Drug Dealer Simulator accused the hit Schedule 1 of plagiarism — fans responded with hate and boycott

Fans of the hit indie game Schedule 1, which has a similar atmosphere to «Breaking Bad», have been massively hitting on Drug Dealer Simulator and its sequel.

The publisher Movie Games SA accused Schedule 1 of plagiarism and announced the launch of an investigation against it. The studio saw a possible violation of intellectual property, including «the plot, mechanics, and interface of the» original DDS. But first, let’s tell you what Schedule 1 is to understand why users went into an open confrontation.

What is Schedule 1?

On Steam on March 25 at early access released a simulator in which the player plays the role of a drug dealer. Gamers can produce and sell illegal substances, pick the pockets of their customers, fight them with knives, gamble, and hide during curfews. They need to buy real estate, hire employees, work with suppliers, and even fight with competitors.

Users really liked the Walter White simulator. That is why the game received 98% of positive reviews on Steam at launch, and at the time of writing, more than 136 thousand players were playing it simultaneously. Schedule 1, along with another hit indie game R.E.P.O., topped the charts with paid games on Steam, second only to the giant Counter-Strike 2.

Plagiarism and hate speech against Drug Dealer Simulator

The whole scandal began with a message from Movie Games SA that appeared in the Polish communication system ESPI. This platform is used for public announcements of the stock market.

According to the statement, the company launched an investigation based on «repeated allegations» of similarities between Drug Dealer Simulator and Schedule I. The statement said that no lawsuit has been filed at this time, but the investigation is ongoing within the limits of the company’s «legal obligations».

The situation was immediately commented on by the author of Schedule I — the developer under the nickname Tyler from TVGS, who confirmed that there were no legal actions. But the wording about the investigation seemed at least threatening to many. That’s when the fanbase became active.

Steam is flooded with negative reviews on Drug Dealer Simulator, as well as its sequel. The number of complaints was so high that the rating of the original game dropped from «very positive» to «mostly positive». Moreover, the latest reviews of the two parts are «mostly negative». Players accused Movie Games of trying to put pressure on an independent developer and trying to destroy a hit game before it was even released.

Movie Games SA tried to stop the wave of negativity somehow with another appeal. The Drug Dealer Simulator 2 page on Steam has a short and clear phrase: «There is no lawsuit».

However, the studio is still conducting an investigation to find out how similar the games are due to possible violations. According to Movie Games SA, if the matter is not sorted out, the company may face serious problems.

Separately, it is pointed out that all information about the investigation was initially public only because it was required to be entered into the ESPI register for transparency, as required by law. However, according to the company, some media outlets «falsely reported on the lawsuit», which only «added fuel to the fire».

Despite attempts to calm down the situation, the reputational damage to Drug Dealer Simulator has already occurred. On social media, players are calling for a boycott of both parts of the game, and Schedule 1 is receiving a new wave of support. Although there are no official legal actions against TVGS yet — fans have reacted to the pressure in a very negative way.

Source: PC Gamer