PewDiePie‘s new game parodying life as a full-time YouTube creator immediately shot to the top of Apple’s App Store ranking of free-to-download games after it was released Thursday — and the demand from PewDiePie fans (aka “bros”) overwhelmed the servers of the game’s publisher, Outerminds.
Many users on social media reported receiving an error message when they tried to set up their accounts in “PewDiePie’s Tuber Simulator.” Outerminds, game’s Montreal-based publisher, acknowledged the server issues via its Twitter account starting midday Thursday, which at one point prevented players from logging in. As of early Friday Outerminds said it was still trying to fix the “friends” section in the app.
Thanks for your patience guys! We are working as hard as we can to resolve all the server issues.
— Outerminds (@Outerminds) September 29, 2016
In “PewDiePie’s Tuber Simulator,” which features classic video-game 8-bit-style graphics, users create an aspiring YouTuber and try to score video views and subscribers to purchase items like furniture, clothes and pets, ultimately aiming to become a force to rival PewDiePie. The Swedish native, whose real name is Felix Kjellberg, has more than 48 million subscribers on his YouTube channel.
Kjellberg tweeted Friday that the game had topped 1 million downloads in less than 24 hours.
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The app comes from Outerminds and Revelmode, the joint venture between Kjellberg and Disney’s Maker Studios, which is the network PewDiePie is affiliated with. Also Thursday, the Revelmode partners announced they have signed a development deal with DoubleMoose, the studio formed by “Goat Simulator” creator Armin Ibrisagic.
Despite the server issues, users have given high marks to “PewDiePie’s Tuber Simulator.” On Google Play, it has a user rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars (with more than 83,500 total ratings) as of Friday morning. In the App Store, 92% of users have given the iOS version the top 5-star rating with about 6,900 total ratings. Overall the game is No. 2 on the App Store’s free apps list, behind Apple’s iTunes U.
The game has garnered interest and enthusiasm from other YouTubers, including vlogger Phil DeFranco, who gloated in a tweet that his virtual digs were swanker than PewDiePie’s:
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The game is free to download and play, offering purchases starting at 99 cents for 100 “Bux,” the in-game currency used to acquire more items.
