PS3 Move Megathread

[jefXfree]

PlayStation Move is a motion-sensing game controller platform for the PlayStation 3 video game console by Sony Computer Entertainment. Based on a handheld motion controller wand, PlayStation Move uses the PlayStation Eye webcam to track the wand's position, and inertial sensors to detect its motion. First revealed on June 2, 2009, PlayStation Move is slated for worldwide launch in Q3/Q4 2010. PlayStation Move hardware available at launch includes the main PlayStation Move motion controller, and an optional PlayStation Move Navigation Controller.

Although PlayStation Move is implemented on the existing PlayStation 3 console, Sony states that it is treating PlayStation Move's debut as its own major "platform launch," planning an aggressive marketing campaign to support it. Sony plans to release several different bundle packages for PlayStation Move hardware; including an under-US$100 starter pack with a PlayStation Eye, a PlayStation Move motion controller, and a game; and a bundle with a PlayStation 3 console, PlayStation Eye, and PlayStation Move motion controller. Specific pricing has not been decided

As with other PlayStation Wireless Controllers (SIXAXIS, DualShock 3), both the main PlayStation Move motion controller and thePlayStation Move Navigation Controller will use Bluetooth 2.0 wireless radio communication, and an internal lithium-ion battery which is charged via a USB Mini-B port on the controller.

Motion controller: The PlayStation Move motion controller features an orb at the end which can glow in any of a full range of colors according to the RGB color model using light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The colored light serves as an active marker, the position of which can be tracked along the image plane by the PlayStation Eye. The uniform spherical shape and known size of the light also allows the system to simply determine the controller's distance from the PlayStation Eye through the light's image size, thus enabling the controller's position to be tracked in three dimensions with high precision and accuracy. The sphere-based distance calculation allows the controller to operate with minimal processing lag, as opposed to other camera-based control techniques on the PlayStation 3. A pair of inertial sensors inside the controller, a three-axis linear accelerometer and a three-axis angular rate sensor, are used to track rotation as well as overall motion. An internal magnetometer is also used for calibrating the controller's orientation against the Earth's magnetic field to help correct against cumulative error (drift) in the inertial sensors. The internal sensors can be used for dead reckoning in cases which the camera tracking is insufficient, such as when the controller is obscured behind the player's back.

The controller face features a large ovoid primary button (Move), small action buttons triangle:, :circle:, :x:, :square, and a regular-sized PS button, arranged in a similar configuration as on the Blu-Ray Disc Remote Control. On the left and right side is a Select and Start button, respectively. On the underside is an analog trigger (T). At the tail of the controller is the wrist strap, USB port, and extension port.

The motion controller features vibration-based haptic technology. In addition to providing a tracking reference, the controller's orb light can be used to simulate aesthetic effects, such as the muzzle flash of a gun, or the paint on a brush.

Using different orb colors for each controller, up to four motion controllers can be tracked at once with the PlayStation Eye. Demonstrations for the controller have featured activities using a single motion controller, as well as those in which the user wields two motion controllers, with one in each hand. To minimize the cost of entry, Sony has stated that all launch titles for PlayStation Move will be playable with one motion controller, with enhanced options available for multiple motion controllers.

According to Sony, use of the motion-tracking library entails some Synergistic Processing Unit (SPU) overhead as well an impact on memory, though the company states that the effects will be minimized.

Navigation Controller: PlayStation Move Navigation Controller is one-handed controller designed for use in conjunction with the PlayStation Move motion controller for certain types of gameplay. Replicating the major functionality of the left side of a standard PlayStation Wireless Controller, tPlayStation Move Navigation Controller features an analog stick, a D-pad, and L1 and L2 analog triggers. The Navigation Controller also features :x: and :circle: action buttons, as well as a PS button. Since all controls correspond to those of a standard Wireless Controller, a Sixaxis or DualShock 3 controller can be used in place of the Navigation Controller in PlayStation Move applications.

New Games:
Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios will release a total of 20 games compatible with the PlayStation Move before April 2011. Currently a number of games have been announced to include support for PlayStation Move, including:

Ape Escape (working title)
Beat Sketcher
Brunswick: Pro Bowling
Champions of Time (working title)
Deadliest Catch: Sea of Chaos
Eccentric Slider (working title)
Echochrome 2
Eyepet
The Fight: Lights Out
Heavy Rain
Heroes on the Move
High Velocity Bowling
Hustle Kings
John Daly's ProStroke Golf
Killzone 3
Kung Fu Live
Kung Fu Rider
Little Big Planet 2
The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn's Quest
NBA 2K11
Pain!
Racquet Sports
Resident Evil 5 Gold Edition
Ruse: The Art of Deception
The Shoot (working title)
Sing and Draw (working title)
Singstar Dance
Sorcery
The Sly Collection
SOCOM 4
Sports Champions
Start The Party!
Time Crisis: Razing Storm
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2011
Time Crisis: Razing Storm
Tower (working title)
Toy Story 3
Tron Evolution the Video Game
Tumble
TV Superstars
Under Siege

Full Game List: http://move.gamespot.com/games/index.html

Companies:
Alongside Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios and its second-party partners, a total of 36 third-party game development companies will support the PlayStation Move and develop games compatible with it.

