Movie Games have claimed that the only thing they are doing is researching about potential infringement on the development of Schedule 1. However, they have not confirmed that they will go out and open a case against the developer of it. PC players seem relieved to know that there is nothing personal going on with both creators, but not many are convinced about this. There has been many cases of big companies trying to shutdown small projects, such as Nintendo trying to shut down fan games that are free. We at Infinite Start will check the statement given by Movie Games.
Movie Games might be serious
According to Movie Games, the following is what they publicly stated about the current situation:
“Dear Gamers, We’d like to address your Schedule I / Drug Dealer Simulator publication and share some facts regarding the situation.
- There is no lawsuit.
- It is not our intention to prevent TVGS from selling or developing their game.
- There is an investigation into the nature of similarities between the games since a preliminary legal analysis indicated there might have been an infringement.
- The analysis and investigation were necessary in the light of repeating opinions that the games are very similar. By not investigating it, Movie Games, being a publicly traded company, could face severe consequences for negligence.
- The above was communicated only via ESPI, a stock market communication system, where we are obligated to publish such information for full transparency. Not publishing it would also be a case of negligence. From there it was picked up by the media and, in some cases, wrongly reported as a lawsuit.
- The above is handled only by Movie Games, the publisher, not Byterunners, the developer of Drug Dealer Simulator. The developer is not involved in it whatsoever.
There is no ill will towards TVGS. We even mailed them best wishes shortly before the release, when the game was already huge, but before the investigation was deemed necessary. However, we are obligated to perform this investigation, act accordingly to the scope of the infringement if it is confirmed, and inform the public about it via ESPI. – Best wishes, Movie Games”
If what Movie Games is saying happens to be true, then there’s nothing to worry about the current situation. It is nice to see that they don’t have a personal beef against indie developers.
