"Horizon Zero Originality": Tencent’s Light of Motiram Slammed As A "Shameless" Clone Of Sony’s Horizon Series : games

[–] slaacaa@lemmy.world 43 points 3 weeks ago

They are actually planning a trilogy:

Horizon: Zero Copyright
Horizon: Forbidden East
Horizon: Call of the Lawyer

[–] sylver_dragon@lemmy.world 26 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Hey now, this will be a very unique game. Did Horizon: Zero Dawn have horribly grindy MMO game mechanics and monetization so far up your ass you could taste it? This is Tencent after all. Checkmate, haters.

~/s for the blindingly stupid.~

[–] vulgarcynic@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

While I love the sentiment, it might be a matter of both unfortunately. But, we have NCSoft at the helm instead of TenCent.

https://horizon.fandom.com/wiki/Project_H

[–] EvilBit@lemmy.world 14 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I remember Immortals: Fenyx Rising looking like a shameless, soulless ripoff of Breath of the Wild. Turned out to be an amazingly fun game that didn’t take itself as seriously as Zelda but had a tremendously satisfying gameplay loop and some really solid humor.

This isn’t that though. This is gonna be some creatively bankrupt trash.

[–] jacksilver@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

I think Fenyx Rising was actually a better game than BOTW. The combat system was more entertaining, the skills you got enabled more interesting platforming, and it actually had a plot/story l.

[–] EvilBit@lemmy.world 4 points 3 weeks ago

I think it was a legitimately more fun game, and quite a bit more approachable. The production wasn’t quite as polished, but pound for pound I think I had a better time with it.

[–] thericofactor@sh.itjust.works 12 points 3 weeks ago

No, they're angry that this game, although it is in the same genre, got no originality or creativity from it's makers. It's an almost exact copy.

[–] carpelbridgesyndrome@sh.itjust.works 9 points 3 weeks ago

Did they really need to copy the font? There are small things they could have done to make this not so blatant.

[–] starman2112@sh.itjust.works 8 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Some of those robots look sick, but I'll be damned if they don't look like a Horizon fanfic.

This looks about as creatively bankrupt as Palworld, but at least Ark But With Pokemon took two games that I don't like and mashed up my favorite parts of both. I already like Horizon and Monster Hunter, so Horizon But With Monster Hunter has nothing to offer me

[–] ByteOnBikes@slrpnk.net 1 points 3 weeks ago

creatively bankrupt as Palworld

Not disagreeing. Their other game, Craftopia, is also a blend of a bunch of mechanics of other games. The small indie Japanese studio is giving people what they want. And I'm rooting for them.

[–] realitista@lemm.ee 5 points 3 weeks ago

What do you expect for ten cents?

[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

i mean if it weren't an mmo i'd at least check it out from the libary

[+] DarkMetatron@feddit.org -6 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

A world with mechanical animals is not unique to Horizon and was not even new when Horizon came out. The Xenoblade Series for example has mechanimals and this is not even the first either, just the first I can think of right now.

And the rest of the world, and the battle system, looks like Monster Hunter so it is not really new or Horizon exclusive either.

[–] rhombus@sh.itjust.works 19 points 3 weeks ago

It’s not just that it’s a “world with mechanical animals”, it’s the entire design aesthetic is completely lifted from Horizon. It’s obviously a different kind of game, but the character and animal designs look straight out of the Horizon games.

[–] starman2112@sh.itjust.works 7 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

In a world where human civilization has ceased to exist, traverse grasslands, deserts, forests, and mountains to explore unique Mechanimals and mysterious ruins in different regions, unlocking the secrets of MOTIRAM.

Do you really think the only thing this has in common with Horizon is the mechanical beasts? It can bolt on whatever other mechanics it wants, the base game is a shameless ripoff.

Other people are bringing up other games with robotic animals, but each of these has a distinct visual aesthetic. I can tell a ReCore robot from a Horizon robot from a... wow, those are the only two I can think of. It would have been really easy to enter the market with their own unique aesthetic instead of being indistinguishable from Horizon

[–] DarkMetatron@feddit.org 0 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

To be honest this is the story of every post apocalyptic world, just with mechanical animals.

Yes, it is very close from the optical aesthetic, but is this anything new? Every somewhat successful game has always inspired other "clone" games, just look at all the DOOM clones, all the Soulslikes, all the battle royal games, etc out there. This is just the first game in the new genre of Horizonlikes

[–] starman2112@sh.itjust.works 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

I didn't say that no one's ever ripped off a popular game before...