Accessories:

Guns
Chargers
Controller Grips
Misc.
________
Vaporite solo

 

[jefXfree]

if this goes like any other sony conference, everything they say will have already been leaked or known

yeah. They'll announce the name of the motion controller as the Arc today. And that it'll have a wireless nunchuck.

 

[Kingjames56]

I still hate that name "Arc", maybe they learned and they gave everyone a fake name.

 

[jefXfree]

Added to OP

 

[BlueCali]

Playstation Move... lmfao...

 

[Kingjames56]

How hard is it to name things?

"Arc" is better than "Move".

 

[jefXfree]

Wow that screen is blown out.

 

[Kingjames56]

I'm in!! cant wait to unleash my inner Russel Crowe

 

[jefXfree]

WHAT A HORRIBLE PRESS CONFERENCE.

Well, it was just uninteresting to me.

 

[BlueCali]

WHAT A HORRIBLE PRESS CONFERENCE.

Well, it was just uninteresting to me.

Wasn't a press conference, it was a Developer conference. It went smooth, everything worked well, and we knew it was all about the Playstation Move.

 

[jefXfree]

And I bet that's why Eye Pet was delayed in the US.

Wasn't a press conference, it was a Developer conference. It went smooth, everything worked well, and we knew it was all about the Playstation Move.

I didn't call it a press conference, they did. "SONY GDC PRESS CONFERENCE: LIVE STREAM HERE TONIGHT 7:05 PM ET"


It was smooth enough, but those "Family Games" look like they're going to KILL the PS3.

I can't wait for Cooking Mama PS3!

 

[mobius387]

playstation move?

the only way that thing will make me move is away from it if i ever see it in a store

 

[jefXfree]

Screen Shots added to OP.

 

[jefXfree]

Merged with GDC thread (since it was all about the Move) and updated OP.

 

[iNCREDiPiNOY]

Looks like a dildo. Do NOT want!

 

[jefXfree]

Warren Spector: Motion Control Could Mean "Throwing Away Our Entire History"

Disney Interactive man and veteran games designer, Warren Spector has warned that pursuing the mass market with new input devices such as motion controllers means running the risk of "throwing away our entire history." That is, we risk losing traditional gaming as we know it.

Speaking to Gamasutra, Spector expressed his concern, stating, "I think it's kind of weird...that we've sort of said, 'We've got 20, 30 years of people learning how to do this’ - sitting on their couch and having a good time, and knowing where the buttons are - and we're saying 'You've got to stand up and wave around and gesture.

"We're in the process of throwing away people - kids, adults - who know this stuff. Especially from outside the industry, there's a tendency to want to see seismic shifts, to want to see radical change, and we have to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bathwater."

Spector's words are timely since PlayStation Move was finally named at Sony's GDC PlayStation press conference yesterday.

He finished by declaring that he's not necessarily against motion control however, alluding to Wii-exclusive Epic Mickey saying, "By the way, I'm working on a Wii title and I'm loving it."

 

[jefXfree]

PlayStation Move Developer Diary #1

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PlayStation Move Developer Diary #2

If you saw our live broadcast on Ustream yesterday, then you’ve been properly introduced to PlayStation Move. We’re incredibly excited to start bringing you lots of PlayStation Move content in the coming months, starting right here. Head on over to PlayStation.com to find out what PlayStation Move is bringing to the PS3.

On Tuesday, GameSpot premiered the very first PlayStation Move developer diary, which you can see in its entirely here. And today, we’re premiering PlayStation Move Developer Diary #2, featuring Zindagi Games. In the video, you’ll get special behind-the-scenes insight into PlayStation Move, as well as game footage in action. Enjoy it!

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[jefXfree]

Via: PS3 Twitter:

"Swordfighting, archery, table tennis, and more are all coming for Move!"

"Move Party (working title) makes good use of Move's camera::

​

 

[jefXfree]

Behind The Scenes Of The PlayStation Move

Still curious about the PlayStation Move? Sony has spent the last 24 hours here at GDC proudly showing off their new motion controller both with the games we played earlier, and also the technical side. We sat in on a meeting with Sony where key members of the team shared some high-level technical information about how the system works and its potential. The most interesting bits came from Anton Mikhailov, who works in Sony R&D and was a key designer on the project. Utilizing some basic tech demos, Mikhailov showed off just how robust the new system is.

