Sony inks Motion Control launch date

Giving developers time to support it

Sony has finally indicated when it plans to launch its Motion Control peripheral for the PlayStation 3.

Kazuo Hirai, Head of Sony Computer Entertainment, said: “We are slating it [Motion Control] for spring of next year” - according to a report by The Times. He kept mum about the unit’s potential price.

But Hirai stressed that the PS3 motion-controlled gaming peripheral – which will go head-to-head against the Xbox 360’s Project Natal – will need “great software” to support it during the launch.

Hirai’s remark refers to plans to build up a decent catalogue of games that make use of Motion Control. Publisher Electronic Arts has already signed up to help here – earlier this month the firm committed itself to releasing titles for the PS3 peripheral.

Microsoft has yet to announce a formal launch date for Project Natal. But the Xbox 360 add-on has already been connected with a late 2010 arrival date, thanks to a loose-lipped executive at game publisher THQ. ®