Tencent may have taken the saying “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” a step too far, based on the trailer of it upcoming adventure. Called Light of Motiram, the game looks like a carbon copy of Guerilla Games’ Horizon series.
The game, made by Polaris Quest, a subsidiary of Tencent Games, is set to launch on PC via Steam and EGS, as well as the PS5 and iOS and Android mobile platforms. Both the teaser trailer and gameplay footage give us an idea of just how blatant the “inspiration” is throughout. From the texture and design of the creature to the costume design for the human characters, right down to the choice of font for its title. Even the background of the game is pretty much based off the same post-apocalyptic theme that Horizon is set in.
The one thing that seems to separate Light of Motiram from the Horizon series is the gameplay mechanics. Unlike the latter, the game has a base-building and trainer element, where you build shelters and structures where you can train “Mechanimals” that serve as your companions and even help you fight in battles.
There is also a multiplayer element supporting up to 10 players too, something that the current Horizon series does not have, although it can be argued that the more recent Lego Horizon Adventures has a co-op system.
Now, we all know this isn’t the first time a Chinese studio has taken specific elements from a popular video game and incorporated them into their own titles. Perhaps the most frequent, if not popular, example for this is Genshin Impact and how it emulated parts of its traversal mechanics from Nintendo’s Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
As of now, it remains to be seen whether or not Sony will issue a cease and desist to Tencent but to be fair, the company isn’t as litigious as Nintendo.
