Battlefield 1943 on Xbox Live now, on PSN tomorrow

DICE has released Battlefield 1943 on Xbox LIVE Marketplace today, with its PlayStation Network launching tomorrow - both for a mere $15. Battlefield 1943 is essentially a redux of the popular team-based large-scale warfare game, Battlefield 1942 for home consoles and Windows. The game features all the wonderful combat on foot, in the air and on land of the original, but with streamlined play for Xbox Live and PSN, re-imagined classic maps and overall polish to make it appealing to a modern audience.

Battlefield 1943 also introduces two new modes that allow up to 24 players to compete across four classic WWII Battlefield maps: Wake Island, Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima and Coral Sea. These maps are inspired by the selfsame maps from the Battlefield 1942 game, but have been redesigned and reengineered using the DICE Frostbite engine allowing for more destructive environments and explosive situations. The free trial version will feature Wake Island and give players the freedom to choose from the full arsenal of weapons and vehicles on both sides of the battle, either the US Marines or Imperial Japanese Navy.

Another battleground, the Coral Sea map, will be unlocked as part of a worldwide community challenge, where players will work together to reach 43 million kills on both Xbox LIVE and the PlayStation Network. The official countdown begins on July 10, 2009 at 19:43 GMT.

Download the trial now on Xbox Live and get started or wait for it tomorrow on PSN. More info can be found at www.battlefield1943.com.