Light of Motiram Mirrors Horizon on PlayStation, While Palworld Clearly Channels Pokemon

Hey, wake up! It looks like we’ve got another controversial game release on our hands that might stir up some legal drama. Tencent Games, along with its subsidiary Polaris Quest, just unveiled a game called Light of Motiram. It seems suspiciously similar to PlayStation’s Horizon series, but they’re claiming it’s "legally distinct." Interestingly, this new title is set to launch as an MMO exclusively on PC – at least for the moment.

The announcement kind of came out of nowhere. A press release, which you can find on Gematsu, was filled with trailers, screenshots, and there’s already a Steam page that spills a lot of the details. It’s also going to be available on the Epic Games Store, but whether it’ll be free-to-play or have a price tag attached remains to be seen.

Palworld devs might be breathing a bit easier right now since Light of Motiram is definitely in the spotlight for how similar it looks to an existing IP. I can’t imagine Sony won’t react by throwing their lawyers at Tencent. The game’s overall look and the design of the creatures definitely make you do a double (or even a triple) take because it feels like it’s crossing some significant boundaries.

You can watch the main teaser trailer below, as more videos have been released:

Imagine this – the announcement came before PlayStation even had the chance to roll out its own online-only Horizon game. PlayStation has been placing a big bet on live-service games, trying to get a grip on a market that brings along its own share of challenges. If the ongoing success of Palworld has shown us anything, it’s that players typically aren’t picky about a game’s originality as long as it’s fun. If Polaris Quest has nailed a compelling gameplay loop, it could pose a threat to PlayStation and Guerrilla’s plans for Horizon, which means more legal issues might be brewing.

Light of Motiram is sticking to a survival and crafting formula that’s been doing really well lately. Interestingly, the way combat’s designed looks a lot like Monster Hunter, which makes sense if you’re trying to transfer Horizon’s machine battles into a co-op setting. I wouldn’t be surprised if Guerrilla has the same combat style in mind for its upcoming Horizon project.

Here’s a sneak peek:

No, this is not Horizon.
Image credit: POLARIS QUEST

This is just another twist in Horizon’s rather rocky journey. Sony seems determined to push it as their current major franchise, even though interest tends to fade a few weeks after each release. It’s often launched its games beside more intriguing titles, and the recent Lego Horizon Adventures didn’t exactly light up the sales charts, especially on PC.

Adding to Horizon’s woes, the live-action series planned for Netflix has been shelved. Both PlayStation Studios and the streaming service have put it on pause, with rumors swirling of a "toxic work environment" under showrunner Steve Blackman, known for The Umbrella Academy. Talk about hitting roadblocks!