High-Stakes Copyright Clash: Sony Files Preliminary Injunction in ‘Horizon’ vs. ‘Light of Motiram’ Lawsuit

San Francisco, CA – The legal showdown between gaming titans Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) and Tencent has intensified, as Sony officially filed for a preliminary injunction in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The move seeks to bar the Chinese conglomerate from promoting, distributing, or using numerous elements of its upcoming open-world survival game, Light of Motiram, which Sony has consistently labeled a “slavish clone” of its globally successful Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West franchise.

This aggressive legal maneuver, filed late last week, is Sony’s latest effort to protect its highly valuable intellectual property (IP) and the PlayStation brand from what it argues is blatant copyright and trademark infringement. The preliminary injunction aims to halt the alleged copying before Light of Motiram’s purportedly delayed release in late 2027, preventing further consumer confusion and irreparable harm to the Horizon franchise.

The Core of the Dispute: Aloy and Unmistakable Similarities

The original lawsuit, filed in July, outlined pervasive similarities between Light of Motiram, developed by Tencent subsidiary Polaris Quest/Aurora Studios, and the Horizon series. Key points of contention highlighted in the injunction request focus on protected elements that Sony claims go beyond “well-trodden tropes,” a defense previously employed by Tencent in its motion to dismiss the case.

  • The Aloy Character Mark: Sony specifically seeks to prevent Tencent from using the central protagonist of Light of Motiram, described in court documents as a “fierce tribal warrior huntress characterized by fiery red hair,” which Sony asserts is a thinly veiled copy of Horizon’s iconic lead, Aloy. Sony argues that Aloy is a critical symbol of the PlayStation ecosystem.
  • Visual and Narrative Elements: The injunction targets other visual and storyline elements allegedly copied from the Horizon Works, including the distinct post-apocalyptic setting featuring primitive tribes battling massive, futuristic robot dinosaurs and mechanical wildlife.
  • Musical Infringement: The filing also addresses an alleged melody in a Light of Motiram trailer, claiming it is strikingly similar to two compositions from the Horizon Zero Dawn OST, namely the main theme and “City on the Mesa.”

Sony Rejects ‘Trope’ Defense and Accuses ‘Shell Game’ Tactics

Sony’s opposition filing to Tencent’s motion to dismiss was unreserved, branding Tencent’s arguments as “nonsense.” Tencent had previously argued that Horizon itself utilizes common genre tropes—a defense that Sony believes ignores the specific, pervasive nature of the alleged copying. Furthermore, Sony claims that the public reaction following Light of Motiram‘s announcement—where numerous fans and journalists immediately recognized it as an “obvious knock off”—demonstrates the actual confusion and damage already inflicted on the Horizon brand’s goodwill and reputation.

The PlayStation maker also fired back at Tencent’s strategic response to the lawsuit, which included scrubbing various screenshots from the Light of Motiram Steam page that prominently featured the Aloy-like character and robotic creatures. Simultaneously, Tencent delayed the game’s release from late 2025 to late 2027. Sony accused the conglomerate of playing a “shell game” with its various subsidiaries and brand entities in an attempt to shield itself from legal liability, arguing that the damage to the intellectual property is “done—and it continues.”

Impact on the Horizon Franchise and Upcoming Projects

Declarations filed in support of Sony’s injunction, including one from Guerrilla Games Studio Director Jan-Bart van Beek, emphasize the significant investment Sony has made in developing the Horizon IP and the potential for Light of Motiram to compromise the franchise’s continued success. Of particular note, the court documents have also unexpectedly revealed updates on Sony’s broader game review and media strategy for the franchise:

  • Movie Adaptation Advancements: Head of PlayStation Productions Asad Qizilbash’s sworn declaration disclosed that the highly anticipated Horizon Zero Dawn film adaptation now has a working script and is actively scouting for a director. The movie is expected to begin shooting in 2026 and premiere in 2027, further cementing Aloy’s status as a “key icon” for the studio.
  • Future Game Expansion: The legal filings underscore ongoing plans for further expansion within the core Horizon game review series and related products, projects which Sony argues are directly jeopardized by the existence and promotion of a high-profile “slavish clone.”

The request for a preliminary injunction is scheduled for a hearing before Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley on November 20, 2025. A favorable ruling for Sony could force Tencent to immediately pull all infringing promotional material, halt development on the use of the disputed IP, and potentially force a significant redesign of Light of Motiram. The outcome of this case is being closely watched across the video game industry, as it will set a critical precedent for intellectual property protection in the fiercely competitive global AAA gaming market.