Tencent Fires Back at Sony, Calls Horizon Derivative and Asks Court to Dismiss Light of Motiram Lawsuit
Tencent has asked a U.S. court to dismiss Sony’s lawsuit over Light of Motiram, the upcoming open-world game Sony says copies elements from Horizon Zero Dawn. In the motion to dismiss, Tencent calls the lawsuit “startling,” argues the disputed features are common across many games, and says Sony’s claims are speculative because Motiram is unreleased and still years from launch.
- Tencent filed a motion to dismiss Sony’s July lawsuit about Light of Motiram.
- The company argues Horizon Zero Dawn is itself derivative and that Sony seeks to monopolize common genre elements.
- Tencent raises technical and trademark points, and disputes who within “Tencent” would be responsible.
Background: lawsuit and reaction
In July, Sony sued over Light of Motiram, calling it a “rip-off” of its Horizon franchise. In response, Tencent altered Motiram’s public marketing assets to reduce direct visual comparisons to Horizon Zero Dawn, and later filed the motion to dismiss the case as a whole.
Key arguments from Tencent
Tencent describes Sony’s claims as overly broad. The filing says Sony is trying to claim exclusive rights to gameplay features that appear across many titles. Furthermore, Tencent quotes Sony’s own language about Horizon Zero Dawn, noting Sony had called the game “like no fictional world created before [or] since.”
To support its point, Tencent lists other games that share similar elements, including Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Far Cry: Primal, Far Cry: New Dawn, Outer Wilds, and Biomutant. Tencent wrote,
“By suing over an unreleased project that merely employs the same time-honored tropes embraced by scores of other games released both before and after Horizon—like Enslaved, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Far Cry: Primal, Far Cry: New Dawn, Outer Wilds, Biomutant, and many more—Sony seeks an impermissible monopoly on genre conventions.”
Timing and speculation
Tencent also argues Sony’s claims are based on assumptions about an unreleased product. Motiram’s release date is roughly two years away, and Tencent notes the final game could differ materially from what Sony alleges in the complaint.
Corporate structure and trademark points
The motion highlights that “Tencent” is a broad label covering multiple legal entities. Tencent points out that Sony’s filings sometimes refer ambiguously to “Tencent,” which could mean any of several companies in the group. The filing adds that Tencent Holdings is not the developer or publisher of Light of Motiram and that registering the LIGHT OF MOTIRAM trademark is part of routine trademark management.
The filing states, “At any rate, Tencent Holdings is not the developer or publisher of Light of Motiram,” and explains that many overseas trademarks in Tencent’s portfolio are registered by Tencent Holdings for management purposes.
Character and trademark claims
Sony has argued that Aloy, Horizon’s protagonist, is a source-identifying element of its brand. Tencent disputes that, noting Aloy’s in-game appearance changes with equipment and pointing to a screenshot where Aloy is not the visual focus.
Tencent contends this weakens Sony’s character-trademark argument and that Aloy is not necessarily a “cardinal” brand element for the franchise.
Context from reviews and industry examples
Tencent’s filing cites prior commentary that describes Horizon Zero Dawn as having derivative aspects. For example, some reviews of the original noted familiar influences alongside the game’s strengths.
What happens next
The court will decide whether Sony’s lawsuit can proceed. Tencent’s motion frames the case as an attempt to block commonly used gameplay conventions and to assert ownership over broad genre features, while Sony will need to show more concrete infringement tied to its protected elements.
For now, both sides have filed legal filings and the matter is pending in court.
