Google I/O is just two sleeps away and I’m sure attendees can’t wait to get buzzed on Google announcements.  If you’ll be attending the event like, make sure to read our Complete Google I/O 2013 Guide so you won’t be too overwhelmed when you get there. And brush up on last year’s announcements with our Google I/O 2012 Recap.

Now that’s out of the way.  Let’s talk about what people are expecting to see at the event.  Last week, we tackled some of the rumored announcements, such as new information about the Google Glass and its possible commercial launch date, the revamped Google Maps, a new version of Android Jelly Bean, a new Nexus 7, and the Nexus Q making a comeback as a game console.

As the event draws near, the rumors just keeps piling up as the rumor mill keeps on churning.  The only difference from last week to now is that there’s more proof to back these rumors up.

Some truth to the rumors

Earlier in April, Android Police discovered Google’s plans to release a game center when it scrutinized MyGlass, the Google Glass app companion.  The AP team found that the Android game center will have “multiplayer support, in-game chat, lobbies, leaderboards, and achievements,” much like Apple’s Game Center released in 2010.

Now, AP believes that “Google Play Games,” the name of the game center, will be revealed at I/O 2013.  The discovery comes from securing the latest version of Google Play Services, version v3.1.36.  In it, a little green game controller represents Play Games. When you tap on Play Games, it opens up the settings for the game center to edit who you can send game invites to or receive invites from, save synced games, and see achievements, scoring and the leaderboard.  The icon also serves as a shortcut for activities you do on Play Games.

There’s also a mini version of the green game controller that would appear on games to let players know if a game is Google-powered or supported in the Play Games center.

Play Games, or the Google game center, does exist, but there’s still uncertainty regarding whether Google will be releasing a central Play Games app, as Apple did.

What do developers get?

As for the other announcements expected at the event, Sundar Pichai, the newly appointed head of Android, stated that this years event will be totally different in the sense that it won’t be about pleasing consumers but more on giving developers tools they need to write code.

“It’s going to be different. It’s not a time when we have much in the way of launches of new products or a new operating system. Both on Android and Chrome, we’re going to focus this I/O on all of the kinds of things we’re doing for developers, so that they can write better things. We will show how Google services are doing amazing things on top of these two platforms,” Pichai stated in a rare interview with Wired.

Also, Pichai’s interview clarified that Android and Chrome are not merging.  Pichai lead Chrome, and when he got appointed to head both Android and Chrome, many were quick to conclude that Chrome will be merging with Android to deliver a sole Google OS for both mobile and netbooks.

Is Pichai’s statement regarding this year’s I/O focusing on developers really that surprising?  Maybe, since people are expecting new Google hardware to be announced, but considering Google’s Nexus Q flop from last year, focusing on what developers need may be what it needs to deliver better products.