Dispatch Demo Now Available

With every annual Game Awards, there’s usually a game that jumps out at me and makes me think, “I really want to play this. Right now.” For 2024, the game that warranted my attention was Dispatch. It wasn’t just the insane voice cast of the likes of Aaron Paul, MoistCritical, JackSepticEye, and others, or the fact that the team building is comprised of former Telltale devs during their heyday.

It was the commanding art style, the cheeky sense of humor, and the compelling premise. Dispatching superheroes within a subscription service is just something so far out of left field that it just might be a smash hit as a management game. Now, a demo is out on Steam to give a taste of the action.

Much like a classic Telltale game, Dispatch comes with the “choices matter”, “character will remember that”, and timed line-delivery option narrative gameplay. Instead of being behind the action, as Robert Robertson, you’re tasked with navigating the action behind a computer screen. Your team of eight heroes at the ready are actually ex-cons that are bottom-of-the-barrel, “Z-team” flunkies who require management beyond their job duties. The dialogue and banter are hysterical and so well-voiced that it feels like a shoo-in from the get-go.

Slated for a 2025 release, AdHoc Studio’s Dispatch very well feels like a dark horse game-of-the-year contender just based on its demo. Assigning your heroes to their tasks is a cinch to learn, and the decision-making feels exceptionally rewarding once a risky placement goes your way despite the odds.

With both the behind-the-scenes and job-work aspects being a home run, it’s looking like Dispatch will be at the very least a hidden gem, and with some proper marketing, a huge success for the new studio, who knows exactly the kind of game they’re building and the audience that is eager for it.