Sony and Tencent Settle Over Horizon Clone Lawsuit
• Case settled between Sony (SIE) and Tencent over alleged copy of Horizon; terms confidential. • Litigation dismissed with prejudice; neither party will refile on this claim and each pays own legal costs. • Tencent paused marketing and testing for Light of Motiram; the game remains delisted on Steam and Epic Games Store.
Settlement summary
Sony and Tencent have reached a confidential settlement in the dispute over similarities between Sony’s Horizon franchise and Tencent’s Light of Motiram. The agreement’s terms were not disclosed publicly.
The court case has been dismissed with prejudice, which prevents Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) from bringing the same claim again. Both companies will cover their own legal fees.
Background: what sparked the lawsuit
Sony filed suit in July 2025, alleging that Light of Motiram was a “slavish clone” of Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West. SIE said Tencent had pitched an entry to the Horizon series, been turned down, and then released a game with striking similarities.
In its original filing Sony wrote, “SIE is far from alone in recognising the striking similarities that Tencent’s new Light of Motiram game shares with Horizon.” That language set the stage for a high-profile copyright battle between two industry heavyweights.
Responses from both sides
Tencent fought back publicly, arguing that Sony was attempting to claim a “monopoly on genre conventions” and was improperly trying to turn common genre elements into proprietary assets. Tencent’s defense framed the dispute as a broader question about where inspiration ends and infringement begins.
Sony dismissed that defense as unfounded. At one point the company said, “The damage is done – and it continues,” arguing that public perception had already harmed the Horizon brand.
Current status of Light of Motiram
Ahead of a scheduled January 2026 court date, Tencent paused marketing and testing for Light of Motiram. The title remains removed from storefronts including Steam and the Epic Games Store while the companies resolved the litigation.
Industry implications
The confidential settlement closes a rare, high-profile IP dispute between a major console platform holder and a large Chinese publisher. It leaves open questions about how courts will handle claims over genre conventions and visual or mechanical similarities in future disputes.
For now, both companies appear to be moving on quietly, with the legal record ending in dismissal and a public spotlight on how game design boundaries are legally defined.
