With the growing popularity of HTML5 games and applications, it looks like Google has a vision of its own.

According to the EDGE, during the Develop Liverpool conference in London, Google’s developer Paul Kinlan has announced that Google Chrome will receive gamepad support tin the first quarter of 2012. In addition to that, it will feature a support for cameras and microphones that don’t have to be plugged in.

While not many details were revealed, it is known that the search giant is already working on the next instance of its Google TV service, with the hardware set to debut sometime next year.

Why add gamepad support anyway? If our speculation stands correct (and only time will tell), we guess that Google Chrome will be an essential part of Google TV, offering its users an ability to play HTML5 games on their TV with a gamepad attached. Think about it as Google’s version of a gaming console.

What do you think?