Conceptually similar to Nintendo's Wii Remote and Microsoft's Kinect, its function is based around controller input in games stemming from the actual physical movement of the player.

The PlayStation Move motion controller features an orb at the head which can glow in any of a full range of colors using RGB light-emitting diodes (LEDs).

[12][15] 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) by the inertial sensors.

[20] The inertial 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.

[17] 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.

The demos included are for the games Beat Sketcher, Echochrome II, EyePet, Kung Fu Rider, Sports Champions, Start the Party!, The Shoot, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11, Time Crisis: Razing Storm, Tumble, and TV Superstars.

[40] In Asian countries outside Japan such as Singapore, the bundles are available with the games Sports Champions, Start the Party!, and Kung Fu Rider.

With the emergence of affordable inertial sensors and the success of the Wii Remote motion controller wand,[45] in 2008 Sony began work on productizing its own motion controller wand, revisiting the sphere-tracking concept for use with the PlayStation Eye, integrating inertial sensors, and refining the device from an engineering and a design perspective.

"[26][fn 4] One combination control scheme was demonstrated in September 2009 at the Tokyo Game Show for Biohazard 5: Alternative Edition, making particular use of the DualShock 3's analog stick.

[19] The logo is a colored squiggle-like shape, representing a light trail from the sphere of a PlayStation Move motion controller being waved.

In September 2009, statements in two unconnected interviews at the Tokyo Game Show led to speculation that the controller may be referred to by developers as the "Sphere".

[66] The name was observed to liken the controller's glowing orb to the charged sphere of a Tesla coil or a plasma globe electrode.

[67] The report was supported by evidence emerging in the following weeks, including a registration of the playstationarc.com domain name to SCE dated October 2009 (shortly after the Tokyo Game Show)[68] and numerous references to "Arc" by president Brian Farrell of video game publisher THQ during the company's February earnings conference call.

[75] As part of the promotional marketing for Sorcery, the PlayStation Move controller was inducted into The Magic Circle museum by Vice President Scott Penrose.

These programs have shown to: Alongside SIE Worldwide Studios and its second-party partners, a total of 36 third-party game development companies had confirmed that they would support the PlayStation Move by the time the finalized controller was announced in March 2010.

Game Informer gave it an 8 out of 10, saying, "The PlayStation Eye and motion controller are a killer combination for accurate and highly responsive motion-based gameplay, and we applaud Sony for getting the hardware right the first time.

"[78] Kotaku praised its accuracy, design, use of augmented reality and said, "The Playstation Move is a intuitive, natural feeling way to play games and it brings with it not only a sense of increased immersion to already graphically immersive games, but a new way to play with your reality and a refreshing form of colorful feedback.

"[80] Joystiq praised the Move, saying, "The hardware's great, and I can see it being used in a multitude of really cool ways, but of course it's only as cool as the games that use it" and that the launch line-up was not worth the purchase, though it believed that the Move would be worth the purchase in early 2011 due to a stronger line-up of games such as SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs and Killzone 3.

[81] CVG gave the Move an extremely positive review and awarded it 9 out of 10, saying, "Sony's motion control gets beyond being a gimmick.