Valve 'jumping in' to hardware development
Citing frustration with the market, Valve has opened a job listing for an industrial designer, hinting that the company may bring out its own hardware box eventually.
Valve has decided that if it wants a job done right, it will just have to do the job itself. A job listing seeking industrial designers has confirmed the company is working on its own hardware, and it even expresses some reasoning behind the decision. Specifically, Valve says it is "frustrated" by the lack of innovation in the hardware space.
"Valve is traditionally a software company," reads the listing (via CVG). "We're frustrated by the lack of innovation in the computer hardware space though, so we're jumping in. Even basic input, the keyboard and mouse, haven't really changed in any meaningful way over the years. There's a real void in the marketplace, and opportunities to create compelling user experiences are being overlooked."
The listing requests more than six years of experience, a degree in industrial design, and confidence in 2D and 3D design visualization tools.
This news comes only a few months after rumors surfaced of a Steam Box, which Valve denied. This is also coming very near the launch of Windows 8, which Valve boss Gabe Newell has called a "catastrophe" for its moves toward a more closed platform. The company recently revealed it has been researching wearable computers.
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Steve Watts posted a new article, Valve 'jumping in' to hardware development.
Citing frustration with the market, Valve has opened a job listing for an industrial designer, hinting that the company may bring out its own hardware box eventually.-
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Great news!! I hope it is more than a controller design though. We all can agree that consoles are holding gaming back, unfortunately, making better/different hardware is not really going to make a difference if the game engines remain optimized for 9 year old console hardware. If anything I would love three choices for video card manufacturers, and god damn I cannot stress how much I have creative sound cards.
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Interesting...
I hope they lean more towards peripherals. I'm not sure that I'd be interested in a console/all-in-one PC, even from Valve. It'd be nice to be able to buy a keyboard and mouse that don't look like they were designed by a 14 year old, though. They should also make a VR headset and have it ready in time for Half-Life 3, kthx. -
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stuff from valve (that aren't actual games) tends to take a while to get off the ground.
like usually the thing they have is kinda shitty for several months to a year+, but then they fix it. greenlight is the latest, great example of that. that thing is super rough right now, but it has the potential to be awesome, if they fix it up.
the thing is I wonder if they can afford to do that with, say, a mass-market console (assuming that's what they're doing). my guess is they're gonna do a console that has yearly hardware/model updates, like mobile phones/tablets. -
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I doubt Valve would pull a Microsoft. "Here's Halo 2 for the PC but it only works on Directx11. Oh and directx11 will only be on our new OS which you have to also buy. Even though Halo 2 does not take advantage of any DX11 effects. Why did we do it this way? Because Microsoft supports PC gaming. That is why."
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Sounds like they're going to bring their patented controller to life --- AND IT'S ABOUT TIME
I can't wait to get my hands on it. It will open up a much better foundation to a range of gameplay compared to what we've seen this generation on consoles.
I welcome a future gamepad with modular configs.
Dual analog for sports / driving
Analog + Trackball for FPS & RTS games
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In a stunning about face today, Valve announced that, effective immediately, the Steam service is to be shut down and all game development ceased, in order to focus the company's efforts on creating a line of colorfully themed pet headware. Asked for further comment, Gabe Newell said "Look, we're going to do what we love. I've been building towards this day my entire life. We've reached a 9 figure licensing agreement with the Dr Seuss estate for our first line of animal friendly clothing, which we've colorfully named 'Cats in Hats'. You'll be able to pick them up at your local pet emporium within the month."
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I call bullshit. In my head, all this translates to is "Hey look at me, I'm Valve, I've got a big cock, pay attention to us and innovation or we're coming after you M$ft"
We all know that at the end of the day anything they make has to have a big sticker that says "Compatible with Windows 8" and there is nothing they can do about it.
Who are they really going after? when it comes to peripherals, there are tons of controllers and devices for the PC. Newell can feed his fan boys all the "hurrah!" he wants but I call bullshit.
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