What’s Next for Schedule 1? Upcoming Updates & Features

Schedule 1, the indie drug-dealing sim that’s been making waves in 2025, has a lot in store for its growing player base. The devs have mapped out a two-year early access period, promising monthly updates packed with new features, gameplay tweaks, and bug fixes. While things may shift over time, here’s a breakdown of what’s on the horizon based on the latest roadmap.

New Gameplay Mechanics

• Logistics & Staff – Plans include adding drivers and logistics workers to automate moving products between properties, delivering to dealers, and laundering cash. An operations manager role might also be introduced to handle supply ordering, reducing manual micromanagement.

• Police & Heat System – Right now, the cops in Schedule 1 aren’t too threatening, but that’s about to change. A revamped police AI will introduce bribery mechanics, property “heat” levels affecting raid chances, and even an evidence room for players to break into post-arrest.

• Cartel Interactions – Cartel NPCs will bring new challenges, such as ambushes, property attacks, and supply theft. Players might also disrupt cartel meetups to steal resources.

• Parkour & Mobility – Running from the cops is about to get way more dynamic. The devs are adding vaulting, fence climbing, and rooftop escapes, making chase sequences more thrilling.

Content Expansions

• New Drugs & Products – The game’s inventory is getting an upgrade with shrooms, MDMA, and heroin. Each will have unique production and market dynamics.

• Custom Packaging – Players will soon be able to design their own product labels—a nice touch for those who want to add branding to their empire.

• Map Expansions – New areas are in the works, including a shantytown in the southwest and a gated community with a modern house in the northeast. These could introduce new customer bases or missions.

• Fishing Minigame – A classic fishing minigame will let players reel in gold bars, drug bricks, and other rare loot from rivers.

World & Immersion Enhancements

• Dynamic Weather – In addition to the day-night cycle, rain, storms, and fog are being added. NPCs will react accordingly (umbrellas, anyone?), and visibility/weather could impact gameplay.

• Property Customization – Expect more ways to decorate your stash house and labs, with options like wallpapers, furniture, lighting, and security upgrades.

• Sewer System – A new underground network could serve as a sneaky escape route or secret hub for operations.

Quality-of-Life & Technical Improvements

• UI & Performance Fixes – The devs are focused on stability, AI improvements, and UI tweaks.

• Multiplayer Enhancements – Co-op remains a major focus, with ongoing work to fix connectivity issues and improve save/load functionality.

First Big Content Drop – April 2025

The first major post-launch content update is set for April. While this update won’t bring massive expansions just yet, the developer has confirmed that it will introduce early content additions, gameplay tweaks, and bug fixes, laying the groundwork for larger updates in the future.

This follows Patch 5, set for the first weekend, which focuses on stability improvements, AI fixes, and multiplayer enhancements. Key changes in that patch included automated botanist workflows, vehicle tracking on the map, improved NPC pathfinding to prevent crashes, and various fixes for multiplayer and UI issues.

What’s Next?

With over 400,000 Steam players shortly after launch, Schedule 1 is growing fast. The devs are staying transparent with tools like Trello and Steam updates, making sure players stay in the loop. Of course, being an early access game, not every feature is set in stone—some ideas may evolve, and others might get scrapped depending on player feedback.

Still, the roadmap looks packed, blending satirical crime sim elements with deeper strategy and immersion.