At GDC 2019, Google will host a keynote presentation where it will unveil its vision for "the future of gaming," which is widely rumored to be a new video game console. While speculation is ongoing, Google has now confirmed some special guests for the event.
On Twitter earlier today, the official Google Developers account confirmed that Ubisoft and id Software will be a part of the upcoming event. Amy Hennig, who worked at Uncharted developer Naughty Dog and then at EA, will also be a special guest as well as Crystal Dynamics, the developer of Tomb Raider and Square Enix's Avengers game.
The attendee confirmation follows the announcement that Jade Raymond, who has worked at Ubisoft and EA, has joined Google in a vice presidential role. The fact that Google is working with so many major game studios and industry veterans has many feeling hopeful about whatever it is working on.
Whether Google's big gaming announcement is a console as all of the evidence suggests, or whether it's an extension of its Project Stream streaming service, the company isn't doing it on a small-scale. Although it's unclear whether Google will be developing new games with these firms or just bringing these company's games to its platform, it also shows that industry figures have confidence in the company's plans.
These announced Developer Days attendees may not be the only companies that Google is working with. A report published earlier this month suggested that Google is working with Sonic the Hedgehog studio Sega and another report from last year, which leaked Google's plans to build a games console, also confirmed that the company has been holding meetings with game companies at industry events.
Google has the resources and the talent to do something surprising in the gaming space. Google already poses a threat to PlayStation and Xbox with Project Stream (Sony and Microsoft have their own game streaming platforms) and now it could rival them on hardware too. If its console is as innovative as the teasers would suggest and if it really does represent the future of gaming, then the next console generation could be about to get very interesting.