF3 be setup? Recon, Assault, Engineer, Support like 2142, or Recon, Assault, Medic, Engineer like BC2?
 
Demize99: You'll hear plenty about kits in the future.
 
Jkoverlord: i remember you guys saying that you dont want anything that will increase your HP or damage, cuz thats the best decision u made
 
Demize99: And that's still true. I do think it's ok for a player to give up some damage for utility in another way. That's balanced.
 
arc7891: so the flechette ammo have the same accuracy & same distance as standard weapon without it?
 
Demize99: Yes.
 
Silver_Rook: question.... these pre order bonuses? are they available to everyone once they rank up? or are some TRUE exclusive?
 
Demize99: The Physical Warfare Pack is fully exclusive. There's no other way to get those 4 items.
 
Nathan__f : Well, that's good to hear. But what's the point of armour piercing if there is no armour?
 
Demize99: It goes through surfaces that normal buckshot won't, including over penetration on soldiers.
 
Demize99: It will over penetrate people and thin surfaces that buckshot otherwise won't... but it does less damage in trade.
 
MongolianGnome: So this armour piercing is going to have some material penetration while reg. ammo will have little/none?
 
Demize99: Exactly.
 
Demize99: Goes through thin walls and soldiers, which normal buckshot doesn't. But at a price: flechettes do less damage.
 
Psychnapple: Oh, cool - I like that. Thin walls similar to the thin metal ones on Isla Innocentes, the wood houses on Laguna Presa? That type?
 
Demize99: Yep, that type.
 
Demize99: Further Body Armor clarification: There is no way in BF3 to either increase your health or lower the damage you take from bullets. Period.
 
Power2ouse:Why is the four items exclusive and not unlockable in the game.... it starts to look good then you guys fuck it up.
 
Demize99: We want to give our loyal fans something extra that says "Thanks for Preordering." I think PWP is a great way to do that.

Power2ouse:Why is the four items exclusive and not unlockable in the game.... it starts to look good then you guys fuck it up.

Demize99: We want to give our loyal fans something extra that says "Thanks for Preordering." I think PWP is a great way to do that.