You be the judge – Does Tencent-backed Light of Motiram look like Sony’s Horizon series?

A big publisher just announced an open-world game with a post-apocalyptic setting, in which players can fight against gigantic mechanical beasts. No, I’m not talking about Sony’s beloved Horizon series, but about Tencent’s brand-new title: Light of Motiram.

Developed by one of Tencent’s subsidiaries, Polaris Quest, Light of Motiram admittedly looks like an impressive and ambitious 3D open-world adventure and the enemy designs of its “Mechanimals” are quite interesting. It has clearly taken a lot of inspiration from the Horizon series.

This is even more evident when we take a look at its teaser trailer: The barren wastelands, the design philosophy of the Mechanimals, the choir in the background music, the appearance of the playable character and the other humans and even some of the gameplay mechanics, like the ability to hijack and ride one of the mechanical beasts.

So far, it seems like Light of Motiram is borrowing way too many elements from Guerrilla Games’ iconic franchise. The only prominent difference is that its combat is apparently more focused on melee weapons rather than long-distance weapons, although this is also very reminiscent of the Monster Hunter franchise, especially with its oversized hammers and swords.

The internet claims that Light of Motiram looks way too similar to the Horizon series

Even though Tencent and Polaris Quest revealed Light of Motiram just a few hours ago, it didn’t take long for gamers to point out how similar it looks to Horizon, to the point that many are already calling it a “rip-off” or a “clone.” The comments of Light of Motiram‘s teaser trailer are a good example of this, with many people making jokes and memes, calling it things like “Horizon at home” or “Horizon: Forbidden East” (A riff on the second game in the series, Horizon: Forbidden West)

But things got a lot more serious over in the r/horizon subreddit, where fans of the franchise are accusing Light of Motiram of being a “bootleg” of looking “soulless,” of deliberately ripping off the visuals from both Horizon and Monster Hunter Wilds and of copying Horizon’s signature soundtrack. Other fans remain optimistic, however, claiming that they are willing to play Light of Motiram if it turns out to be fun.

Several Twitter users also joined in the accusations, with some wondering if Sony’s lawyers are going to do something about it, but the company hasn’t said anything on the matter yet.