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Sony Accuses Tencent Of "Playing A Shell Game" To Avoid Liability In Horizon Lawsuit
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https://www.gamespot.com/articles/sony-accuses-tencent-of-playing-a-shell-game-to-avoid-liability-in-horizon-lawsuit/1100-6535487/?ftag=CAD-01-10abi2f
image
https://www.gamespot.com/a/uploads/screen_medium/1578/15789366/4586277-horizonimage.jpg
description
Like tennis, Sony has lobbed the ball back at Tencent with a fiery shot, claiming in a new court filing that the Chinese conglomerate's defense in the two companies' ongoing legal battle over Light of Motiram is "nonsense."
As reported by The Game Post (and spotted by Eurogamer), Sony alleges in a recent court filing that Tencent is doing everything possible to avoid legal liability for Light of Motiram, a mobile game revealed in December 2024 that bears striking similarities to the Horizon franchise. While Tencent sought to have the lawsuit (which was filed in July 2025) dismissed over Sony's attempted "monopoly on genre conventions" in September 2025, Sony now claims that the damage has been done and Tencent is simply "playing a shell game."
"Tencent remarkably contends SIE's claims are unripe because--despite having announced and continuously promoted its game for months--Tencent (purportedly) delayed Light of Motiram's release until 2027 after SIE sued," Sony said. "This is nonsense. The damage is done--and it continues. Although the public expressed confusion and outrage upon discovering Light of Motiram for the knock-off that it is, Tencent remained undeterred. Tencent continued promoting its infringing game over SIE's objection, and Tencent refused to accept any responsibility over its conduct."
You probably know what a shell game is. It's a public gambling game involving a sleight of hand in which participants guess which cup is hiding the object--whatever the "object" may be--after the cups have been shuffled around. It's popped up in several video games, like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Watch Dogs, and more.
This is what Sony is accusing Tencent of doing, particularly since the Japanese company claims that the Chinese conglomerate is using various Tencent-owned studios to promote Light of Motiram. To Sony, it doesn't matter which studio promotes the game when Tencent Holdings, the parent company, is "at the helm" and holds the US trademark for the game and its official domain.
"After SIE was forced to sue, Tencent attempted to avoid liability by playing a shell game with its brands and entities," Sony said. "Tencent tried to shield Defendants that it owns and/or controls from service of process and now seeks to escape jurisdiction over the parent entity, Tencent Holdings. Tencent Holdings describes its own business as having a Games division that 'own[s] Aurora Studios'--the Light of Motiram development studio. Tencent Holdings reports all of its revenue and debt from games on its annual report without attribution to any subsidiary. And it uses the name Tencent to advertise its games, like Light of Motiram--without distinguishing between subsidiaries."
All of this, in Sony's point of view, will "[jeopardize] Horizon's continued success," claiming that Tencent's copying of Horizon and the franchise's protagonist, Aloy, was "so egregious" that everyone--critics, fans, journalists, the industry writ large--took notice. As such, Sony is requesting the court to deny Tencent's motion.
In other Sony news, the company apparently considered a The Last of Us mobile game collaboration with Tencent. How the tables turn.
content_html
Like tennis, Sony has lobbed the ball back at Tencent with a fiery shot, claiming in a new court filing that the Chinese conglomerate's defense in the two companies' ongoing legal battle over Light of Motiram is "nonsense."
As reported by The Game Post (and spotted by Eurogamer), Sony alleges in a recent court filing that Tencent is doing everything possible to avoid legal liability for Light of Motiram, a mobile game revealed in December 2024 that bears striking similarities to the Horizon franchise. While Tencent sought to have the lawsuit (which was filed in July 2025) dismissed over Sony's attempted "monopoly on genre conventions" in September 2025, Sony now claims that the damage has been done and Tencent is simply "playing a shell game."
"Tencent remarkably contends SIE's claims are unripe because--despite having announced and continuously promoted its game for months--Tencent (purportedly) delayed Light of Motiram's release until 2027 after SIE sued," Sony said. "This is nonsense. The damage is done--and it continues. Although the public expressed confusion and outrage upon discovering Light of Motiram for the knock-off that it is, Tencent remained undeterred. Tencent continued promoting its infringing game over SIE's objection, and Tencent refused to accept any responsibility over its conduct."
