Here is some interesting piece of news directly from the Steam database! Someone spotted a little button there, saying "Steam Trading Card Beta Access" and the net is full of speculations about it. Here are some of the most popular and one of my own:

Some people think it may mean the implementation of card games into Steam, with the trading component being independent in a way, allowing the players to trade cards through an external platform. This would sure be neat, but the lack of any info regarding such plans makes it unlikely.

Others guess that Valve may be making a TCG of their own, with their games' characters. "GLaDOS taps itself, dealing 3 damage to Gordon Freeman"? Well, interesting and quite Valve-like, but still, no traces leading that way.

The last story is based on some evidence, with a Steam user digging up this post. A Valve employee states there that a feature of "trading of CD-keys" may be implemented, which could have been nicknamed Trading Cards. And maybe it will be the mix of this and the previous one, with your steam keys being used as cards? "Kelevandos played a Borderlands 2 GotY Holo Key"? If that is the idea, you have my support, Valve.

And my personal guess? Well, it is a bit of the first one, but going down a different way – have you heard about Pokemon TCG Online? It is the world-famous Pokemon card game played on the net, but what makes it different from other such games is the relation between the Online game and the physical cards. When you buy a deck, you get a code, which you can later scan and use the very same deck in TCG Online. Same goes for booster packs, with every one of them having a code card inside. So think of it – what if Valve started co-operating with Wizards of the Coast and made a full-scale online version of Magic: The Gathering? Or maybe more possibly Cryptozoic, who are themselves entering the market with their Hex MMOTCG? Such a move would surely create some chaos in the industry, being most probably a hell of a success. Should this be the idea, I would call it genius. And of course, I call myself genius for unmasking it in the first place! Good job Kele, good job.

Any more theories? Let us know in the comments while we wait for some official statement!