Drug Dealer Simulator publisher launches an investigation against Schedule 1 creator. The game is supposedly “violating company’s IP”
Is it just a case of similarity, or did Schedule 1 draw too much inspiration? Movie Games has started an investigation, claiming to have found notable resemblances between the game and its Drug Dealer Simulator series.
Every month, there seems to be an unexpected Steam hit, and February was all about R.E.P.O.. But by the end of March, another indie game from TVGS, Schedule I, took the spotlight. However, things might be about to get messy for the Australian developer. Movie Games, the publisher behind the Drug Dealer Simulator series, is now looking into potential legal issues, including IP infringement and unfair competition, and they’ve launched an investigation.
Movie Games investigates possible IP infringement in Schedule I
Founded in 2016 and based in Warsaw, Poland, Movie Games S.A. is a global game developer and publisher with a passion for supporting indie studios. Built by industry veterans like Maciej Miasik (a key developer behind The Witcher) and Tobiasz Piatkowski (art director and comic book writer), they’ve made a name for themselves in the sim genre with hits like Drug Dealer Simulator 2, Gas Station Simulator, and Alaskan Road Truckers.
As soon as Schedule I launched, Movie Games noticed some similarities to their hit game, Drug Dealer Simulator, and its successful sequel. Wasting no time, they decided to launch an investigation, according to a report from biznes.pap.
On March 24, 2025, the release date of Schedule 1, an internal analysis of the Company’s IP, including Drug Dealer Simulator and Drug Dealer Simulator 2, as well as the Schedule 1 project, was initiated by the Company. This analysis immediately identified the use of several elements protected by copyright, including parts of the game's storyline, mechanics, and UI (User Interface).
Movie Games has reportedly found "several dozen similarities" between Schedule 1 and its own game series. They’re continuing to compare and verify the content to gather more examples of “borrowed” material. The success of Schedule 1 has caught their attention, especially since it peaked at over 400,000 simultaneous players. Movie Games has decided to work with international law firms that specialize in Australian law, since it’s the relevant legal system for the creator and publisher of Schedule 1.
The company estimated that Schedule 1 has sold around 3 million copies. If copyrighted content was used without permission, the developers might have to pay a hefty fine. We’ll find out more about Movie Games' next moves in future updates.
This news also caused the company's stock price to jump by about 15% over the last five days on the Polish stock market.
