The Year that will be... 2012

It's that time of year, the time we set aside to speculate and perhaps even provoke one or two of you. What is 2012 going to be like? Here's our take.

Christmas Weekender

On the eve of the Christmas celebrations the team recounts memories of season past, and how they're spending their holidays.

Composer Interview: Jason Graves

"I honestly wasn't sure if they would allow string quartet music in a huge horror title, but fortunately they trusted me enough to let me try."

Spike VGAs: The Announcements

The Spike Video Game Awards aired this weekend, with a horde of new announcements, screens and trailers. We round up everything you need to know and see.

Skyrim: One Month On

"The best experiences we've had in Skyrim have probably been off the main trail, on side quests and just doing random stuff."

Gaming's Defining Moments - Bioshock

Our fifth piece in Gaming's Defining Moments takes us back four years to the first Bioshock title and the amazing plot twist it brings.

Gaming Wallpaper

We compile the best high-res artwork currently around for you to admire and download for your desktop, mobile device, tablet or gaming console.

Battlefield 3: Composer Interview

"We'd play different games, mute the sound and try out our own music sketches to different game situations and see what we thought worked the best."

Kitase on Final Fantasy XIII-2

Final Fantasy developer, and producer on Final Fantasy XIII-2, Yoshinori Kitase discusses the title's development as well as the franchise and its future.

The Skyrim Diaries: Week One

Skyrim's a huge world, and there's a lot to discover. We kept notes during our first week in the realm; of our findings, thoughts and interactions. This is our tale.

TGS 11: The state of fighting games

"If there is one genre where the Japanese still reign supreme and showed a lot of promise at Tokyo Game Show, it's the fighting genre."

Tokyo Game Show: Pictorial Review

A pictorial guide to Tokyo Game Show: GRTV documents the sights and scenes at TGS between interviews and gaming hands-on.

The Music of Space Marine: Track by Track

In an exclusive commentary, the composers of the Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine soundtrack talk us through their creation process for the game's score track by track.

The Games of Gamescom

Germany's about to spend a week getting hammered by some of the most exciting titles in the industry. We tackle the heavy-hitters and left field picks of Gamescom.

Best of Fall: Arkham City

"Why are we excited? One simple fact: three months before release, the game's finished. The studio is simply spending the time until launch polishing it to perfection."

Military Aid - Andy McNab and DICE

Author and former SAS operative Andy McNab has joined forced with Battlefield developers DICE. Gamereactor met with him to discuss Battlefield 3 and realism.

The Road to Gamescom

The doors to Gamescom open up in a week's time and we summarize what we might - and hope to - see at the convention down in Germany.

Media Molecule Interview

"When you have something that is a success you have to take it and improve it, but without breaking it."

Game Artwork: E3 Special

With great games comes great concept artwork. Our new series kicks off with a selection of the best gaming art coming out of E3 for your viewing pleasure.

Tomb Raider Interview: Karl Stewart

"There's an affinity with the character, of course, that people will tell you if you're breaking that. But there's also the feeling like you will get stale."

Dirt 3: The Soundtrack

To celebrate the release of Dirt 3, game composer Christian Stevenson explains the long-haul process necessary in putting together its soundtrack.

Creating the perfect game soundtack

We caught up with Dirt 3 composer Christian Stevenson to talk the dos and don'ts of licensed music in videogames. Here's eight commandments every game should follow.

Duke Nukem at BAFTA

Why does Duke work today? Would Gearbox go digital? Will we see sequels to Borderlands? Answers to all that (plus an awkward fist-bump) in sixteen chunks of Q&A goodness.

Codemasters on Dirt 3

"The sensation of driving a rally car through the technical stages and that gamble of touching a snow bank has really been captured..."

Hands-on: Sonic Generations

"There is a more solid definition of how much Sonic weighs and the force he speeds ahead, which results in more responsive controls."

