Regarding the Drug Dealer Simulator & Schedule I situation

[michal.puczynski]

Hey everyone,

We’d like to address the Drug Dealer Simulator / Schedule I situation and its factual reasons, stage, and future.

What’s going on exactly?

Due to repeated opinions that Schedule I is very similar to DDS, we were obliged to request a legal analysis from an intellectual property specialist. It has indicated that there might have been an infringement by the Schedule I developers in relation to Drug Dealer Simulator.

Now we are obliged to follow up further, but we are yet to contact the Schedule I developers. Our goal at this point is discussing the situation with them and we have an open approach.

Is there a lawsuit?

No.

So why is everyone saying there’s a lawsuit?

Probably due to misinterpreting or overinterpreting an information which was originally in Polish.

What’s next?

Like we said, we need to start a conversation. It is not our intention to prevent TVGS from selling or developing their game.

Overall, our goal is to support all devs, but we need to consider our legal obligations if law specialists determine that there are grounds to claim infringement. We even contacted TVGS via email just before the release, when the game was already huge, and wished them all the best - but that was before that legal analysis. Back then no one expected it to be needed, not to mention that it would bring these results.

This is a very serious situation for us. We’re not a big corporation, but a relatively small indie publisher. There are other drug simulators out there with very positive scores and good sales. These are A-OK in regards to DDS according to lawyers.

What we know is we have to be very careful in all proceedings.

What’s the DDS developer’s - Byterunners - role in all this?

Absolutely none, and please don’t bring them into the conversation. They manage the game, not the IP (intellectual property). They don’t make any decisions in this matter.

I hope this clears things out. If you know gamers outraged by this situation who aren’t on this channel, please share this message with them.

Have a good day, and enjoy your favorite, and your second favorite, drug dealing games, whatever the order is for you. :)

Michal from Movie Games

[Mellow Monster]

Please stop talking to us like "we are too small to understand" lawyers are scumbags and they look for anything to ring money out of. Also stop acting like your publishing company is at the mercy of the lawyers. You pay them, you can very easily tell them to cease operations. you are doing everything in your ability to pass the buck to someone else because you want to be THE ONE. unfortunately for you you were called out almost immediately and your "mask of innocence" and your PR trained responses arent very good.

[Flopza]

Originally posted by Mellow Monster:

Please stop talking to us like "we are too small to understand" lawyers are scumbags and they look for anything to ring money out of. Also stop acting like your publishing company is at the mercy of the lawyers. You pay them, you can very easily tell them to cease operations. you are doing everything in your ability to pass the buck to someone else because you want to be THE ONE. unfortunately for you you were called out almost immediately and your "mask of innocence" and your PR trained responses arent very good.

You've evidencing you don't understand.

[Ghost1716ad]

Originally posted by Flopza:

Originally posted by Mellow Monster:

Please stop talking to us like "we are too small to understand" lawyers are scumbags and they look for anything to ring money out of. Also stop acting like your publishing company is at the mercy of the lawyers. You pay them, you can very easily tell them to cease operations. you are doing everything in your ability to pass the buck to someone else because you want to be THE ONE. unfortunately for you you were called out almost immediately and your "mask of innocence" and your PR trained responses arent very good.

You've evidencing you don't understand.

Dude you're literally defending a company that chose to investigate their competition. I even told you before why they're in the wrong and trying to gatekeep the genre by making it harder for people to makes in the style. You're here defending a greedy, backhanded company licking their boots.

[Flopza]

Originally posted by Ghost1716ad:

Originally posted by Flopza:

You've evidencing you don't understand.

Dude you're literally defending a company that chose to investigate their competition. I even told you before why they're in the wrong and trying to gatekeep the genre by making it harder for people to makes in the style. You're here defending a greedy, backhanded company licking their boots.

It's got nothing to do with defending a company — this is standard trademark procedure, and anyone with even basic knowledge of trademark law would understand that.

If a company doesn’t investigate clear similarities, especially from a popular title, they risk losing their legal right to protect their IP in the future. It’s not “gatekeeping” — it’s due diligence. Failing to act sets a precedent that others can use in court.

This isn’t about loyalty or “bootlicking” — it’s simply understanding how intellectual property protection actually works.

[Flopza]

Originally posted by Ghost1716ad:

Originally posted by Flopza:

You've evidencing you don't understand.

Dude you're literally defending a company that chose to investigate their competition. I even told you before why they're in the wrong and trying to gatekeep the genre by making it harder for people to makes in the style. You're here defending a greedy, backhanded company licking their boots.

