Tencent plans to release Light of Motiram, which some say is a ‘rip-off’ of Sony’s Horizon Games, on PS5

Tencent has announced plans to release its controversial open-world survival game Light of Motiram on PS5 as well as mobile and PC.

As reported by GematsuTencent announced the PS5 version on PlayStation’s Chinese social network accounts on Weibo and Bilibili.

Light of Motiram, from Shanghai-based Tencent subsidiary Polaris Quest, is a free-to-play survival game “where nature meets machine.” Screenshots and gameplay videos reveal a visual style similar to Guerrilla Games’ Horizon Zero Dawn and Forbidden West, complete with robotic animals in a post-apocalyptic setting. IGN has asked Tencent and Sony for comment.

Today, Tencent revealed a new seven-minute video showing more of Light of Motiram’s gameplay. After an intro that rekindles memories of Destiny’s famous Ghost ‘wake up, Guardian’ opening, we see gameplay that looks heavily inspired by e.g. Capcom’s Monster Hunter and Pocketpair’s Palworld, which itself was accused of “ripping off” Pokémon.

Light of Motiram lets players make friends and raise different ‘mechanisms’ alone or with friends. You need to set up a base camp and ride on tamed mechs like mounts, get them to help with logging, farming and crafting. Mechanical animals can serve as ground, air, and water mounts, aid in combat, and aid in resource gathering.

Tencent said Light of Motiram features hundreds of realistic survival gameplay mechanics. “Trees must be carefully felled or they cause a quick death, a shelter must be ventilated before lighting a fire so as not to suffocate, and lightning can strike (more than a few times) if you are caught in metal in a storm,” said the company. “These realistic details can be used to the players’ advantage, as, for example, lightning damage can electrocute fish and make the process of fishing much easier and faster.”

While this kind of multiplayer survival gameplay isn’t featured in the Horizon games, the look and feel of Light of Motiram’s characters, monsters, and world are undeniably similar. Guerilla is of course working on a multiplayer, live-service Horizon game – Light of Motiram can step on its toes a bit, although we’ll have to wait for a reveal to find out.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can contact Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].