Tencent’s upcoming post-apocalyptic open-world adventure Light of Motiram, widely-criticized for being a “clone” of Horizon Zero Dawn, has disappeared from Steam and the Epic Games Store.
You may recall that Sony was suing Tencent over the project, which it had officially dubbed a “slavish” Horizon Zero Dawn copy, via a copyright lawsuit filed in a California court at the end of July. Sony’s argument outlined numerous similarities and compared various marketing screenshots from both games, as well as their descriptions.
Just like Horizon, Light of Motiram takes place in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by giant robot dinosaurs who roam large, natural environments such as tropical forests, deserts, and snowy mountains. Both games even feature red-haired women protagonists that wear very similar outfits and styles, and devices similar to Aloy’s “Focus” earpiece.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, then, Sony formally accused Tencent of developing a “knock-off game” and asked the court for a preliminary injunction against Light of Motiram to stop the Chinese megacorp from commencing pre-release promotion of its upcoming version.
Just days after Sony filed its lawsuit, Tencent quietly updated its Light of Motiram Steam page and swapped out a number of screenshots, including its cover image, before responding to Sony’s lawsuit by claiming it was only making use of “well-trodden” tropes and suggesting the PlayStation maker’s own game was too similar to Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Indeed, Tencent hit back by describing Sony’s lawsuit as an overreach, highlighting other game franchises with similar elements such as The Legend of Zelda and Far Cry. It was “startling,” Tencent said, that Sony was now attempting to claim Horizon’s concept was original, rather than an idea based on “ubiquitous genre ingredients.”
The bitter battle now seems to have come to an end, however. As spotted by The Verge, new court papers filed yesterday, December 17, show both parties have reached a “confidential settlement” that appears to have ended Sony’s lawsuit, and Tencent’s counter-suit, too. All parties are reportedly responsible for their own fees and costs.
Without publicly sharing the terms of the deal, it’s not possible to know how it all ended, although the disappearance of Light of Motiram is a fairly significant clue. The original URLs to both storefronts now redirect to each site’s respective landing pages, and there’s been no formal update from Tencent on the game’s date. It seems unlikely we’ll see it again, and almost certainly not in its present form.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