You probably know what a shell game is. It's a public gambling game involving a sleight of hand in which participants guess which cup is hiding the object--whatever the "object" may be--after the cups have been shuffled around. It's popped up in several video games, like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Watch Dogs, and more.
This is what Sony is accusing Tencent of doing, particularly since the Japanese company claims that the Chinese conglomerate is using various Tencent-owned studios to promote Light of Motiram. To Sony, it doesn't matter which studio promotes the game when Tencent Holdings, the parent company, is "at the helm" and holds the US trademark for the game and its official domain.
"After SIE was forced to sue, Tencent attempted to avoid liability by playing a shell game with its brands and entities," Sony said. "Tencent tried to shield Defendants that it owns and/or controls from service of process and now seeks to escape jurisdiction over the parent entity, Tencent Holdings. Tencent Holdings describes its own business as having a Games division that 'own[s] Aurora Studios'--the Light of Motiram development studio. Tencent Holdings reports all of its revenue and debt from games on its annual report without attribution to any subsidiary. And it uses the name Tencent to advertise its games, like Light of Motiram--without distinguishing between subsidiaries."
All of this, in Sony's point of view, will "[jeopardize] Horizon's continued success," claiming that Tencent's copying of Horizon and the franchise's protagonist, Aloy, was "so egregious" that everyone--critics, fans, journalists, the industry writ large--took notice. As such, Sony is requesting the court to deny Tencent's motion.
In other Sony news, the company apparently considered a The Last of Us mobile game collaboration with Tencent. How the tables turn.
content_text
Like tennis, Sony has lobbed the ball back at Tencent with a fiery shot, claiming in a new court filing that the Chinese conglomerate's defense in the two companies' ongoing legal battle over Light of Motiram is "nonsense."As reported by The Game Post (and spotted by Eurogamer), Sony alleges in a recent court filing that Tencent is doing everything possible to avoid legal liability for Light of Motiram, a mobile game revealed in December 2024 that bears striking similarities to the Horizon franchise. While Tencent sought to have the lawsuit (which was filed in July 2025) dismissed over Sony's attempted "monopoly on genre conventions" in September 2025, Sony now claims that the damage has been done and Tencent is simply "playing a shell game.""Tencent remarkably contends SIE's claims are unripe because--despite having announced and continuously promoted its game for months--Tencent (purportedly) delayed Light of Motiram's release until 2027 after SIE sued," Sony said. "This is nonsense. The damage is done--and it continues. Although the public expressed confusion and outrage upon discovering Light of Motiram for the knock-off that it is, Tencent remained undeterred. Tencent continued promoting its infringing game over SIE's objection, and Tencent refused to accept any responsibility over its conduct."You probably know what a shell game is. It's a public gambling game involving a sleight of hand in which participants guess which cup is hiding the object--whatever the "object" may be--after the cups have been shuffled around. It's popped up in several video games, like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Watch Dogs, and more.This is what Sony is accusing Tencent of doing, particularly since the Japanese company claims that the Chinese conglomerate is using various Tencent-owned studios to promote Light of Motiram. To Sony, it doesn't matter which studio promotes the game when Tencent Holdings, the parent company, is "at the helm" and holds the US trademark for the game and its official domain."After SIE was forced to sue, Tencent attempted to avoid liability by playing a shell game with its brands and entities," Sony said. "Tencent tried to shield Defendants that it owns and/or controls from service of process and now seeks to escape jurisdiction over the parent entity, Tencent Holdings. Tencent Holdings describes its own business as having a Games division that 'own[s] Aurora Studios'--the Light of Motiram development studio. Tencent Holdings reports all of its revenue and debt from games on its annual report without attribution to any subsidiary. And it uses the name Tencent to advertise its games, like Light of Motiram--without distinguishing between subsidiaries."All of this, in Sony's point of view, will "[jeopardize] Horizon's continued success," claiming that Tencent's copying of Horizon and the franchise's protagonist, Aloy, was "so egregious" that everyone--critics, fans, journalists, the industry writ large--took notice. As such, Sony is requesting the court to deny Tencent's motion.In other Sony news, the company apparently considered a The Last of Us mobile game collaboration with Tencent. How the tables turn.
