Move over Tom Clancy. EA today revealed that a new novel based on the upcoming shooter Battlefield 3 will be making its way to stores alongside the game in October.
Battlefield 3: The Russian is written by consultant and former SAS operator, Andy McNab along with co-author Peter Grimsdale. McNab does have experience as a writer as he is best known for his best-seller Bravo Two Zero, which was apparently based on his own experiences. It’s also inspired by how he received the Distinguished Conduct Medal.
In Battlefield 3, the game’s story will be told by Henry Blackburn, a Marine Staff Sergeant. His story will unfold as he attempts to stop an attack on New York City by the PLR. As he works his way to stopping the attack he has a series of flashbacks where players jump into the roles of different characters, one such character is the star of The Russian, Dmitri “Dima” Mayakovsky.
Dima is a legend to his comrades. Though he is in his later years of his career, he continues to do whatever it takes to complete his mission and is referred to as a “cleaner”. From what we understand, the story of the book will pick up where the Dima section of the game leaves off.
Battlefield 3: The Russian is expected to ship in North America from Grand Central Publishing and in Europe from Orion Publishing on October 25th, 2011.
As a fan of the series as well as the shooter genre all together I’m looking forward to playing Battlefield 3. The idea of reading about one of the characters in their own story also has a lot of potential. With so many franchises like Mass Effect and Rage taking the written word route, why not this one as well? They definitely have the fanbase for it.