New game technologies are sprouting practically every day, even as Microsoft and Sony are just about to launch their brand new video game consoles.
Above: Sean Hollister
When the new generation of video game consoles arrive this holiday season, they won’t be alone. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One will compete with smartphones and tablets, with set-top-boxes, and with a new wave of personal computers touting virtual reality and motion control. Just over the horizon lies the Steam Box and the potential of
Linux as a game platform, while cloud gaming suggests that gamers might eventually not need a box at all. VR? AR? 4K? 3D? We’ll sit down with two industry veterans to try to predict which technologies will make waves this generation, and which will fade away.
We’ll evaluate the future of game technologies at our GamesBeat 2013 conference in a three-way session. The event is Oct. 29-Oct. 30 at the Sofitel Hotel in Redwood City, Calif.
Here are our panelists:
- Mark Rein, the vice president at Epic Games
- Tony Tamasi, the senior vice president of content and technology at Nvidia
The moderator is Sean Hollister [right], one of the founding editors of The Verge, a website that covers technology, culture, art, and science. He primarily covers gadgets, games, chips, computers, and other cutting-edge technology.
This session fits well with our theme. We’ve entered the Battle Royal, an era where many firms are vying for gamers’ time. Apple and Google want to get in the living room and are waging war against Nintendo and Sony. Microsoft already has an edge in living room entertainment with its Xbox Live service, but it wants a piece of mobile as well. It’s a confusing time for gamemakers. Where should they take their titles? Which platforms will provide the best experiences? Who will make them the most money?
We’ll have a steady drumbeat of speakers as we get closer to GamesBeat 2013′s October date. We expect to have more than 80 of the gaming industry’s best lined up for our fifth annual event.
Each year, GamesBeat follows a big trend. In 2009, we focused on how “All The World’s a Game,” with the explosion of games on the global stage. In 2010, GamesBeat@GDC focused on “Disruption 2.0.” In 2011, our theme was “Mobile Games Level Up,” investigating the busy intersection of games and mobile technology. In 2012, we explored “The Crossover Era,” the time when so many big game companies and startups were transforming themselves by expanding from one market to the next. Our judges, meanwhile, are already busy picking the finalists in the Who’s Got Game Innovation Showdown for the best game startup.
As companies adapt to change, we’re witnessing disruption, adaptation, consolidation, innovation, and the arrival of big money. We’re talking billions of dollars that are at stake. We’re expecting 400 notables from throughout the game industry — social, mobile, online, and console. Please join us.
Thanks to the following industry leaders for supporting GamesBeat 2013 as sponsors: Ad2Games, AppLift, GamesAnalytics, NativeX, Renren Games, and Tapjoy as Gold Sponsors; Flurry, GameHouse, Kontagent, Playnomics, Storm8, Totally Apps and LifeStreet Media as Silver Sponsors; AppFlood, Twitch and Slashdot as Event Sponsors; Akamon Entertainment, Arkadium, OnLive and Virtuix as contributing sponsors. If you’d like to become a sponsor, please send a message to sponsors@venturebeat.com.