Already registered via Xbox Live to vote in November's general election? Here's a different vote to rock: EA is letting players have a say in which two existing Battlefield: Bad Company multiplayer maps will be tweaked to become Conquest battlegrounds when the free Conquest Map Pack deploys this fall.

The six maps are up for vote at EA's Bad Company site, and include Acta Non Verba, Crossing Over, Par for the Course, Ghost Town, Welcome to Bad Company, and Crash and Grab. Developer DICE will pick the two top vote-getters on September 2. The golf course themed Par for the Course is currently way out in front, but, hey, you might change that. DICE is working on two more Conquest maps to join the fan favorites.

By the way, we've checked, and your vote really will count. You know, unlike a certain Spider-Man: Web of Shadows poll Activision conducted last month.

Monolithic publisher EA has reported the preliminary financial results for its first fiscal quarter, ended June 30, 2008, and noted a dramatic increase in net revenues. Despite sales rising $409 million to $804 million (more than double that of Q1 2007's $395 million), the publisher still suffered a net loss of $95 million, which according to our admittedly rudimentary mathematical abilities, is smaller than the previous year's $132 million. We want net loss to be smaller, right?

EA's rise in sales can be attributed to the strong commercial performance of titles like UEFA Euro 2008, the "continued strength" of Rock Band and Battlefield: Bad Company, which managed to shift 1.6 million copies. "We are now seeing the early returns of the change agenda we started last year," stated CEO John Riccitiello. He went on to use words like "innovation" and "quality" to describe EA's forthcoming lineup, calling it "the best title portfolio in the company's history." We would totally agree, especially after experiencing the publisher's strong E3 showing ... but we're worried that doing so might just trigger Armageddon.

So, despite internet kvetching about Battlefield: Bad Company's DLC strategy, turns out it's a pretty good shooter with a fair amount of – you're not going to believe this – innovation. And it doesn't stop there. Developer DICE is still working on the game, putting the finishing touches on the "Conquest game mode" along with the Conquest-flavored conversions of the maps. But when they're done with that, they're looking to address some of the more persistent complaints about the game, including:

• Clan support/private rooms/team chat
• Auto balancing on servers
• Continued support against stats exploits
• VoIP issue on PS3 (working with Sony on this)
• Squads might be split up when joining a server as a squad. This is due to team balancing in the games that are being joined, and usually resolves itself in round 2.

No promises, of course, but if you had an email drafted to jerks at DICE dot se bemoaning the lack of clan support, your finger hovering dangerously close to the send button, you can probably file it away for later.

[Via X3F]

Well, that's easy. While it's currently investigating a permanent solution, EA has advised "some" players of the Xbox 360 version of ragtag romp, Battlefield: Bad Company, to turn off their consoles should they experience online connection issues.

Oh, but you need to turn it back on approximately 20 minutes later. Therein lies the trick, an essential step if you're keen on blasting through walls and otherwise enjoying all those hard-earned weapons. We'll let you know once EA has sorted out the problem, like a good company.

Though gravelly voiced soldiers are always keen to point out the many ways in which war has changed, it certainly hasn't ceased being profitable, least of all in the realm of video games. DICE, developer of EA's popular Battlefield franchise, has confirmed to GamesIndustry.biz that it currently has five related titles in development. Executive producer for DICE, Ben Cousins, was quite right when he said that's "more than you expect."

With Battlefield: Bad Company out this week and the free-to-play Battlefield: Heroes already impressing industry pundits, we're left speculating about three (maybe more?) additional titles. According to Cousin's comments made at GDC Paris, one will be a traditional game for consoles, while another will be a joint effort with Neowiz, aimed at Korea. As for the third title? We're predicting Battlefield: Field of Battle, a turn-based card game for the iPhone. What say you?

Battlefield: Bad Company has had an unconventional pre-release, to put it kindly. There was the huge kerfuffle over pay-to-play weapons, then the "boycott" and then, an even more convoluted weapon distribution plan. But, if the early reviews are any indication, the game has come through it relatively unscathed, with critics heaping praise not only on the multiplayer but single-player modes as well.

• Game Informer (93/100): "The extreme polish evident in the final product makes it all worthwhile. Both single- and multiplayer shine - at long last redeeming DICE for the crappy bot-fests offline players had to endure in previous games in the series."

• GameSpy (90/100): "Battlefield: Bad Company may look like other FPSes on the market in terms of theme and graphics, but there are enough key gameplay differences to set it apart from the crowd. One could easily say that Bad Company expands the genre itself with its combination of great story, destructible environment and surprisingly deep single-mode multiplayer."

• IGN UK (86/100): "In spite of its sluggish opening, Battlefield: Bad Company goes on to produce one of the most entertaining first-person shooters since last year's Call of Duty 4. Bold and bright in tone, it's blockbuster fare that combines DICE's first-person expertise with a small sprinkling of innovation that's enough to ensure it's a perfect way to shoot the summer breeze."

