Steam Dev Days: Valve announces its own developer conference

Valve is holding its own game developer conference in January, as a way for developers and studios to meet the Valve team, and participate in roundtable discussions and attend lectures. Steam Dev Days will run from January 15-16, 2014, at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle, and will give developers access to the Steam team, test-drive SteamOS, and prototype Steam Machines and Steam Controllers. Notably, this is an "off the record" event for developers only, as Valve says that it is looking to create a relaxed environment in which studios can share designs and industry expertise. Apart from discussing what Valve is currently up to, the various lectures will also delve into a wide range of topics, from game economies to VR, Linux/OpenGL and user-generated content. A full list of the sessions, speakers and schedules is due to be released soon. Registration appears rather limited. Those developers who want to attend must first receive a registration code in their email, which will then allow them to register for a pass at the conference for $95. All the information on the conference can be found on the official website.