This allows players to interact with the games using motion, color detection, and also sound, through its built-in microphone.

[5] The EyeToy was conceived by Richard Marks in 1999, after witnessing a demonstration of the PlayStation 2 at the 1999 Game Developers Conference in San Jose, California.

He joined Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) that year, and worked on the technology as Special Projects Manager for Research and Development.

[7][8] Marks' work drew the attention of Phil Harrison, then Vice President of Third Party Relations and Research and Development at SCEA.

At the demonstration, Marks was joined with Ron Festejo of Psygnosis[8] (which would later merge to become London Studio) to begin developing a software title using the technology, which would later become EyeToy: Play.

Originally called the iToy (short for "interactive toy") by the London branch, the webcam was later renamed to the EyeToy by Harrison.

[7] Already planned for release in Europe, the EyeToy was picked by SCE's Japanese and American branches after the successful showing at the PlayStation Experience.

In these custom drivers, the red LED that normally signals inadequate lighting is used as the active recording indicator.