Let me try to be as simple and clear as possible:

Even if you believe the other party has done nothing wrong, opening an investigation is still beneficial and required. That’s because trademark law isn’t based on your opinion of wrongdoing — it’s based on whether you’ve shown consistent effort to protect your intellectual property.

If you don’t investigate clear similarities, even out of goodwill or assumption of innocence, it creates a legal precedent. Down the line, if someone truly does infringe on your IP, they can point to your past inaction and argue you’ve abandoned your claim. That’s why companies — big or small — routinely investigate anything that appears too similar to their product.

It’s not malicious, it’s not personal, and it’s definitely not rare. It’s a normal part of protecting creative work in business, and if you don’t do it, you risk losing your rights altogether.

[Ghost1716ad]

Originally posted by Flopza:

Originally posted by Ghost1716ad:

Dude you're literally defending a company that chose to investigate their competition. I even told you before why they're in the wrong and trying to gatekeep the genre by making it harder for people to makes in the style. You're here defending a greedy, backhanded company licking their boots.

Let me try to be as simple and clear as possible:

Even if you believe the other party has done nothing wrong, opening an investigation is still beneficial and required. That’s because trademark law isn’t based on your opinion of wrongdoing — it’s based on whether you’ve shown consistent effort to protect your intellectual property.

If you don’t investigate clear similarities, even out of goodwill or assumption of innocence, it creates a legal precedent. Down the line, if someone truly does infringe on your IP, they can point to your past inaction and argue you’ve abandoned your claim. That’s why companies — big or small — routinely investigate anything that appears too similar to their product.

It’s not malicious, it’s not personal, and it’s definitely not rare. It’s a normal part of protecting creative work in business, and if you don’t do it, you risk losing your rights altogether.

So they apparently, contact the dev of Schedule one and wish him luck on the game, and after release they go and check for things they can sue for. While it's something they could do it definitely could have been ignored. Your argument is about hoe legally its done but it's a tasteless and scummy move that is then glazed over with this excuse of a post directed at damage control.

[Flopza]

Originally posted by Ghost1716ad:

Originally posted by Flopza:

Let me try to be as simple and clear as possible:

Even if you believe the other party has done nothing wrong, opening an investigation is still beneficial and required. That’s because trademark law isn’t based on your opinion of wrongdoing — it’s based on whether you’ve shown consistent effort to protect your intellectual property.

If you don’t investigate clear similarities, even out of goodwill or assumption of innocence, it creates a legal precedent. Down the line, if someone truly does infringe on your IP, they can point to your past inaction and argue you’ve abandoned your claim. That’s why companies — big or small — routinely investigate anything that appears too similar to their product.

It’s not malicious, it’s not personal, and it’s definitely not rare. It’s a normal part of protecting creative work in business, and if you don’t do it, you risk losing your rights altogether.

So they apparently, contact the dev of Schedule one and wish him luck on the game, and after release they go and check for things they can sue for. While it's something they could do it definitely could have been ignored. Your argument is about hoe legally its done but it's a tasteless and scummy move that is then glazed over with this excuse of a post directed at damage control.

You're completely misunderstanding how IP and trademark protection works. It doesn't matter if they wished the dev luck before release. It doesn't matter if they personally think Schedule 1 is fine. Legally, once a game launches and gains traction — especially if it shares a lot of similarities — the IP holders are obligated to investigate. Not doing so weakens their ability to defend their trademark later.

This isn’t about being scummy or tasteless — it’s literally standard legal practice across all industries. If they ignore it and later someone else copies them more blatantly, they won’t be able to argue infringement because they allowed Schedule 1 to slide. That’s how trademark law works. You’re seeing “malice” where there’s just legal due diligence.

This isn’t “damage control” — it’s normal procedure. If you knew anything about IP law, you’d realise this is how every serious company must act to protect their creations.

[newbnooby]

Stupid developer. Take the L graciously ♥♥♥♥♥♥.

[Flopza]

Originally posted by newbnooby:

Stupid developer. Take the L graciously ♥♥♥♥♥♥.

There’s no loss here. If Schedule 1 succeeds, it’s also a win for the Drug Dealer Simulator developers—it brings more attention to the genre they design games for and helps expand the audience. You're conflating two different actions: investigating a similar game to show you're protecting your IP is standard practice, but it’s not the same as trying to sue. One is about fulfilling legal obligations to monitor potential infringement; the other requires solid evidence of direct copying. Unless Schedule 1 reused DDS1 code, assets, or trademarks, there’s no legal basis for a lawsuit—just routine IP oversight.

