The annual Consumer Electronics Show, CES, is already underway in Las Vegas and everything from computers to smartphones is on display. Also at the show are a few promising specimens in the field of video games. The highlight seems to be on PC gaming here in 2013 and a look at the list of new tech on the horizon will make PC gamers minds start coveting and your wallet start aching. Here’s some of the most promising things on the horizon for gamers from the CES.
Turtle Beach has some new high performance headphones. The MLG has recognized many of Turtle Beache’s equipment as top notch and has even collaborated on one of their new models the Ear Force Z Seven. In addition to a focus on PC gaming there also is an emphasis on cross-compatibility at the show. The Z Seven is compatible with PC’s, Mac’s, Xbox 360, and PS3. Another model, the Ear Force PX22 can be used with portables like the PS Vita, Nintendo DS, tablets, and smartphones.
Nvidia has a mobile gaming device going under the codename “Project SHIELD”. It looks like a game controller with a screen on it. The real interesting thing about the mobile device is that it allows you to stream games from your PC. Using Android and Nvidia technology the screen quality has been praised by major game companies. The device will be compatible with Steam utilizing big picture mode as a controller and allowing access to players full steam library. Players can also download Android games straight to the device. Estimated to be released in the second quarter of the year.
Favi has an Android based dual-core gaming projector called the A4. It two HDMI ports, three USB ports, one VGA and one composite input. It fully supports digital streaming. Support for GooglePlay gives access to Apps and streaming media. Screen mirroring and multi touch allows the projector to be used for more than just gaming. With a resolution of 720P and 16GB of internal memory this projector will be at the top of the market for gaming when it’s released in April for $999.
Valve brings perhaps the most exciting thing to CES, a new console. Named the Piston, the console will utilize Steams Big Picture feature and can access the Steam cloud and library. Rumors of the new console have been circulating for a while but perhaps the unwelcome changes to Microsoft brought around by Windows 8 gave the push for Valve to operate primarily from a console instead of PC. The console is actually being developed by Xi3 with financial backing from Valve. The system is going to be as tiny as an OUYA but is still deep in development and will look like a whole new animal by the time it finally reaches the masses.
Lenovo has a new coffee table sized computer coming out and Alienware has a monstrous new hardcore gaming rig. Clearly cross-compatibility and PC gaming is the hot area for growth this year. For sure this new equipment will cost a pretty penny but whether they will be released any time near their estimated release date is anyone’s guess.
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