UPDATE: Premium details also unveiled

DICE have just announced that an open Beta for Battlefield 4 will launch in October for both PS3 and Xbox 360 – and that there’ll be plenty of incentives to get involved with the Premium programme this time around.

The Premium options will be available much earlier this time with players able to join up for an additional $50 (regional pricing TBC). This will give you access to five expansion packs in China Rising, Second Assault, Naval Strike, Dragon’s Teeth and Final Stand. Signing up for membership will get you access two weeks ahead of everyone else too. These packs will be released sporadically between December and Summer next year.

Here are some details on each pack:

• Battlefield 4 Second Assault – Includes four fan-favorite Battlefield 3™ maps now re-imagined with the power of Frostbite™ 3. Available first on Xbox One.
• Battlefield 4 China Rising – Players fight for dominance across the vast and majestic Chinese mainland. Available December 2013.
• Battlefield 4 Naval Strike – Experience dynamic ocean combat as the Chinese armada takes the fight to the sea. Available Spring 2014.
• Battlefield 4 Dragon’s Teeth – The US strikes back engaging in all-out urban warfare. Available Summer 2014.
• Battlefield 4 Final Stand – Bring the war to its epic conclusion. Available Summer 2014.

Additionally, members will be given regular packs of customisation options like camos, dogtags, emblems and so on. Twelve Battlepacks will also be included. Battlepacks? EA explained them as:

“Battlefield 4 Battlepacks add an all-new layer of persistence and an exciting element of chance to the multiplayer progression system inBattlefield 4. Through the course of a player’s multiplayer career, they will receive packs containing random combinations of new camos, dog tags, knives, XP boosts, and gun attachments. In addition to what players will earn in-game through normal play, Battlefield 4 Premiummembers will receive the 12 bonus Battlefield 4 Battlepacks.”

For anyone concerned about picking up the game on PS3 or PS4 or alternatively on 360 /Xbone, your Premium membership and current stats are transferable between the generations of console should you want to upgrade after a while.