Valve: Yeah, We're Developing Hardware Now

[DoctorFinger]

A job posting on Valve's website has reignited rumors that the PC gaming juggernaut is looking to get into the console market in some way. They've posted a job listing for an electronics engineer, and the job description sure seems like it's for a new consumer hardware device.

For years, Valve has been all about writing software that provides great gameplay experiences. Now we’re developing hardware to enhance those experiences, and you can be a key part of making that happen. Join our highly motivated team that’s doing hardware design, prototyping, testing, and production across a wide range of platforms. We’re not talking about me-too mice and gamepads here – help us invent whole new gaming experiences.

Most people seem to think this is another bit of evidence that Valve really is, despite their firm denials, working on a console of sorts. I'm not so sure. I wonder if this job listing may be related to this story from last year, where Valve's Gabe Newell talks up the possibilities of integrating biometrics into games. What if this is that theoretical biometric reader? That could fit the bill of being a "whole new gaming experience", more so in many ways than a SteamBox would. Especially since it is being developed to function across "a wide range of platforms". Frankly the idea of a biometric reader for games is much more interesting than playing Steam games on the big screen in my living room.

Sources - Engadget; RPS

[Narradisall]

Fuck you Doc.

I saw "Valve: Yeah, We're developing..." and came in hoping for Half Life 3!

#Edit - Still, I'll be interested to see how a console works out for them, it seems like a really odd choice to me. Will it have steam? Steam sales? How much of the library atm is cross platform? It's a leap to break into the big Trinity of consoles.

[Spigot]

It will be an implant that interfaces directly to your brain.

[Narradisall]

Maybe they'll go a different route and make bio-electronic hardware. They can shape it like a headcrab.

[Reverant]

Originally Posted by Spigot

It will be an implant that interfaces directly to your brain.

The early version will feature a "bug" where blinking while connected to the Steam Store purchases whatever you're looking at. After an initial surge of protest, gamers will eventually acquiesce and wonder why they ever disliked Blink Buy! in the first place.

Edit: The Summer/Winter sales will feature "In the Blink of a Buy!" deals, where awesome deals flash on the screen for less than a second and those gamers with quick lids will score great bargains on their favorite titles.

[TheKeck]

My money is on the biometric controller.

[MagGnome]

Yeah, this is almost certainly for the biometric controllers that Valve has been thinking about for some time. It's not going to be a "console".

[DoctorFinger]

But it's fun to look at all the major gaming sites who posted "LOL Valve Really is Making a Console!!1!" headlines this morning.

[PathMaster]

Biometric controller, would allow horror games to not scare me as much!

Jokes aside, I wonder what applications they would have in mind for a biometric interface? I still like the idea of a Steam Box, just not sure how, if it all, it would be feasible.

[quidmonkey]

[Reverant]

Originally Posted by quidmonkey

Oooh, it comes with a wang clip!

[DoctorFinger]

Originally Posted by PathMaster

Biometric controller, would allow horror games to not scare me as much!

Jokes aside, I wonder what applications they would have in mind for a biometric interface? I still like the idea of a Steam Box, just not sure how, if it all, it would be feasible.

The pacing of a horror game is the first thing that comes to mind, but Newell had a great example in the old article I linked.

One, once you start getting this data you find that your ideas of how you would use it in order to [simplify] things like make the director more sophisticated, those work really well. The thing that sort of surprised us was how much sharing that data in multiplayer games impacted the social experience. This was not something we were expecting and it’s the sort of reason you like to invest in these kinds of research efforts is it’s not only the things you expect it’s the things that catch you by surprise. So, we had a debugging tool where we were monitoring everybody's state and it wasn’t intended to change the game, it was intended to make sure the hardware was working. So you’d be sitting and you’d be playing Left 4 Dead and you could see the other people’s -- the specific term we use was arousal state, and that was measuring a specific set of things and filtering in a certain set of ways -- but you could see the arousal state and when you were playing competitively we found that people were incredibly aggressive towards highly aroused players on the opposing team and were very defensive about highly aroused players on their own team. In other words, it was changing how people were feeling about the other people they were playing, and this was a group of developers with what they thought this was a debugging aid, and it sort took us a while to recognize this phenomenon; it wasn’t intentional, it wasn’t something we were looking for, and it was something we were joking about and somebody sort of said ‘Well, rather than it being funny that we were all ganking Mike, that actually is an interesting phenomenon from a design perspective’.

Think about a game that can dynamically alter the flow of difficulty of enemies in real time based on your heart rate or GSR. Or what about using it as a lie detector when making dialogue choices? Maybe in a future Mass Effect you'll be propositioned by the party member which engenders the most enthusiastic physiological response.

Think about the marriage of a biometric reader with an advanced Kinect-like system. A game which can not only track the movement of your eye, but also measure pupil dilation.

(BTW, I think the most likely form this would take is either a controller - which would take readings from your palms & fingers - or a snug bracelet. The Nintendo vitality sensor would be a pain in the ass to wear while gaming)

[Yeti2005]

I want Valve to release the 10 foot interface or whatever they call it. I enjoy playing games on my PC through my TV but it's really hard to start see sometimes.

[Purple Santa]

Originally Posted by MagGnome

Yeah, this is almost certainly for the biometric controllers that Valve has been thinking about for some time. It's not going to be a "console".

I just imagine you getting acid reflux every time you have to type the word "console"

Still, if Valve really did make a console...the fun it would be to see your reaction

[PathMaster]

Originally Posted by DoctorFinger

The pacing of a horror game is the first thing that comes to mind, but Newell had a great example in the old article I linked.Think about a game that can dynamically alter the flow of difficulty of enemies in real time based on your heart rate or GSR. Or what about using it as a lie detector when making dialogue choices? Maybe in a future Mass Effect you'll be propositioned by the party member which engenders the most enthusiastic physiological response.

Think about the marriage of a biometric reader with an advanced Kinect-like system. A game which can not only track the movement of your eye, but also measure pupil dilation.

(BTW, I think the most likely form this would take is either a controller - which would take readings from your palms & fingers - or a snug bracelet. The Nintendo vitality sensor would be a pain in the ass to wear while gaming)

Ahh, I vaguely remember that. That would be interesting to see games use that info to different degrees and especially in different genres.

Strategy game decides to send an enemy rush when you reach a point of calm. FPS slows the enemy rush as your heart rate starts to spike.

[TheKeck]

I think of the chances for exploiting the system. Start jogging in place to make the game easier!

[Superman's Dead]

Or just not wearing the damn thing because it creeps me out

[MosBen]

Assuming these sensors would be wireless, I'm interested in how a game would change if I attached the sensors to my cats.

[RandoM51]

Are they hiring physicists too? Maybe they're working on Portal guns.

[MagGnome]

Originally Posted by Yeti2005

I want Valve to release the 10 foot interface or whatever they call it. I enjoy playing games on my PC through my TV but it's really hard to start see sometimes.

Big Picture Mode is coming "soon".

Originally Posted by Purple Santa

I just imagine you getting acid reflux every time you have to type the word "console"

Still, if Valve really did make a console...the fun it would be to see your reaction

I actually vomit a little every time I come across that word.