Light of Motiram, first revealed in late 2024, quickly drew widespread attention for its striking resemblance to Guerrilla Games’ Horizon series, featuring mechanized wildlife and a tribal-clad heroine with fiery hair. This likeness prompted Sony Interactive Entertainment, owner of Guerrilla, to file a lawsuit against Tencent—parent company of developer Polaris Quest—in mid-2025, accusing the conglomerate of copyright violations. According to Sony, discussions between the companies about a potential Horizon mobile spin-off collapsed before Tencent allegedly pursued its own version.

In a recent rebuttal, Tencent moved to dismiss the case, citing procedural and legal shortcomings:

• Tencent Holdings, headquartered in China and incorporated offshore, argues that Sony improperly grouped it with subsidiary studios not yet formally served in the lawsuit. The filing states: “Sony’s vague assertions conflate distinct entities under the Tencent umbrella, failing to establish specific liability for each defendant.”
• The motion emphasizes that Light of Motiram remains unreleased (now slated for late 2027 on Steam), rendering infringement claims speculative until publication.
• Tencent further accuses Sony of overreach, framing the litigation as an effort to monopolize generic genre elements seen across gaming.

To bolster their case, Tencent referenced Guerrilla’s own creative history, citing a NoClip documentary where Lead Artist Jan-Bart van Beek admitted Horizon’s early concept was shelved over parallels to 2013’s Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Van Beek remarked:

Enslaved’s post-apocalyptic setting, robotic adversaries, and female lead mirrored our early vision. We paused development to avoid overlap, revisiting the idea only after exploring other projects, including an abandoned steampunk title that coincidentally shared themes with Ready at Dawn’s The Order: 1886.

Tencent contends that Horizon itself borrows from established tropes prevalent in titles like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Far Cry: Primal, and Biomutant. The motion asserts: “Sony’s claims improperly conflate common genre motifs with proprietary IP, seeking exclusivity over ideas freely used industry-wide.”

Notably, Polaris Quest has since altered Light of Motiram’s marketing materials, replacing the protagonist’s red-haired design and highlighting features absent in Horizon, such as cooperative multiplayer and base-building survival mechanics. Guerrilla’s own Horizon Online, in development, similarly embraces live-service elements.

Sony has yet to counter Tencent’s dismissal bid. As legal proceedings unfold, further updates will be tracked here.