With just hours to go until the official release of Battlefield 3 in Australia, EA's highly anticipated military shooter has jumped the gun early. Some retail stores are now selling the game early, after retailer Target at Chatswood sold the game earlier today (as first reported by Kotaku AU). Megaretailer JB Hi-Fi has now followed suit, sending an email to all their retailers telling them to start selling the game.

　　GameSpot AU contacted staff at Target in Chatswood and was told that the game was no longer on sale until tomorrow. Regardless, the game is now widely available around the country, although stock seems to be a bit haphazard. A JB Hi-Fi employee told GS AU that while they've received stock for both the PC and PlayStation 3 versions of the game, Xbox 360 stock isn't slated to arrive until tomorrow morning.

　　A source close EB Games Australia told GS AU that while they weren't currently selling Battlefield 3, they were sending out employees to scout the situation. According to EB Games' company policy, the retailer has to wait until they have physical evidence that another retailer has broken the release date before they are allowed to start selling the title. The source also confirmed that the initial leak came from Chatswood Target where one copy was sold before EA intervened and pulled the game from sale. At this stage, it's uncertain how the leak will affect EB Games' planned midnight launches around Australia.

　　GAME Australia also confirmed the street date via Twitter, announcing that its midnight launches are still slated to go ahead tonight despite the early launch. The tweet also indicated that it was looking to start selling the game early.

　　UPDATE: EB Games Australia and GAME have both announced that they're now selling Battlefield 3 early. Selected midnight launch events are still happening, but you should call the store before you head out.

　　You need a javascript enabled browser to watch videos.

　　Click To Unmute

　　Battlefield 3 Video Review

　　Tears Of The Kingdom Is A Technological Marvel

　　Resident Evil 4 Is A Perfect RemakeHow Alan Wake II Made Me Face My Fear of Horror GamesGameSpot's Top 10 Games of 2023Thompson: The Pop Culture Icon’s Strange Legacy - LoadoutFirearms Expert’s FAVORITE Weapons Of 2023State Of Gaming Handhelds In 2023Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Ichiban Kasuga Character Spotlight TrailerHow Lies of P Cracked the Souls GenreLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Chitose Fujinomiya Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Eric Tomizawa Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Kazuma Kiryu Character Spotlight Trailer

　　Share

　　LinkEmbed

　　Size:640 × 360480 × 270

　　Start at: End at: Autoplay Loop

　　Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?

　　Sign up or Sign in now!

　　Please use a html5 video capable browser to watch videos.

　　This video has an invalid file format.

　　00:00:00

　　HTML5

　　Auto HD High Low

　　Report a problem

　　Sorry, but you can't access this content!

Please enter your date of birth to view this video

　　By clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's

　　Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

　　enter