After the New Games crown was sullied by Jimmy Threenames last week, Justin McElroy has pulled a Kerafyrm and awakened from his slumber, seething with rage. But, before the rampage could even begin in earnest, the beast has been soothed by the music of loads of new games.

You've got Battlefield: Bad Company, Alone in the Dark, Supreme Commander, Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath, Guitar Hero: On Tour and it's the middle of June! What's going on here? We don't know, but whatever it is, we hope it never ends.

In the immortal words of Matthew Wilder, it looks like EA isn't letting some early bad press for Battlefield: Bad Company break-a their stride. We've seen a veritable gaggle of promotional material for the controversial title as of late, including two recent trailers which clown on some other popular shooters. The first of which, seen above, parodies the unforgettable Gears of War trailer, and features an unnamed infantryman butchering Gary Jules' cover of the Tears for Fears classic downer "Mad World". The other (available after the break) somewhat mocks Rainbow Six's stealth tactics. It's not exactly uncharted territory, but we can always appreciate such Yankovician displays of friendly competition between developers.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Do you want to try Battlefield Bad Company without having to pre-order the game (which is currently the only way to demo it)? Do you have an Xbox 360? Our sister site X3F has managed to nab 100 demo codes and are giving away the first 50 today. Enter by 10:00pm Eastern tonight. The other 50 will be given away tomorrow. Click here to enter.

If you didn't nab a spot in the Battlefield: Bad Company beta and you weren't completely turned off by all the pay-for-weapons rigmarole, you'll be able to get an early taste of the game on June 5 when a demo goes live on PSN and Xbox Live.

But EA, adamant that there must at all times be division in the gaming populace, is giving early entry (like May 29 early) to those people who pre-order the game. Oh, and you'll also get the QBU88 Sniper Rifle. ... Anybody starting to long for the "I give you $50, you give me a game" days of yestergeneration?

[Via X3F]

We've gotten tips from a lot of you about the Sarcastic Gamer-fronted effort to boycott Battlefield: Bad Company, and we haven't posted about it until now for one simple reason: We don't get it. If you want to boycott a retail product, if you think that Battlefield: Bad Company isn't worth your $60 because content has been removed, there's a very easy way of dealing with that problem. Don't buy it. They're called market forces, and they work. If you need proof: How many times have you seen horse armor for sale since Oblivion tried it?

Do we like EA's idea of charging for individual weapons in an FPS, creating a gap (and it does despite what EA says) between the haves and have-nots? Of course not. But if you think the game is worth your money regardless, you should buy it and play it. If you don't want the extra guns, don't buy them. If that makes it less fun for you, don't buy their next game. It's as simple as that.

Sarcastic Gamer asked, "How, in good conscience, can EA take more money out of fan's pockets, who have already spent 60 bucks on the game?" Here's the answer: They don't have a conscience, they're a multibillion-dollar corporation that cares nothing for you. And it's not their job to care, it's their job to make money. It's your job to decide how to spend yours.

After initially seeing EA's explanation about its pay-to-play DLC weaponry in Battlefield: Bad Company on MTV's Multiplayer, it was time for a nice walk around the block to inhale some crisp spring air and exhale some vexation before sitting down to write about it. The publisher states that five of the DLC weapons in its upcoming FPS will be "free," and the other five will be bundled with the game's "Gold Edition." For gamers who don't want to buy the "Gold Edition," the weapons will be available to purchase through PSN and XBM -- no prices are currently attached to the weapons.

EA states that the pay-to-play weaponry in B:BC will not unbalance the game and that "more weapons offer players more choices but do not create an advantage/disadvantage for players who do not opt to buy new item." Wait, what? Paying extra money for weapons other players don't have doesn't change the game experience? We had hoped EA had given up on its dubious microtransactions, but we're sure consumers will vote using their wallets if they agree with EA's tactic.

EA hosted a special DICE event at GDC last week, showing off the various titles the Swedish developer has in the works. The first embargo to up and die covered the recently delayed Battlefield: Bad Company and, since we couldn't spend as much time as we'd have liked with the title, we've gathered videos and previews from some other outlets for you to enjoy. We do have some pictures of the swank event, hosted at San Francisco's Vessel Lounge, for you to peruse but let's jump right into the game, shall we?

Read – Battlefield: Bad Company Multiplayer Hands-On (GameSpot)
Read – Battlefield: Bad Company Preview (IGN)

Wait a minute, we're confused. We watched this entire trailer for Battlefield: Bad Company and saw not a single instance of shooting, radical explosions or particle effects. There was also no disembodied voice growling about how tough/what a rebel our character will be, nor were there any searing metal guitar solos. How are we supposed to know if we like the game or not?

All that's here is a clearly defined, well-written, well-acted character named Haggard who seems enamored with explosions. As we watched, we began to get the oddest sensation. We weren't sure, but we think that's what it's like when other emotions are engaged besides the emotion that likes to see things blown up. ... Yuck. We need a shower.