Sony Demands Preliminary Injunction Against Tencent’s Light of Motiram in High-Stakes IP Battle

Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) has dramatically escalated its ongoing copyright and trademark infringement lawsuit against Chinese technology giant Tencent, filing a motion for a preliminary injunction in a U.S. federal court. The move aims to immediately halt Tencent’s promotion and further development of its upcoming open-world survival game, Light of Motiram, which Sony alleges is a “slavish clone” of its highly successful Horizon franchise, specifically Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West.

This aggressive legal maneuver comes as a direct response to Tencent’s earlier motion to dismiss the lawsuit, in which the Chinese corporation argued that Light of Motiram merely utilizes “well-trodden” genre tropes and that Sony is attempting to gain an “impermissible monopoly” over common game conventions. Sony, however, is steadfast in its claim that the copying is “egregious” and poses an immediate and irreparable threat to the integrity and continued commercial success of the Horizon IP.

The Core of the Copyright Infringement Claims

The original lawsuit, filed in July, outlined numerous striking similarities between the two games. The current motion for a preliminary injunction focuses on preventing Tencent from utilizing several specific and protected elements. This action is critical for SIE, as a successful preliminary injunction would essentially force Tencent to cease or drastically redesign key components of the game while the broader copyright and trademark lawsuit proceeds.

Key Elements Targeted by the Injunction:

  • The Protagonist: Sony is seeking to bar the use of a “fierce tribal warrior huntress characterized by fiery red hair” that it claims is an undeniable copy of the Horizon protagonist, Aloy, a character considered a core symbol of the PlayStation brand.
  • Visual and Narrative Themes: The injunction targets the overall aesthetic, including the post-apocalyptic world featuring robotic wildlife or ‘animal-like machines,’ which is a hallmark of the Horizon universe.
  • Musical Composition: Sony also alleges that a melody used in promotional materials for Light of Motiram is too similar to two specific compositions from the Horizon Zero Dawn official soundtrack: the main theme and “City on the Mesa.”

Sony’s legal filing emphasizes that the public reaction since the initial reveal of Light of Motiram in late 2024—with journalists and fans alike describing the game as an “obvious knock-off” and “Horizon Zero Originality”—serves as undeniable proof of consumer confusion and the resulting harm to the Aloy Character Mark’s goodwill and reputation.

Tencent’s “Shell Game” Defense and Sony’s Rebuttal

In its effort to dismiss the case, Tencent, through its various subsidiaries, argued that Sony’s claims are “unripe” for consideration, partly due to the game’s publicly announced release date being pushed back to late 2027. Tencent also attempted to distance its parent company from direct liability by claiming the game is being developed and published by various entities, including Polaris Quest and Proxima Beta.

Sony has vehemently rejected this defense, calling the arguments “nonsense” and accusing Tencent of “playing a shell game” with its corporate structure to evade responsibility. In court documents, Sony asserts that the deliberate copying and the subsequent public backlash mean “the damage is done—and it continues.” Furthermore, Sony points out that Tencent’s action of quietly scrubbing controversial screenshots and character art from the Light of Motiram Steam page immediately after the lawsuit was filed acts as a tacit admission of infringement.

Implications for the Gaming Industry and IP Protection

This lawsuit is quickly becoming one of the most significant intellectual property battles in the modern gaming industry, with vast implications for copyright protection and the limits of “genre conventions.” The outcome could set a critical precedent for how global developers approach open-world and survival-action RPG design, especially concerning the replication of unique aesthetic elements and core character concepts.

The preliminary injunction hearing is currently scheduled for November 20, 2025, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. A ruling in Sony’s favor could force a rapid and complete overhaul of Light of Motiram’s promotional strategy and development path. Conversely, a rejection of the injunction would be a significant blow to Sony’s case and could embolden other studios to push the boundaries of creative similarity. The future of the AAA game development landscape and the global protection of valuable video game IP hang in the balance.