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When Tencent first announced Light of Motiram, many, including Wccftech, immediately saw it as a clone or rip-off of Sony’s Horizon series. This was why no one was surprised when, at the end of last month, Sony filed a copyright lawsuit against Tencent for Light of Motiram. The lawsuit cites multiple headlines that drew similar connections and calls Light of Motiram a “slavish clone” of Guerilla Games’ series.
Now that Sony has initiated legal action, Tencent has made several potentially significant changes to the game’s Steam page. According to The Game Post, the key art for Light of Motiram has been altered, the game description has been rewritten, and multiple screenshots, including those featuring the red-haired player character, have been removed.
The original Steam description read:
“In a world overrun by colossal machines, explore the vast open world, build your base of operations, advance technology, train Mechanimals, and take on formidable bosses. Starting from the primitive age, forge a new path of development. Defy machination, survive with mechanimals.”
The new description is much more generic:
“Make smart use of everything around you to stay alive and face off against formidable bosses; every step is fraught with danger and requires courage. Only by overcoming the challenges of survival can you carve out a place for yourself in this unforgiving land.”
These changes eliminate references to Mechanimals, which are directly styled after the robotic dinosaurs featured in Horizon.
Will these modifications have any significant impact on the lawsuit? It’s too early to tell. The case may seem clear-cut from an outside perspective, but copyright suits often aren’t. Especially given that details revealed by the lawsuit suggest Tencent approached Sony about partnering to create a Horizon game, which Sony declined before developing Light of Motiram.
It might look straightforward, and it appears that Tencent tried to copy as much as possible from Horizon to leverage similarities for a new hit title. However, copyright suits are rarely so clear-cut, especially when two major companies are involved. The outcome will likely set an interesting precedent for the future.
📚 Reading Comprehension Quiz
What significant change did Tencent make to the game description on Steam following Sony's copyright lawsuit against Light of Motiram?
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