After releasing for early access on Steam Last month, the popular independent game "Schedule 1" encountered an issue. copyright investigation Due to resemblances with Drug Dealer Simulator – however, the publisher of the latter game wishes to clarify after facing criticism: there isn’t actually any litigation involved.
In a recent update on social media, they mentioned Steam , Publisher Movie Games confirms this clarification amidst speculations about an alleged lawsuit against TVGS, the developer of Schedule 1.
The statement clarifies, 'There is no lawsuit,'" it says. "'Our aim is not to stop TVGS from selling or advancing their game.' Even though no legal action has been taken so far, an ongoing copyright inquiry examines the resemblances 'among the games' remains active.
As Movie Games writes, "There is an investigation into the nature of similarities between the games since a preliminary legal analysis indicated there might have been an infringement." According to the publisher, it was "necessary" to investigate: "The analysis and investigation were necessary in the light of repeating opinions that the games are very similar."
If it wasn't investigated, Movie Games "could face severe consequences for negligence."
The publisher goes on to describe how the whole scenario developed and mentions that speculation about potential legal action spread rapidly across the internet. "This matter was shared exclusively through ESPI, which is a securities industry messaging platform, mandating us to disclose this kind of data publicly for complete openness," they state. "Failing to do so could have been considered neglectful. Following its release via ESPI, various news outlets covered it, sometimes inaccurately portraying it as an actual lawsuit."
Movie Games also emphasizes that the developers behind Drug Dealer Simulator have had no part in this matter. "This situation is managed solely by Movie Games, as the publisher, and not by Byterunners, which is the developer of Drug Dealer Simulator. They have absolutely no involvement in it at all."
It remains uncertain if this recent declaration will stop the review bombing, but currently, Schedule 1 holds an "Overwhelmingly Positive" score whereas Drug Dealer Simulator maintains an "Overwhelmingly Negative" one.
Schedule 1 update releases in beta on Steam, adding everything from golden toilets to a new pawn shop so you can sell anything that's not drugs too
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