Sony labels Tencent's response to its Horizon "clone" lawsuit as "nonsense"

Sony Interactive Entertainment has called Tencent's defense "nonsense" and accused the Chinese tech giant of "playing a shell game" to dodge accountability over Light of Motiram, a mobile game Sony claims blatantly copies its Horizon franchise.

The details:

• Back in July, Sony filed a lawsuit accusing Tencent of ripping off its hit Horizon franchise with “Light of Motiram,” an upcoming open-world adventure title. The Japanese tech giant referred to the game as a “slavish clone,” highlighting striking similarities between the two IPs in regard to their settings, visuals, gameplay, and more.
• Tencent fired back in September, filing a motion to dismiss the lawsuit and claiming Sony was seeking "an impermissible monopoly on genre conventions." However, Sony maintains the copying goes far beyond genre elements, encompassing the game's world, characters, creatures, and even music.
• In a 35-page court filing obtained by The Game Post this week, Sony urged the court to reject Tencent's motion to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that the company is using its numerous subsidiaries to shield itself from liability. Sony has accused Tencent of using subsidiaries like Aurora Studios, Level Infinite, and Proxima Beta to confuse responsibility for the project. Sony argues that Tencent Holdings remains "at the helm" by holding the U.S. trademark for Light of Motiram and operating under the "Tencent Games" brand.
• Sony argues that damage has already occurred despite recent changes to Light of Motiram's Steam page, which now shows generic survival artwork instead of Horizon-like imagery and pushes the release date to Q4 2027. "The damage is done—and it continues," Sony stated in its filing.
• The company points out that promotional videos, screenshots, and marketing materials remain visible across U.S. platforms, including Steam, Epic Games Store, YouTube, and Discord. Sony argues that public reaction proves the copying was so egregious that "numerous journalists and Horizon fans called Light of Motiram 'a major Horizon rip-off.'"
• A hearing is scheduled for December 2, 2025, before Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley in the Northern District of California, where Sony will seek to deny Tencent's motion to dismiss entirely.