‘Based Almost Entirely On Speculation’ Tencent Attempts to Dismiss Sony’s Horizon Clone Lawsuit

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Tencent is asking the court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Sony, which claims Tencent’s new game, *Light of Motiram*, copies elements from the *Horizon* series. When Polaris Quest, a company owned by Tencent, announced *Light of Motiram* late last year, many people noticed similarities to Guerrilla Games’ open-world RPG, *Horizon*. Tencent argues that Sony and some fans are exaggerating these similarities in their claims.

In July 2025, Sony filed a lawsuit against Tencent over the game *Light of Motiram*, claiming it unfairly copied their *Horizon* series. Sony argued that the gameplay, world, story, and characters were too similar to *Horizon: Zero Dawn* and *Forbidden West*, potentially confusing players and allowing Tencent to profit from Sony’s established brand. However, Tencent has countered, stating that Sony’s claims aren’t strong enough to justify a full trial.

Tencent Says Sony’s Horizon Lawsuit “Fails to Allege Facts” Enough to Warrant a Legal Proceeding

So, I’ve been following this whole Sony vs. Tencent thing, and it’s getting interesting. Basically, Tencent just filed a motion to get Sony’s lawsuit thrown out. They’re saying Sony hasn’t actually proven that *Light of Motiram* copied anything specific from *Horizon*. They claim Sony’s arguments are way too vague – just pointing out general similarities and accusing Tencent as a whole, instead of showing exactly *what* in *Light of Motiram* infringes on Sony’s copyright or how they’d profit from it. Apparently, the game devs *did* tweak the game’s description to downplay the *Horizon* similarities, but Tencent argues that’s standard practice during lawsuits and doesn’t really change anything. They’re saying the whole case is built on guesses about what the game *might* do, not on solid evidence of actual copying.

Tencent argues the resemblances between *Light of Motiram* and the *Horizon* games are typical elements found in many video games. They point to titles like *Breath of the Wild*, *Far Cry: Primal*, and *Outer Wilds* as examples sharing similar characteristics. This defense – claiming similarities are common tropes rather than direct copying – is frequently used in these types of legal battles and often makes them complex. A recent example is Nintendo’s ongoing lawsuit against *Palworld* developer Pocketpair, filed in September 2024, which remains unresolved after a year and several patent disputes. It’s often hard to determine where inspiration ends and copyright infringement begins, making the outcome of these cases unpredictable.

In March 2024, before announcing *Light of Motiram*, Tencent actually proposed an official *Horizon* game to Sony. This rejected pitch is mentioned in Sony’s legal documents, but it’s currently unknown how this earlier attempt will impact the ongoing lawsuit between the companies. Because the case is new and copyright law is complicated, it’s unclear if the court will dismiss Tencent’s request, or what will happen if the case continues.

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2025-09-18 17:04