SONY PLAYSTATION / MOVE

He's gotten in touch from the future, called out the MLB's Dustin Pedroia and now Kevin Butler, Sony's own doofy Jack Donaghy-alike is ready to launch Move.

With a title change ('VP of Epic Gaming Forever') the launch webfilm and introductory microsite are out, via Deutsch, Los Angeles, with classic Butler commentary all over the latter.

We got in touch with Jason Elm, copywriter and group creative director on the campaign to see what's new in Butler's world, and what we should expect from the PlayStation's motion component, as opposed to its rivals, Xbox's Kinect and Nintendo's Wii.

Contagious: How well has Kevin Butler emerged as a spokesperson for the brand, and what attributes does he brings to the discussion?

JE: I guess a 40-something guy in a dress shirt and necktie would never be the first person you'd pick to represent a gaming company. But Kevin Butler has been a hit with the community. Gamers are the first people to jump on line and tell you what they think. We get great feedback from PlayStation fans and even Xbox fans who love the campaign.

@TheKevinButler gets a couple hundred messages a day and it's great to keep a continuous dialogue with our fans. Most mention they appreciate that it's a real account and not a shill feed. We also maintain a file of Tweets from people saying they've sold their 360 for a PS3 because of KB. We also get a lot of tweets that say 'KB, I wish you were my dad'. That's both awesome and sort of sad.

KB was created to explain to moms, families, HD enthusiasts etc.; the additional things a PS3 does. PlayStation has a heritage back to the PSone days of a humorous, irreverent tone, and his attitude harkens back to that heritage. We're very cautious about how we calibrate his amount of 'swagger'. Go too far and we piss people off. Too safe and it's flat. I've never worked on a brand that required so much guardianship, and so much homework. We constantly find ourselves saying 'Kevin wouldn't say/do that' like it's Barbie or something. I used to make fun of those people. Now I am one.

Contagious: What are Sony's main attributes in the 'motion' aspect of gaming now, compared to Kinect and Wii; what's the point between gaming for kids, as Sony says is portrayed by Wii, and the Xbox experience, sans buttons, that's ownable by Sony?

JE: PlayStation Move's place in motion gaming? You get the best of both worlds. Wii has just a controller. Kinect has just a camera. Move has both. The combination of the camera and controller with the tracking ball on it makes for the most accurate and precise control of the game. You can put topspin on the ball in table tennis, you can fling a Frisbee overhand, underhand, sideways, etc. in disc golf, etc. Plus the games are PS3 quality Blu-ray games in Hi-Def. So, there's rich, vivid games that won't bore someone over ten years old. They have everything from virtual pet games for kids to full-on hardcore first-person shooters. You can't shoot without buttons (or as KB put it 'who wants to pretend your hand is a gun. What is this, third grade? Pew! Pew!')

Contagious: What those do you think the strongest element is among PS3's core group of gamers that'll push them to purchase Move?

JE: I think the fact that PS3 has dedicated Move games but also many top-tier titles that you can play with either a regular controller or Move (Tiger Woods Golf, Killzone3, SOCOM4) will be the key in getting the core gamer to buy Move. They can play games in a new way and not feel like they're borrowing their younger sibling's gaming system."

Reports are out that US-based retailers are selling the system before its street date of September 19. Have you already tried the system and compared it to rivals? How does it stack up? Let us know below.