pub_date
16 October 2025, 2:50 pm
guid
1100-6535487
creator
Levi Winslow
processed
TRUE
id: 84938
uid: le6CG
insdate: 2025-10-16 15:20:02
title: Sony Accuses Tencent Of "Playing A Shell Game" To Avoid Liability In Horizon Lawsuit
additional:
category: Game Spot
md5: cc08e2a15d454b5de1c94118bfad01aa
link: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/sony-accuses-tencent-of-playing-a-shell-game-to-avoid-liability-in-horizon-lawsuit/1100-6535487/?ftag=CAD-01-10abi2f
image: https://www.gamespot.com/a/uploads/screen_medium/1578/15789366/4586277-horizonimage.jpg
image_imgur:
description:
Like tennis, Sony has lobbed the ball back at Tencent with a fiery shot, claiming in a new court filing that the Chinese conglomerate's defense in the two companies' ongoing legal battle over Light of Motiram is "nonsense."
As reported by The Game Post (and spotted by Eurogamer), Sony alleges in a recent court filing that Tencent is doing everything possible to avoid legal liability for Light of Motiram, a mobile game revealed in December 2024 that bears striking similarities to the Horizon franchise. While Tencent sought to have the lawsuit (which was filed in July 2025) dismissed over Sony's attempted "monopoly on genre conventions" in September 2025, Sony now claims that the damage has been done and Tencent is simply "playing a shell game."
"Tencent remarkably contends SIE's claims are unripe because--despite having announced and continuously promoted its game for months--Tencent (purportedly) delayed Light of Motiram's release until 2027 after SIE sued," Sony said. "This is nonsense. The damage is done--and it continues. Although the public expressed confusion and outrage upon discovering Light of Motiram for the knock-off that it is, Tencent remained undeterred. Tencent continued promoting its infringing game over SIE's objection, and Tencent refused to accept any responsibility over its conduct."
You probably know what a shell game is. It's a public gambling game involving a sleight of hand in which participants guess which cup is hiding the object--whatever the "object" may be--after the cups have been shuffled around. It's popped up in several video games, like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Watch Dogs, and more.
This is what Sony is accusing Tencent of doing, particularly since the Japanese company claims that the Chinese conglomerate is using various Tencent-owned studios to promote Light of Motiram. To Sony, it doesn't matter which studio promotes the game when Tencent Holdings, the parent company, is "at the helm" and holds the US trademark for the game and its official domain.
"After SIE was forced to sue, Tencent attempted to avoid liability by playing a shell game with its brands and entities," Sony said. "Tencent tried to shield Defendants that it owns and/or controls from service of process and now seeks to escape jurisdiction over the parent entity, Tencent Holdings. Tencent Holdings describes its own business as having a Games division that 'own[s] Aurora Studios'--the Light of Motiram development studio. Tencent Holdings reports all of its revenue and debt from games on its annual report without attribution to any subsidiary. And it uses the name Tencent to advertise its games, like Light of Motiram--without distinguishing between subsidiaries."
All of this, in Sony's point of view, will "[jeopardize] Horizon's continued success," claiming that Tencent's copying of Horizon and the franchise's protagonist, Aloy, was "so egregious" that everyone--critics, fans, journalists, the industry writ large--took notice. As such, Sony is requesting the court to deny Tencent's motion.
In other Sony news, the company apparently considered a The Last of Us mobile game collaboration with Tencent. How the tables turn.
content_html:
Like tennis, Sony has lobbed the ball back at Tencent with a fiery shot, claiming in a new court filing that the Chinese conglomerate's defense in the two companies' ongoing legal battle over Light of Motiram is "nonsense."
As reported by The Game Post (and spotted by Eurogamer), Sony alleges in a recent court filing that Tencent is doing everything possible to avoid legal liability for Light of Motiram, a mobile game revealed in December 2024 that bears striking similarities to the Horizon franchise. While Tencent sought to have the lawsuit (which was filed in July 2025) dismissed over Sony's attempted "monopoly on genre conventions" in September 2025, Sony now claims that the damage has been done and Tencent is simply "playing a shell game."
"Tencent remarkably contends SIE's claims are unripe because--despite having announced and continuously promoted its game for months--Tencent (purportedly) delayed Light of Motiram's release until 2027 after SIE sued," Sony said. "This is nonsense. The damage is done--and it continues. Although the public expressed confusion and outrage upon discovering Light of Motiram for the knock-off that it is, Tencent remained undeterred. Tencent continued promoting its infringing game over SIE's objection, and Tencent refused to accept any responsibility over its conduct."