[IHaveASmallOne]

Originally posted by D3st:

Originally posted by michal.puczynski:

Hey everyone,

We’d like to address the Drug Dealer Simulator / Schedule I situation and its factual reasons, stage, and future.

What’s going on exactly?

Due to repeated opinions that Schedule I is very similar to DDS, we were obliged to request a legal analysis from an intellectual property specialist. It has indicated that there might have been an infringement by the Schedule I developers in relation to Drug Dealer Simulator.

Now we are obliged to follow up further, but we are yet to contact the Schedule I developers. Our goal at this point is discussing the situation with them and we have an open approach.

Is there a lawsuit?

No.

So why is everyone saying there’s a lawsuit?

Probably due to misinterpreting or overinterpreting an information which was originally in Polish.

What’s next?

Like we said, we need to start a conversation. It is not our intention to prevent TVGS from selling or developing their game.

Overall, our goal is to support all devs, but we need to consider our legal obligations if law specialists determine that there are grounds to claim infringement. We even contacted TVGS via email just before the release, when the game was already huge, and wished them all the best - but that was before that legal analysis. Back then no one expected it to be needed, not to mention that it would bring these results.

This is a very serious situation for us. We’re not a big corporation, but a relatively small indie publisher. There are other drug simulators out there with very positive scores and good sales. These are A-OK in regards to DDS according to lawyers.

What we know is we have to be very careful in all proceedings.

What’s the DDS developer’s - Byterunners - role in all this?

Absolutely none, and please don’t bring them into the conversation. They manage the game, not the IP (intellectual property). They don’t make any decisions in this matter.

I hope this clears things out. If you know gamers outraged by this situation who aren’t on this channel, please share this message with them.

Have a good day, and enjoy your favorite, and your second favorite, drug dealing games, whatever the order is for you. :)

Michal from Movie Games

You know like me that what you are saying is wrong....There are game on steam who were pre DD1 which use the same concept that you took them from....If you look back at how game are created there a good hundred game who were build inspired by other games.I will give you this tho..you should be mad that a single guys made something 100% better then your 2 game with less ressources,less time and everything who were supposed to be in the game is in the game....

About your publisher,we could do the same and bring back some video of the past that you created for dd1 which showed some stuff we never had ingame.Lot of game loops were supposed to be in DD1 and you never finished it.Also,in the case your publisher go ahead and sue him over what ever reason you think its right to do...You are going to turn the whole community against you...Btw you realize that your game are promoting drug selling and crafting and you wanna sue someone in court...Your game and shedule 1 might get noticed by autority after or news and who know what going to happen after that.....A game promoting drug production and selling and crime in general available on STEAM platform.Wouldn't be a nice newspaper or TV news title?


Take your defeat like a man and improve from there....Why bashing people that are better then you?

Dude GTA has been a thing since the 90s why would police and news make a big deal out of 2 mediocre indie games?

[-3ul3-]

Can I say something to the producers, and the players. Now I'm 32, come from germany. I was born in a world. We buy Cd's and so. The internet was in child shoes. No facebook, no steam. I think the half time from my life, I played computer games. The rest, partys, drinking, drugs;) For a month I have buyed me, a high level laptop. And why, I have seen drug Dealer Simulator part two come out for the PS5. But I can't not wait. I can play all games on my laptop now, and the first game I buyed me was Drug Dealer Simulator part one, and two. DDS1 and DDS2 can be the next GTA I think. I have seen videos about schedule 1, and yeah the guys stolen your idea. But than protect your game, make your game better like this.

- the game need car driving
- maybe you can connect the first map from drug dealer simulator part one, in part two
- more smuggeling, maybe a airfield
- more interaction with your buyers, from the drugs, more personality
- more fights, with guns, and all. Not only a run game.
- stronger police, and fights with the police
- maybe a stribclub, more adult features.
- maybe a girlfrind in the game :)

I belive on this game, schedule one its a Joke! A game for little childs, and stolen ideas. @michal.puczynski don't give up.

[Not Abigail]

Just leave Schedule 1 alone, you are are actual morons. Make a better game next time.

[Mr Fox]

My insiders have told me that the PUBLISHERS have just filed something

[Evilplay]

The companies like this one is what's making the world a very boring place to be in. If this keeps going on then soon we won't be able to fart in our own home without it being claimed and sued. Sounds stupid, it's no more stupid then what's going on here.

[Junglist]

Originally posted by Evilplay:

Schedule 1 has been removed, at least from Australia region. Congratulations, you won. We can expect you to fix up your game now after pulling this nonsense and make it the best game ever.

nothing to do with DDS, it needs an age rating to be sold in AU