Yesterday, Microsoft grabbed the attention of the entire gaming community with their new Wii-chasing technology, the Natal.  While the name leaves much to be desired (adjective 1. of or pertaining to a person's birth), and the demonstration was less than perfect, the concept behind the motion-capturing, face-recognizing peripheral opens the door to near-limitless possibilities for Xbox gamers.  Today, Sony joined the motion-sensitive race (sorry, SixAxis, you don’t count) by unveiling their own motion-sensitive control device.

It may be a bit funny looking (I know it's not the final design, but it sounds like that ping pong ball isn't going anywhere), but the thing seems to work like a charm.  There's no way, even with the Wii-mote Plus, that Nintendo's motion controller can match the kind of precision required to write your name with the level of precision shown by Sony's wand.

It seems to be faster, more precise, and more natural to use than the Wii-mote, but far more silly looking.  On the other hand, it appears more stable than the Natal, but less robust in concept, and also far more silly looking.  The motion-control chapter of this console war has just begun.  Nintendo’s got a pretty much insurmountable lead, but I have a feeling their peripheral offering of the day isn’t going to steal away Sony and MS gamers, while the opposite is far more likely.