I'm more than willing to call certain games ripoffs of others if they're visually indistinguishable. The thing with soulslikes is that every one I've tried has been rather unique. I'm sure there are some that are blatant ripoffs of Dark Souls/Bloodborne, but I wouldn't say that about Steelrising, or Flintlock, or Remnant, or Code Vein. Fortnite and PUBG popularized the Battle Royale genre, but I wouldn't call Apex Legends or Spellbreak ripoffs of them. This game looks like Horizon the way that Never Grave looks like Hollow Knight.

I'm totally into a new genre of Horizonlikes. I just want them to offer something unique within the genre.

[–] DarkMetatron@feddit.org 2 points 3 weeks ago

Ok, yes that is a good and fair argument! I can totally understand your position, thanks for your explanation.

So far it is only a trailer, maybe it has something unique to offer after all. There is always hope 😃

[–] hal_5700X@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 weeks ago

Don't forget about ReCore.

[+] slug@lemmy.world -12 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

competition is good, this game might push some new mechanics that work well with this kind of world/story and Sony will have to catch up, thus making the franchise better.

[–] starman2112@sh.itjust.works 7 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

This game will come up with about as many new mechanics as Palworld did

[–] slug@lemmy.world 0 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

you think that's a counterexample but it's not.

[–] starman2112@sh.itjust.works 5 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

What new game mechanics did Palworld introduce? Everything is kitbashed from Ark and Pokemon.

Not that I hold anything against it, it's more fun than either Ark or Pokemon, but I don't pretend that it's anything new

[+] djsoren19@yiffit.net -50 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

Ah yes, Horizon Zero, a series well known for being very unique and definitely not another open-world crafting/survival/action game. Are people angry that they'll be playing a copy of a copy?

[–] illi@lemm.ee 51 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

I dare to say the setting is quite unique

[–] CitizenKong@lemmy.world 23 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

And actually has a really good, thought-out story.

[–] Spacehooks@reddthat.com 14 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Really hammered home the danger of tech bros.

[–] dance_ninja@lemmy.world 13 points 3 weeks ago

Fuck Ted Faro!

[–] BrundleFly2077@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Dashing and daring, courageous and caring!

[–] istoff@lemmy.world 2 points 3 weeks ago

Wow. What cynic downvotes that reference? Duke?

[–] brsrklf@jlai.lu -3 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Yeah, I'd say so too.

IMO HZD was not even a good open world game, it doesn't reward (and arguably often punishes) player-initiated exploration. Also it's almost unplayable without the very intrusive HUD, because the stuff you have to find is buried in the very busy background, and they don't use environmental hints much. Except the infamous yellow paint, which is a rather lazy way to do this.

However. Characters and world building are great, and quite unique. And trapping or pinning down machines and exploiting their weaknesses can be satisfying, when it clicks.

It was kind of a curve ball to me, missing some of the stuff I usually consider good game design but making the journey engaging and unique enough that I didn't mind too much.

[–] illi@lemm.ee 10 points 3 weeks ago

The story and worldbuilding were what made the game great, hands down. Other stuff was servicable but quite generic. Well, combat felt kinda unique to me but I'm sure there are games like that - I just don't play them.

[–] thejml@lemm.ee 5 points 3 weeks ago

HFW has a mode where the HUD doesn’t show you any of the things you need to find… like rocks, bushes, parts, etc. it’s more immersive and I beat the game with that mode on without too much trouble. Watching my wife play with the normal HUD showed me I probably missed a few things here and there but nothing crazy. I was always able to find enough healing and rocks and I got all the collectibles (I 100%’d it, I just didn’t go back and NG+ on Ultra Hard like she did)

[–] M137@lemmy.world 11 points 3 weeks ago

How are you this dumb?

[–] starman2112@sh.itjust.works 7 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Genuinely, pick up Horizon: Zero Dawn. Your preconceived notions are not accurate to it, it's a very good game

[–] Grass@sh.itjust.works 2 points 3 weeks ago

It's kinda yet another corporate apocalypse, but it does write the characters better. The additional lore in the second game really makes you feel like these are real life billionaire assholes. Halfway through the first game and the entirety of the second game I was done with the combat and couldn't be bothered to try out all the weapons and armour, just went all in on stealth snipe and souls rolled anything that couldn't be stealthed. I think I used the special moves like 3 times only. I'll still play the third one though. I'll probably just unga bunga the whole thing when the time comes.

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