logo
Sony calls Tencent game ‘slavish clone' of Horizon in new lawsuit

Sony calls Tencent game ‘slavish clone' of Horizon in new lawsuit

The Verge18 hours ago
Sony is suing Tencent to attempt to stop the release of Light of Motiram, which Sony describes as a 'slavish clone' of its Horizon series of games, as reported by Reuters. Light of Motiram was announced last year with a trailer featuring an aesthetic that's quite similar to the Horizon franchise — including huge robot animals and even a title font that resembles the Horizon games.
In its complaint, Sony alleges that 'unlawful copying of the protected audiovisual elements of the Horizon games, as well as its deliberate adoption of a confusingly similar character mark, constitutes both copyright and trademark infringement that should be enjoined immediately.'
According to the lawsuit, Tencent started developing Light of Motiram in 2023. At the Game Developers Conference in March 2024, Tencent allegedly pitched Sony on a proposal that would have its Aurora Studios subsidiary 'develop a Horizon sequel game under the requested license,' which Sony rejected. 'Apparently, Tencent was undeterred by SIE's refusal to license its Horizon intellectual property,' Sony says.
According to the game's Steam page, Light of Motiram's developer and publisher is Polaris Quest. In the lawsuit, Sony alleges that 'Upon information and belief, Tencent Shanghai does business under the names 'Aurora Studios' and/or 'Polaris Quest.''
Sony says that it 'had discussions with Tencent' to informally try to 'resolve its concern that Light of Motiram violated its intellectual property rights.' However, Sony alleges that Tencent 'again sought to license the Horizon intellectual property,' to which it 'communicated clearly and unequivocally that it would not license the Horizon assets to Tencent, objected to Light of Motiram, and insisted that it be withdrawn.'
Tencent didn't reply to a request for comment.
This isn't the only high-profile lawsuit over allegedly similar video games. Last year, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Palworld-developer Pocketpair. Pocketpair said in May that it had to remove features from the game due to the lawsuit.
Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All by Jay Peters
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All Gaming
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All News
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All PlayStation
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All Sony
Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
See All Tech
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Sony's PlayStation Sues Tencent Over Its ‘Slavish Clone' of ‘Horizon' Video Game Franchise
Sony's PlayStation Sues Tencent Over Its ‘Slavish Clone' of ‘Horizon' Video Game Franchise

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Sony's PlayStation Sues Tencent Over Its ‘Slavish Clone' of ‘Horizon' Video Game Franchise

Sony's PlayStation is suing China-based video game giant Tencent over copyright and trademark infringement regarding the former's 'Horizon' franchise. Per a lawsuit filed July 25 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Sony Interactive Entertainment is alleging Tencent's upcoming game 'Light of Motiram' is a 'slavish clone' of the 'Horizon Zero Dawn' and 'Horizon Forbidden West' video games. More from Variety Sony's New Noise-Canceling Headphones Reshape Audio Clarity and Sound Immersion: Here's How to Buy a Pair Online 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' Gets Custom-Curated Fragrance Set From Scentbird Prime Day Ends Tonight: Here Are the Best Deals on Headphones: Apple, Bose, Sony and More PlayStation says its seeking to 'to prevent the imminent release of 'Light of Motiram' — a slavish clone of SIE's immensely popular, award-winning Horizon series of video games. Tencent's copying of Horizonis so blatant that the public has described it as 'crazy,' 'insane,' and 'shameless.' Tencent also used its rip-off of the iconic Horizon main character 'Aloy' as the centerpiece of its pre-release marketing and promotional strategy, deliberately causing numerous game lovers to confuse 'Light of Motiram' as the next game in the 'Horizon' series when encountering Tencent's promotional game play videos and social media accounts.' The lawsuit requests statutory damages of $150,000 for each separate work in the 'Horizon' franchise infringed or of 'SIE's actual damages sustained as a result of Defendants' acts of copyright infringement,' as well as other monetary damages. Representatives for both PlayStation and Tencent did not immediately respond to request for comment Monday. Tencent has not yet set a release date for 'Light of Motiram,' which it describes as follows: 'In a world overrun by colossal machines, explore the vast open world, build your base of operations, advance technology, train Mechanimals, and take on formidable bosses. Starting from the primitive age, forge a new path of development. Defy the machination, survive with mechanimals.' For comparison, here is PlayStation's description for 2017's 'Horizon Zero Dawn,' the first game in its 'Horizon' series: 'In a far future where colossal machines roam and rule the Earth, pockets of humanity survive in unique tribes among the lush, overgrown ruins of our long-lost civilization. Take up bow and spear as Aloy, a young machine hunter and outcast of her tribe, as she discovers her origins, the truth of this mysterious world, and her own destiny to save it from impending doom. ' Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? Final Emmy Predictions: Talk Series and Scripted Variety - New Blood Looks to Tackle Late Night Staples

Elgato's new 4K webcam lets you swap lens filters like a pro camera
Elgato's new 4K webcam lets you swap lens filters like a pro camera

