Sony Makes Motion Hacking Easy With Move.Me

Following the recent run of Kinect hacks featuring everything from an FPS interface to an infrared neighborhood map, the folks at Sony must have been feeling a little left out from the whole motion-controller-reprogramming market. As of this GDC, they've taken steps to draw out the creative applications by introducing their own solution: Move.Me, a server software that runs on PS3 and sends its data to a PC for easy development of homebrew apps.

The introductory blurb by senior engineer John McCutchan notes that the Move has been lauded by both developers and academics for its possible applications outside the gaming sphere, such as in therapy routines or mind-body interfaces. Sony seeks to bridge this gap and also allow a new wave of motion-focused developers to have their way with the controller--though with the necessary purchase of a PS3 as a bridge.

It's hard to tell whether this sponsored-hacking initiative will produce as much initially, since the Move's applications are quite similar to the Wii. The first great motion controller hack came in the form of a 3D space-navigation trick that used the Wii remote as a sensor to track infrared points. The Move setup is much more straightforward: the camera tracks the position and angle of the lit ball controller, so the easy opportunity for game-changing applications might involve using up to four lit controllers for some unique player tracking--maybe for fencing footwork or other full-body games.

Still, whether it's new or not, the possibility for garage devs to get their hands on some tricky new toys should produce at least a few interesting results in the upcoming months - and may even lead to PSN opening its own equivalent of the Xbox Indie Games space for those unique ideas to find a home. GDC was a great opportunity to announce this initiative, and we'll plan to see more coming out of it soon!