This Christmas is shaping up to be another bloody battlefield in video game hardware, as Sony and Microsoft are inching closer to the official releases of their new motion control accessories. While Microsoft’s Natal is going completely free of any handheld device, the newly named PlayStation Move will be similar to Nintendo’s Wiimote with a main controller and an add-on wireless nunchuk. The big difference is that the Move’s actions will interact with the PlayStation Eye camera, rather than a sensor bar, which will allegedly allow for a full 3D use of the space around you. The Move will also feature a three-axis gyroscope, a three-axis accelerometer, and a terrestrial magnetic field sensor to maximize accuracy and control.

As announced at GDC 10, the PlayStation Move will be launch later this year bundled with a game and a PlayStation Eye camera for under $100, or packaged in with select new PS3s. Both the controller and the sub-controller (nunchuck) feature rechargeable built-in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. And most importantly, will have different coloured balls on top.

To make use of this new toy, Sony has also enlisted 36 third-party studios to develop games for the new peripheral, with the promise of 20 titles at launch. How many of those 20 titles will be minigame collections and glorified tech demos was not announced, but I’d put the over/under at 18. Although, Sony is specific in its language that these 20 games will include titles “that are either dedicated to or supported with the PlayStation Move platform”, which suggests the probably of tacked on motion controls in regular titles. These developers are:

505 Games U.S.

Activision Publishing, Inc.

AQ INTERACTIVE Inc.

ARC SYSTEMS WORK CO.,LTD

ATLUS Co., LTD.

Bigben Interactive

CAPCOM CO., LTD.

CCP

Crave Entertainment

CYBERFRONT Corporation

Disney Interactive Studios

Electronic Arts Inc.

FromSoftware, Inc.

Game Republic, Inc.

GUST CO., LTD.

HUDSON SOFT CO., LTD.

IREM SOFTWARE ENGINEERING INC.

Koei Co., Ltd.

Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.

Majesco Entertainment

Marvelous Entertainment Inc.

NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc.

ONGAKUKAN Co., Ltd.

Oxygen Games

PAON CORPORATION

Q Entertainment Inc.

Q-GAMES, LTD.

SEGA CORPORATION

Sony Online Entertainment

Spike Co., Ltd.

SQUARE ENIX GROUP

TECMO, LTD.

THQ Inc.

UBISOFT®

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment

Zoo Entertainment, Inc.