Xbox 360 Version Of Battlefield 3 Will Play In Standard Definition If Not Installed

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Are you ready folks? Battlefield 3 is just a mere six days away! This is a game that gamers have been waiting for all year, due in no small part to the amazing visuals we’ve seen so far. However, if you own an Xbox 360 and aren’t planning on installing Battlefield 3 onto your hard drive, you won’t be seeing those visuals.

Nope, instead copies of Battlefield 3 that aren’t installed will only play in standard definition. That’s because the Xbox 360 version will come with a texture pack that won’t be present unless the game is installed, forcing those without a hard drive to either buy one or go without high resolution textures. Battlefield 3 producer Patrick Bach sat down with Videogamer and explained why DICE has to make standard-res the default setting on the Xbox 360 version:

The thing with the 360 is that you need to be able to give consumers a game where you don’t have to install it on a hard drive, because there are 360s without a hard drive. So we need to give you the option of installing it, rather than just demanding it. You could call it a ‘standard-def’ version for the 360 if you don’t have a hard drive.

For those of you currently torn between clearing out your hard drive to make space for Battlefield 3 and just sucking it up and playing in standard definition, Bach says that the difference between uninstalled and installed copies is definitely noticable:

It does make a difference, yes, absolutely. The whole engine is based around streaming textures, streaming terrain and a lot of other content.

Of course, the kicker here is that many 360s don’t come with hard drives, so for those that had their heart set on playing Battlefield 3 in high definition, the cost of Battlefield 3 could end up coming close to $200.

Where do you fall? Do you have plenty of room on your hard drive to install Battlefield 3, or will you have to buy one of those hideously overprice hard drives? Take to the comments section below and sound off!