Valve on Portal 2 (part 2)

In this second interview with the people behind Portal 2, we dig into the more technical side of things and chat with programmer Jeep Barnett.

Valve on Portal 2 (part 1)

Joshua Weier is the project lead for Portal 2 and we got to have a nice, long chat with him about how one of this year's most anticipated games came to be.

Human Head on Prey 2

"Why would you want to play Prey 2 online when there is Halo? We would rather make a really good single player adventure."

Sonic Generations interview

"The levels that you would have enjoyed, will be in the game and brought back to life and beautifully recreated in full HD. It's not just a rehash version."

Operation Raccoon City: What If?

"So, let's swing on that teaser's hook. Assume Leon bites the bullet. Because that'd be a real kick-in-the-teeth, rug-pulled-from under-you, "I see dead people" level of shock."

13 great digital titles for 2011

2011's digital road is paved with some brilliant titles worthy of both your time and money. Consider this your checklist for the best thirteen games on their way to PSN and XBLA.

Into the Sanctum of Slime

We shot a couple of questions to Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime producer Jonathan Moses.

Interview: Ridge Racer Unbounded

"The teaser trailer gives a taste of the game's mantra: "drive, destroy, dominate". That mantra summarises what we are doing. In addition to that, we have all sorts of cool stuff up our sleeves."

Dragon Age II's Mark Darrah

We visited Bioware a while ago and sat down with Mark Darrah, executive producer on Dragon Age II, to discuss the franchise and the changes they have made this time around.

Marvel Vs Capcom 3: The Secrets

Capcom's brawler is rammed full of secrets as well as nods to both universes. Get the knowledge right here as we break two worlds wide open in our comprehensive game guide.

Marvel Vs Capcom 3 Interview

Tailoring gods and working network codes: MvC3 Director Ryota Niitsuma talks achieving fighting perfection, vacations, and exactly why the hell Shuma-Gorath is back.

Batman: Arkham City

As we ready for the first gameplay footage of Rocksteady's sequel at this weekend's Spike Video Game Awards, we cover everything known about Arkham City so far.

Interview: Ian Livingstone

The industry legend talks Lara, the new Golden Age of Gaming, why UK needs less game journalists and more game designers, and that Panorama report.

Splash Damage on Brink

Brink is set for release early in 2011 and Gamereactor's Jonas Elfving phoned up senior designer Ed Stern to chat about Brink and The Ark...

Opinion: SSX's tricky new look

SSX's return might have long-term fans asking questioning its new moody look. But it's the only way the franchise can hope to return and succeed - BIG isn't always better.

Shifting gears with Shift 2: Unleashed

Slightly Mad Studios return with the sequel to Need for Speed: Shift. Racing nut Petter Hegevall visited the studio and gave Shift 2: Unleashed a spin.

The Weekly Opinion: Bizarre Business

Activision wants to close down or sell Bizarre Creations, while Viacom are looking to get rid off Harmonix. In our new weekly feature we discuss the price of losing independence.

Driving Paradise: Eden talk TDU2

With Hot Pursuit roaring up the UK charts and Gran Turismo 5's imminent release, we talk to Eden Games about making its mark in the racing genre with next year's Test Drive Unlimited 2.

First look at L.A. Noire

We've seen L.A. Noire's Cole Phelps work his magic in a case involving the death of a young actress. Read on for our first look impressions...

Hands-on with Dirt 3

Petrolhead Jesper Karlsson paid Codemasters a visit and came back with a big grin on his face and impressions from Dirt 3.

Growing pains: Square talk FFXIV

The MMORPG's creators talk ahead of the title's first update, addressing the game's flaws and the series' future.

Duke Nukem Forever

Duke Nukem is coming back. For real this time. We sent our Finnish writer Eerik to play Duke Nukem Forever, the game we all thought was dead and buried.

Uchiyama on Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom

Our Italian editor Lorenzo Mosna met up with the producer of Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom, Daisuke Uchiyama, in Milan recently.