The game's strange theme is causing a fever

In the game, players start by growing marijuana, then gradually expand to selling other illegal substances. In other words, this is a "Tycoon" type of game, where players develop their own business, but in a criminal way.

The game peaked in April with nearly 460,000 concurrent players on Steam - the world's largest PC game download platform. Many clips circulating online show characters in the game giving drugs to virtual avatars, some taking a drag and then exhaling smoke, some... burning on the spot.

The game was released by Australian studio TVGS in March and is still in development. Despite not being completed, Schedule 1 quickly climbed to the top 1 downloads on Steam and held the top spot for more than 2 weeks. Currently, the game is in 5th place.

The game caused such a stir that PlayStation gamers also searched for it. A series of "copycat" games with similar names climbed to the top of the PlayStation Store search results. TVGS had to speak up on X, confirming that there were no official plans to port the game to consoles.

In-game image Schedule 1 . Photo: Steam .

In terms of genre, Schedule 1 belongs to the business simulation game genre (tycoon) - where players run businesses, build teams and optimize revenue. This game genre is famous for "healthy" names such as RollerCoaster Tycoon or Cities: Skylines . On Roblox, kids are also very fond of tycoons, but usually open coffee shops or car washes.

Tycoon used to be considered a "healthy" game genre, where players learn how to build parks, run farms or develop cities. However, in the past 5-10 years, this genre has suddenly had many unusual, sometimes offensive, occupations.

Drug Dealer Simulator (2020), for example, puts you in the shoes of a drug lord, making deliveries, avoiding the police, and expanding your distribution network like a “toxic” startup. Thief Simulator teaches you how to break into other people’s homes without getting caught—a form of “thief practice” with detailed instructions. Meanwhile, Border Officer puts you in the role of a border official, whose daily job is to check documents, refuse immigrants, and occasionally… accept bribes to speed things up.

In general, the "unconventional" career simulation game genre is becoming an extremely popular niche market - both entertaining and satisfying curiosity when trying to live a completely different life, even if it's just on a computer screen.

Despite the controversy, Schedule 1 reflects a larger trend in the gaming industry: adult gamers want to experience hidden corners that they would never dare to try in real life.

Source: https://znews.vn/chu-de-la-cua-tro-choi-dang-gay-sot-post1552591.html