'Hilarious' new video game mocks man who lost $632 million Bitcoin fortune in a landfill
Imagine the horror of realizing your Bitcoin fortune has been thrown away. What would you do to get it back, and would you spend the next 12 years of your life trying to crawl through rubbish for it? Given that the private key for that 8,000 Bitcoin haul would be worth over $632 million in 2026, we imagine you'd do almost anything to get it back.
Unfortunately for James Howells, his plight is being mocked, with one gaming developer turning his story into an indie game.
It's not quite a Hollywood movie where Ryan Gosling plays you, but it's the next best thing...right?
What is James Howells' Bitcoin story?
Finding a mobile phone-sized hard drive was clearly hard enough as it was tossed out during a clearing of his office, but imagine looking for a literal needle in a haystack. According to reports, Howells' partner at the time took the rubbish with the hard drive to a local tip, although Hafina Eddy-Evans claims he 'begged' her to make the trip.
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She denies wrongdoing, but Howells admitted he 'subconsciously' blames her for losing the hard drive.
Within a matter of weeks, Newport City Council maintained that Howells' Bitcoin fortune was buried under 25,000 cubic meters of waste and earth.
He spent the next 12 years scrambling to get his Bitcoin back, even employing the use of AI to try and locate it.
There were stumbling blocks at every turn, and, as well as being accused of trying to blackmail Newport City Council, the local authority highlighted concerns about the environmental damage that could be caused by rummaging through all that rubbish.
In February 2025, the Docksway landfill announced it was going to close, with Howells leading a last-ditch attempt to purchase the site for £25 million.
The council said Howells had to pay £117,000 in legal fees from previous litigation before discussions could continue, and ultimately, he gave up his search in August 2025, while saying he was putting his efforts into creating a new cryptocurrency called Ceiniog Coin.
From real life to a video game
Over on Reddit, developer Paiden says they're creating an indie game that iconizes Howells' story. Although their initial post on X doesn't mention Howells, their Reddit post specifically stated: "I'm making a game where you try to find James Howells' lost Bitcoin hard drive in a landfill."
There's been a recent buzz about 'sorting' games, with one title going viral for making players sort through 5,000,000 pieces of hay while looking for a needle.
Paiden says they actually had that idea weeks ago, but seeing the haystack game from a different dev take off, they've pivoted to the Bitcoin in a landfill scenario.
Replying on X, one person chuckled: "I ususally hate these low effort games and knock offs but this is hilarious and actually seems way more fun compared to needle in a haystack."
Another added: "That will bring some painful flashback to some people 😅."
Over on Reddit, someone mused: "Make a level where you are trying to convince the council to help but all the dialogue options just circle back to the person you need to speak to is on leave today."
Someone else concluded: "Lol kind of a dick move 🤣🤣🤣."
While you might've thought that James Howells' story had died down, this is one that (unlike his Bitcoin) won't stay buried.