The authors of Drug Dealer Simulator accused the game's publisher of dishonesty. In response, the publisher demanded $1.2 million from the head of the studio
A conflict has erupted between the Polish studio Byterunners and publisher Movie Games, which threatens to escalate into a legal confrontation. The developers of the Drug Dealer Simulator duology have claimed that the publisher is infringing on their rights and not paying sufficient royalties.
Drug Dealer Simulator
- Rafał Pęcherzewski, the head of Byterunners, gave an interview to Puls Biznesu. He admitted that the studio initially signed an unfavorable contract with Movie Games, agreeing to a small share of the game's sales revenue. However, due to the team's inexperience at the time, it didn't seem problematic. Even so, both Drug Dealer Simulator games generated good revenue, and for many years there were no disputes with Movie Games.
- According to Pęcherzewski, the relationship between Byterunners and Movie Games began to deteriorate in the spring of 2025, when the publisher suspected the game Schedule I of plagiarizing Drug Dealer Simulator and launched an investigation, which the studio opposed. Amid the online uproar, sales of Drug Dealer Simulator 2 plummeted.
- At that time, Byterunners was working on console versions of their games. At one point, Pęcherzewski claims, Movie Games proposed adding more content to them without increasing the budget or timeline. The company allegedly threatened to deprive the studio of royalties from console sales if it did not agree.
- The parties failed to reach an amicable agreement, and in mid-August, Byterunners sent an official letter to Movie Games with several demands. It urged the publisher to pay "several hundred thousand złoty" for additional work on Drug Dealer Simulator 2 and to increase royalties to 40% for sales on both consoles and PC.
- Byterunners believes it has the right to demand increased payments due to Polish law, which includes a so-called "bestseller clause" allowing requests for additional compensation. In 2018, writer Andrzej Sapkowski used it in a dispute with CD PROJEKT over the size of the royalties related to the Witcher series.
- Movie Games has already called the developers' claims unfounded. Furthermore, it demanded that Pęcherzewski pay 4.5 million złoty ($1.2 million) as compensation for the poor condition of Drug Dealer Simulator 2.
In Russia, the production, distribution, acquisition, storage, transportation, processing, and propaganda of narcotics are prohibited. Their use is harmful to health.