Palworld’s Parallels with Pokémon Mirror Light of Motiram’s Resemblance to Horizon

Hey, wake up, because it looks like we’ve got another gaming controversy on our hands, and this one’s nearly begging for a lawsuit. Tencent Games, along with their offshoot, Polaris Quest, have just unveiled a new game called Light of Motiram. It boldly offers a ‘legally distinct’ spin on PlayStation’s well-known Horizon series—and here’s the kicker: it’s an MMO exclusively for PC—at least for now.

This surprising news hit the gaming scene with a bang, accompanied by a detailed press release (thanks to Gematsu), complete with flashy trailers, screenshots, and a Steam page brimming with information. Plus, it’s set to drop on the Epic Games Store too. What about the pricing or if it’ll be free-to-play? That’s still under wraps.

Gotta admit, developers over at Palworld can probably breathe a bit now, since Light of Motiram is definitely going to grab plenty of attention, especially when we’re talking IP similarities. It’s hard to envision a future where Sony doesn’t jump to action, lawyers at the ready. From its overall vibe to the design of its creatures—I did a double, maybe even triple take—it’s clear Light of Motiram is tiptoeing in some tricky territory.

Eager for a glimpse? You can check out the main teaser trailer below. Spoiler alert: More videos are on the way.

Now, what’s particularly amusing is the timing of this news. It arrives before PlayStation has officially announced their online-only Horizon project, which seems to be a major play in the live-service realm, a real troublemaker for the bigwigs. If there’s anything Palworld’s success has taught us, it’s that casual gamers aren’t too fussed if a game resembles another’s, as long as it delivers fun. So, if Polaris Quest nails that captivating gameplay loop, PlayStation might have a real issue on their hands, and we might see legal fireworks over this. You see what I did there?

Going by what’s promised, Light of Motiram will hone in on the survival and crafting gameplay that’s been such a money-maker lately. The battle sequences sound very reminiscent of Monster Hunter, which makes sense for adapting Horizon’s machine battles into a co-op format. It’s likely something Guerrilla might be considering with their own long-awaited Horizon venture.

Despite everything, it looks like Horizon’s roadmap is littered with hurdles. This franchise, which Sony seems to be betting on heavily, hasn’t managed to keep up the hype beyond its initial launch phase. Its releases often debut alongside more captivating titles and, increasingly, it feels overshadowed. Even Lego Horizon Adventures didn’t make waves with its PC sales.

Compounding Horizon’s hardships, the anticipated live-action series at Netflix ran into issues as well. It’s been put on hold indefinitely after reports surfaced about a not-so-great work environment—allegedly facilitated by showrunner Steve Blackman of Umbrella Academy fame. Yikes, indeed.