In depth: GDC 2015: What we want to see

Can't wait for GDC 2015!

GDC 2014 was full of surprises and we're hoping GDC 2015 will be too. It's still early but the panel schedule is filling up fast and it'll be March before you know it.

To recap, the Game Developer's Conference features over 400 lectures, panels, tutorials and round-table discussions with speakers from all over the gaming space.

The GDC Expo is part of the conference and simultaneously highlights tools, platforms and services used by game devs. The conference also is filled with indie hopefuls and occasionally, major breaking news.

Read on for what we want to see at the next GDC.

Speaking of surprises and breaking news, Sony unveiled Project Morpheus, last year. Its virtual reality headset has stayed under the radar lately despite making demo appearances here and there.

We haven't heard a lot from the Morpheus development front though there's still a couple of months before GDC. It's possible Sony will bring something to the VR table at CES 2015, but if not, expect to see something new in March. Perhaps the next build or enhanced latency experience.

Check out the video below to see our last Morpheus demo.

Last we heard, there were quite a few Steam Machines in the running, plus more recently announced Asus machines … but so far Alienware has been the most vocal about its Alpha - which will start shipping pretty soon in November.

Valve also promised the Steam Controller and SteamOS in 2015 after announcing a delay.

Again, we're hoping more machines (and Steam parts) will be ready come CES time, but if not, GDC should be a guarantee for a spotting.

We didn't see new hardware from Microsoft at last year's GDC, but it didn't leave without presenting something exciting. DirectX 12 - a new API that will allow full use of most modern graphics cards - was announced prior to the conference and then discussed in detail during Microsoft's panel. The program still isn't out yet and is expected for a 2015 holiday release, but we'll probably hear more about it during GDC 2015.

Aside from the API, maybe we'll see Microsoft throw in a VR device of its own? The company definitely has the capabilities but has yet to reveal anything. It's also not like the Xbox One parent is shy of hardware outside of consoles - the Microsoft Band is evidence of this. Then again, the surprise wearable announcement was definitely later to the smartband game but is slowly gaining traction as an intriguing, powerful piece of tech. Perhaps that's what we can expect if (when) Microsoft finally unleashes its virtual reality contender.

It seems pretty obvious that VR will yet again dominate the gaming hardware scene. This means we're expecting something big from the biggest face of virtual reality: the Oculus Rift.

Mountains of rumors have been circulating that the Rift will finally hit consumer stands in 2015. This makes GDC the perfect stage to show off the latest iteration of the VR headset. We saw the Crystal Cove version, or SDK2, debut last year and we're hoping Oculus pulls out another version next year.

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