You probably know what a shell game is. It's a public gambling game involving a sleight of hand in which participants guess which cup is hiding the object--whatever the "object" may be--after the cups have been shuffled around. It's popped up in several video games, like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Watch Dogs, and more.
This is what Sony is accusing Tencent of doing, particularly since the Japanese company claims that the Chinese conglomerate is using various Tencent-owned studios to promote Light of Motiram. To Sony, it doesn't matter which studio promotes the game when Tencent Holdings, the parent company, is "at the helm" and holds the US trademark for the game and its official domain.
"After SIE was forced to sue, Tencent attempted to avoid liability by playing a shell game with its brands and entities," Sony said. "Tencent tried to shield Defendants that it owns and/or controls from service of process and now seeks to escape jurisdiction over the parent entity, Tencent Holdings. Tencent Holdings describes its own business as having a Games division that 'own[s] Aurora Studios'--the Light of Motiram development studio. Tencent Holdings reports all of its revenue and debt from games on its annual report without attribution to any subsidiary. And it uses the name Tencent to advertise its games, like Light of Motiram--without distinguishing between subsidiaries."
All of this, in Sony's point of view, will "[jeopardize] Horizon's continued success," claiming that Tencent's copying of Horizon and the franchise's protagonist, Aloy, was "so egregious" that everyone--critics, fans, journalists, the industry writ large--took notice. As such, Sony is requesting the court to deny Tencent's motion.
In other Sony news, the company apparently considered a The Last of Us mobile game collaboration with Tencent. How the tables turn.
content_text: Like tennis, Sony has lobbed the ball back at Tencent with a fiery shot, claiming in a new court filing that the Chinese conglomerate's defense in the two companies' ongoing legal battle over Light of Motiram is "nonsense."As reported by The Game Post (and spotted by Eurogamer), Sony alleges in a recent court filing that Tencent is doing everything possible to avoid legal liability for Light of Motiram, a mobile game revealed in December 2024 that bears striking similarities to the Horizon franchise. While Tencent sought to have the lawsuit (which was filed in July 2025) dismissed over Sony's attempted "monopoly on genre conventions" in September 2025, Sony now claims that the damage has been done and Tencent is simply "playing a shell game.""Tencent remarkably contends SIE's claims are unripe because--despite having announced and continuously promoted its game for months--Tencent (purportedly) delayed Light of Motiram's release until 2027 after SIE sued," Sony said. "This is nonsense. The damage is done--and it continues. Although the public expressed confusion and outrage upon discovering Light of Motiram for the knock-off that it is, Tencent remained undeterred. Tencent continued promoting its infringing game over SIE's objection, and Tencent refused to accept any responsibility over its conduct."You probably know what a shell game is. It's a public gambling game involving a sleight of hand in which participants guess which cup is hiding the object--whatever the "object" may be--after the cups have been shuffled around. It's popped up in several video games, like Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Watch Dogs, and more.This is what Sony is accusing Tencent of doing, particularly since the Japanese company claims that the Chinese conglomerate is using various Tencent-owned studios to promote Light of Motiram. To Sony, it doesn't matter which studio promotes the game when Tencent Holdings, the parent company, is "at the helm" and holds the US trademark for the game and its official domain."After SIE was forced to sue, Tencent attempted to avoid liability by playing a shell game with its brands and entities," Sony said. "Tencent tried to shield Defendants that it owns and/or controls from service of process and now seeks to escape jurisdiction over the parent entity, Tencent Holdings. Tencent Holdings describes its own business as having a Games division that 'own[s] Aurora Studios'--the Light of Motiram development studio. Tencent Holdings reports all of its revenue and debt from games on its annual report without attribution to any subsidiary. And it uses the name Tencent to advertise its games, like Light of Motiram--without distinguishing between subsidiaries."All of this, in Sony's point of view, will "[jeopardize] Horizon's continued success," claiming that Tencent's copying of Horizon and the franchise's protagonist, Aloy, was "so egregious" that everyone--critics, fans, journalists, the industry writ large--took notice. As such, Sony is requesting the court to deny Tencent's motion.In other Sony news, the company apparently considered a The Last of Us mobile game collaboration with Tencent. How the tables turn.
pub_date: 16 October 2025, 2:50 pm
guid: 1100-6535487
creator: Levi Winslow
related_games:
processed: TRUE