We’ve previously covered Valve’s interest in wearable tech but more recent information has come to light with a job posting seeking a hardware engineer. The position would be responsible for researching and possibly developing new game controllers to enhance the existing gaming experience. Valve is quick to state that they are not looking to develop me-too mice and keyboards, but instead, want to focus on new and innovative gaming experiences.

Up until this point, the rumors on the internet mostly dealt with the theory that Valve would be making a “steam box”, a sort of open-source platform capable of running steam, and the games on steam, in some predictable way. It would essentially be a PC-as-a-console concept. This minimum-spec computer would be the target of games in production, much in the same way that the Xbox 360 and PS3 are fixed resource computers targeted by current video game developers. This standardization would be much more agile, as PCs are infinitely more upgradable than consoles. What this would mean to gaming at large is smoothing out the generational gaps in game fidelity and technology. As the current crop of consoles have been holding back PC gaming for some time now, this idea is an exciting proposition. It is also likely not true.

As if the rumormill didn’t have enough to go on, comes a possible third clue in Valve’s recent news headlines: Tim Cook, Apple’s current CEO, was seen on Valve’s campus. Internet sites quickly blasted out rumors that Apple and Valve would be teaming up to compete against Google’s recently unveiled “Project Glass”. While a long-shot, it certainly is a possibility. What is more likely, in other site’s opinions, is the possible integration of Steam in Apple’s new line of smart HDTVs. Valve and Apple have a cordial history, although nothing to date has materialized.

Will it be some futuristic “termination vision” or a mundane mouse? Only time will tell, and with Valve time, it’s certainly going to be later rather than sooner.