Tencent is getting into the open world survival game business with a new game called Light of Motiram, set in a verdant jungle world dominated by massive machine monsters called—wait for it—mechanimals.
First things first, yes, Light of Motiram has a very obvious Horizon Zero Dawn visual vibe going on. But on the gameplay side it also borrows heavily from Palworld, as players will be able to bond with numerous types of mechanimals, customize and level them up, and put them to work on various tasks—exploration, combat, or just gathering and building.
There's a bit of Monster Hunter as well in the boss fights, each of which will unlock new crafting recipes and materials, and reveal more about the story of how the world of Motiram ended up in the state it's in.
Despite the fantastical setting, Tencent is leaning hard into the game's «realistic physics simulation,» which encompasses everything from the individual materials in its «freeform building system» to weather: A falling tree will kill you quick, and metal armor is not recommended for use in the middle of a lightning storm.
I'm not sure we really need another open-world survival game, and the similarities to Horizon are not subtle. Even so, I think it looks potentially quite good, and Tencent making what appears to be a determined move into the genre is interesting in its own right.