Whether or not Valve are actually an evil, Cthulhu-worshiping version of Santa's Workshop, it's true that they're up to some pretty exciting things these days. Now Engadget reports that Valve is looking to publicly demo their upcoming hardware efforts as early as 2013.
Internal beta tests are already underway, and a variety of the team's prototypes are available in the office for other Valve employees to tool around with. The next step is getting prototypes into gamers hands — [Valve hardware engineer Jeri Ellsworth, above,] says Valve already has a production line for short runs, making a beta possible — and iterating on design before launch. As for how the beta will be handled, she posits it'll be tied to Steam in some way, but no logistics are anywhere near nailed down.
Iiiiinteresting. Ellsworth goes on to note that this will not be a beta of the company's wearable computing prototypes, which are still "two to five years" down the road. As for what it will be, Ellsworth is keeping mum, only to say the immediate goals for the hardware division are "To make Steam games more fun to play in your living room." This seems to go hand-in-hand with the recent release of Steam's Big Picture Mode, and a general industry-wide push for a comprehensive home entertainment center.
Via Engadget.