Starting out, he gave a description of what's inside. With a combination of an accelerometer and a gyroscope, the Move has extremely sensitive movement tracking abilities. But the real magic happens with the colored bulb on top and the EyeToy camera. The tracking ability of the camera is down to the millimeter, even with the low resolution of 640x480. Tracking is accurate within a single pixel. With the technologies working together the system can even compensate when the bulb is obscured (like if a player hides it behind his back).

Speaking of that bulb, the color isn't merely a static indicator representing the player number. Inside is an RGB LED that developers will have full control over for game creation. Not only can the colors be changed on the fly in real-time, but the development possibilities even extend to changing the bulb red when the player's health is at critical. Mikhailov demoed this in real-time by taking the controller and running it along a color picker showing it change.

Sony realizes these tracking abilities need to be robust. "Latency is key." Mikhailov explains, "Latency removes the barrier to the player." He also explained how this ties into intuitiveness and why it's important, especially in the casual space. The DualShock is a great controller but players must "learn" how to use it. If they pick up a Move controller and see a paint brush on screen, they know exactly what to do. Fear not, as Sony is not making this a replacement for the classic controller. While they want to target both casual and hardcore game development, Mikhailov assured everyone that "some games are just better on the DualShock."

Easily the most fascinating part of the tech demo was when Mikhailov pushed the Move to the limit. The software he demonstrated the technologies extreme capabilities with was a basic augmented reality app that had him holding two swords on screen. Even as he shook the two controllers violently, the swords on screen tracked his movement with ease. Next, he put one of the controllers between his palms and spun it rapidly with the same positive results. He also demonstrated that much of the shaky movement we've seen in other demos is a result of the user and not the system. Developers will be able to alter the controller's sensitivity in order to compensate for user shakiness.

Sony's willingness to so openly explain their technology to crowd may be a reflection of the company's confidence moving into motion control territory.

 

[jefXfree]

PS Move is system-driver, says Denny

Michael Denny, European vice president at Sony Worldwide Studios, has stated his belief that the company’s upcoming PlayStation Move peripheral will prove a vital component in boosting PlayStation 3 sales.

When asked by the chaps at GI.biz as to whether or not he thought the new device would stimulate platform sales and appeal to existing users, Denny replied: “It’s going to do absolutely both of those things. If you’ve already got a PlayStation then it’s a great additive experience.”

“It can add to existing games, or existing franchises that people already know. We’ll bring new IPs, new experiences for it – but as I said before, the stage we’re at in the life cycle with PS3, it can help us broaden the audience now, as we’d expect to do at this time anyway.”

 

[jefXfree]

How precise is PlayStation Move? Enough to play Starcraft on a PC says researcher Anton Mikhailov

There's been a flood of information coming from Sony about the new PlayStation Move controller for the PS3, but Sony's technically inclined folks showed off some of the more technically capable members of GDC, getting down to the finer details.

PlayStation researcher Anton Mikhailov, platform research manager David Coombes and developer support engineer Kirk Bender ran through a handful of demos for GDC attendees, some fun, others a low level technical peek behind the curtain of PlayStation Move. Some of the more interesting things Mikhailov and crew talked about were related to the motion controller's level of precision.

Mikahilov said the PlayStation Eye is capable of tracking the Move's movement to a precision of about one millimeter in the X and Y-planes. He showed this onscreen, zoomed down to the pixel level. On the Z-plane, Move's depth perception level of precision is about a centimeter. As he twisted the Move controller in front of the camera, Mikahilov noted that the PlayStation Eye was capable of detecting rotation to the degree level. All this needs to be done within 10 feet of the PlayStation Eye, Move's current range of detection.

He further illustrated the Move's level of accuracy by mounting the controller on a tripod, eliminating the jitter we were seeing during on simple tech demo, which was actually coming from Mikhailov's hand.

Some of the Move's other neat technical tricks came in the form of combining face tracking with glowing orb tracking, the ability to detect facial features like glasses and a very rough estimate of a user's age. The most potentially interesting uses of Move's capabilities came in some very smooth, very accurate looking painting programs, the kind of thing that would be great for a graffiti themed video game.

But putting the Move controller's level of precision in terms most of the room could understand, Mikhailov said that they've been able to use the PlayStation 3 add-on as a device to control the PC version of StarCraft. While the company already has Move support working in the equally precision demanding SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs, if it works well as a mouse replacement, it might be worth picking one up.