It seems Amazon’s plans to get heavily involved in the gaming industry are finally taking shape and are coming to fruition. Some leaked pictures show that Amazon has a gaming controller ready for an upcoming Amazon game console. In truth, Amazon’s console is more likely to be a set-top box combined with a gaming console, that can be used both for media viewing, as well as gaming.

This is going to be an Android based game console, and it’s going to have its own controller, as seen in the leaked images. The theory that Amazon will be making a huge push towards becoming a competitive player in the gaming industry has been emphasized by a number of events. Most significantly, Amazon has purchased the developer Double Helix back in February. Double Helix worked with Microsoft on the Killer Instinct reboot and more recently, it has worked with Capcom on rebooting a series called Strider, a game that appeared on both new generation consoles, the PC, as well as on the last-gen Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

Amazon does huge amount of business in the consumer electronics world and has strong relationships with manufacturers. As a consequence, there could be some partnerships in the works between Amazon and developers, in order to bring future technologies to the gaming world.

Amazon could compete with the likes of Microsoft, Sony or Valve. Amazon has a lot of potential in any case, and the company has the necessary resources to make an impact in the gaming industry, an industry that undoubtedly has huge financial potential. Gamers are somewhat skeptical about what Amazon can possibly bring to the table to set them apart. It has become pretty obvious that Amazon’s future console won’t be a top-tier gaming console and will instead focus on casual gaming. The controller looks rather flimsy and poorly designed, but it’s also possible that it’s going to see massive changes until launch.

A lot of people are raising eyebrows when it comes to an Android-based console too. The Ouya instantly comes to mind, and it’s doubtful a similar console could make a significant impact in the market. Still, we’re willing to give Amazon the benefit of the doubt, and competition is never bad when gamers are concerned. More options and lower prices come to mind. While Amazon’s console probably won’t be able to compete realistically with Sony’s PS4 or Microsoft’s Xbox One, it’s possible that the Amazon set-top box and controller could become a direct competitor to Valve’s Steam Machines. We’ll have to wait and see what Amazon truly has in store for us, and things will probably become a lot clearer by the end of the year.