The Verge

time2 hours ago

  • The Verge

Elgato's new 4K webcam lets you swap lens filters like a pro camera

Elgato is launching its Facecam 4K webcam today, which brings the price of 4K resolution and 60fps recording down to $199.99. While the Facecam 4K is $100 less than the Facecam Pro, it also has support for optional lens filters — a first for a webcam. The Facecam 4K will support any 49mm lens filter, allowing owners to apply cinematic effects like diffusion or reduce reflections from glasses with circular polarizing (CPL) filters. Elgato is even offering a free CPL filter with Facecam 4K orders through its own store, or a privacy cap that attaches just like a DSLR camera cap does. You can also purchase third-party macro, black mist, and star filters to completely change the look of 4K recordings. Elgato's Facecam 4K uses Sony's Starvis 2 CMOS sensor with a f/4.0 aperture, fixed focus, and Elgato prime lens. That means the Facecam Pro's f/2.0 aperture will still be better for low-light situations. Much like the Facecam Pro, you can record at up to 4K with 60fps or up to 4K with 30fps and HDR enabled. The Facecam 4K will connect over USB-C, has a 1/4-inch thread for mounting, and weighs 0.25 lbs (112 grams) without the monitor mount and cable. Elgato is pairing its latest webcam with its Camera Hub software that lets you manually adjust ISO, exposure, and shutter speed settings, as well as pan, tilt, and zoom to get the ideal crop for a webcam feed. You can also save all of these settings directly to the camera's built-in memory, so you don't have to keep Camera Hub running. If you have an Nvidia RTX graphics card, you can also get an improved DSLR-like depth-of-field effect with background blur. The Facecam 4K will also work with Elgato's Prompter hardware, thanks to a replacement backplate that will be available to purchase from Elgato's web store. Elgato is also shipping Facecam 4K backplates with new Prompter purchases, replacing the existing Facecam Pro backplate. This suggests that the Facecam 4K will ultimately replace the Facecam Pro at a lower price point, much like how the company's new 4K S capture device lowers the price for 4K 60fps gameplay recording. Elgato's Facecam 4K is also compatible with the Nintendo Switch 2, as long as you update the webcam's firmware to version 2.32 or later. The Facecam 4K is available today at $199.99 in the US, £179.99 in the UK, and €199.99 across Europe. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All by Tom Warren Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Creators Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All News Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. See All Tech

India overtakes China as biggest smartphone exporter to the United States, report says
India overtakes China as biggest smartphone exporter to the United States, report says

CNN

time2 hours ago

  • CNN

India overtakes China as biggest smartphone exporter to the United States, report says

Tech giants Asia China IndiaFacebookTweetLink Follow For the first time India has overtaken China as the No. 1 exporter of smartphones to the United States, following Apple's tariff-driven manufacturing pivot to New Delhi. India-made devices accounted for 44% of smartphone imports in the US during the second quarter, up sharply from 13% during the same period last year, according to a new report published Monday by research firm Canalys. The total volume of smartphones made in India jumped 240% year-over-year, Canalys wrote. Meanwhile, the share of the devices exported to the US that were assembled in China fell to just 25%. That marks a significant decline from the 61% share China logged during the same quarter a year ago — and it means China has dropped all the way to third place, behind Vietnam. India's newfound lead is 'largely driven' by US tech giant Apple (AAPL) accelerating its manufacturing shift to the country, away from China, given the 'uncertain trade landscape' between Washington and Beijing, said Canalys principal analyst Sanyam Chaurasia. 'Apple has scaled up its production capacity in India over the last several years… and has opted to dedicate most of its export capacity in India to supply the US market so far in 2025,' he wrote. That said, Apple is still 'dependent' on its established manufacturing bases in China, Chaurasia noted. Smartphones and other electronics containing semiconductors are exempt from US President Donald Trump's so-called reciprocal tariffs, sparing China-made iPhones from the harshest levies. But Apple CEO Tim Cook said in May that these devices still faced a minimum 20% tariff. At the time, Cook said that he expected that 'the majority of iPhones sold in the US will have India as their country of origin.' Trump hopes to fuel a resurgence in US-based manufacturing by hiking tariffs on America's trading partners, leaving products made in foreign factories more expensive for US consumers. China has arguably taken the biggest hit. Earlier this year, Trump imposed a whopping 145% overall tariff on China, prompting Beijing to retaliate with its own 125% across-the-board levy on US goods. Both sides agreed in May to drastically roll back 'reciprocal' tariffs for a 90-day period. US and Chinese trade negotiators are meeting in Sweden this week for talks aimed at extending that truce, which could allow time to hammer out a lasting deal. But despite the recent détente, months of Trump's rollercoaster on-and-off tariffs have encouraged manufacturers to look beyond China. It extends a longer-running trend of companies attempting to diversify their supply chains away from China, the world's second-largest economy. In recent years, fast-growing Asian economies like Vietnam and India have emerged as alternative locations for manufacturers as ties between Beijing and the West have frayed. During the pandemic, too, China's strict zero-Covid policy scrambled global supply chains and highlighted the risks of concentrating production in a single location. 'The uncertain outcome of negotiations with China has accelerated supply chain reorientation,' analysts at Canalys wrote in their report. Lisa Eadicicco, John Liu, Nectar Gan and Auzinea Bacon contributed reporting.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store