Both Microsoft and Google have made quiet announcements highlighting a push into PC gaming.

Microsoft’s Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer reckons Windows 8, will be designed with gaming in mind and released in 2012. Microsoft did some hilarious back-pedalling from that position so you can decide who you believe, the CEO of the company or the company.

You can get some sense of where Microsoft is going with gaming below. The video is an internal release showing the concepts and principles of what the Windows Gaming Experience (WGX) team hopes to accomplish. This likely ties in with the changes being made to Windows LIVE. Microsoft have also clearly seen the potential of the virtual items market.

Google isn’t sitting still either with their new emphasis on Chrome Web Store to act as the gaming marketplace. A position which slots in nicely with their Chrome OS moves. I have looked at this store but there’s a very long way to go before they outdo even the likes of Apple’s money machine.

So PC gaming is returning but it’s with a twist. More social, more browser and web focused. No doubt Steam will get in this too at some point as it’s already halfway there. However this needs great games and frankly Farmville won’t cut it. A lot of opportunity there for Indy devs who can wind through this maze.

Direct2Drive has been offloaded by IGN onto a company called GameFly which specialise in game rentals. Direct2Drive recently experimented with rentals which was badly done in my view so it looks like game rentals via digital download is where Direct2Drive may now head.

I have several games there myself and this news doesn’t make me feel comfortable.