REVIEW: The First Two ‘Dispatch’ Episodes Showcase Exactly How A Superhero Workplace Story Should Be Handled
- Christopher Mills
- 2 minutes ago
- 6 min read
During the 2010s, we were in an era of great storytelling coming out of the studio Telltale Games, who released the critically acclaimed The Walking Dead, which introduced the masses to Lee and Clementine, with a few people favouring the game series over the comics and show. Telltale Games kept their games unique by releasing them episodically, similar to a television show, which proved to work for them until it eventually became their demise. Thankfully, the remnants of Telltale Games have been revived in the form of AdHoc Studios, a new game studio which features some ex-developers.
There's still a major want for episodic games to return; Telltale Games allowed for interactivity that made you feel like you had a say in how the story truly played out. Telltale Games, after having gone bankrupt, have split themselves into AdHoc Studio and a newly formed Telltale Games, which previously released The Expanse: A Telltale Series, which was received well and gained itself a 75 Metacritic score for PC. AdHoc Studios arrive with their first video game, Dispatch, which comes in collaboration with Critical Role Productions, and after playing through the first two episodes, I can't wait to see how the future of this IP plays out.
Back in 2017, we got a superhero workplace show called Powerless, which was set in the DC universe, but it failed to gain its own identity and didn't last longer than a season. Dispatch is everything that a superhero workplace comedy needs to be, and these first two episodes ease the players into the world and its gameplay, leaving us wanting more, but thankfully we only have to wait a week to play two more episodes. Dispatch has you take on the role of Robert Robertson (Aaron Paul), a superhero known as Mecha Man who loses his suit to his nemesis, Shroud. After the mech's destruction, which is his family's entire legacy, he gets hired as a dispatcher for the Superhero Dispatch Network (SDN), where he works with a team of supervillains in hope of rehabilitating them into superheroes.
The first episode, "Pivot," introduces its player to the character and its world, quickly seeing that all Robert had was his father's legacy, which is quickly put to an end during the opening 20 minutes of the game, where you'll also see an extremely toxic flaccid penis (this isn't a joke, but it is a pun). Dispatch is this beautifully animated game which plays out like a television series while also integrating quick time events to help you feel like you're a part of the action. If that isn't for you, there's a mode where you can sit back, relax and experience Dispatch exactly like you would an animated series. It's not an easy life that Robert lives; he spends all his time as Mecha Man and doesn't have much time for himself. The way he carries himself and how his apartment looks says all we need to know about his character.
We meet him at his rock bottom as he tarnishes his father's legacy but comes across Blonde Blazer (Erin Yvette), your conventional golden-age-era-inspired superhero who arrives with a proposition that will allow Robert to show people that you don't need a suit to become a hero. Dispatch is a game that gives you various dialogue choices to choose from that will dictate the direction your story goes; with most games that have this as a feature, it never really feels like it diverts your story and instead feels predetermined.
Early on in Dispatch, the game proves that every little decision you make genuinely matters and how my playthrough will play out will be different and unique to each person that plays the game. Will you decide to show you have a crush on Blazer, or will you be professional about your relationship with her? It's early on, so we won't know if this will stick until the end of the game, but it already allows for replayability with a second playthrough that will hopefully turn out different from your first.
Dispatch doesn't play out like your usual Telltale Games-inspired videogame where you're able to take control of the player. As mentioned previously, you're watching a show that allows you to interact with quick-time events, and for some people, that may get boring real fast, but Dispatch keeps things interesting by giving you the job of dispatching super(villain)heroes. During the second episode, "Onboard," Robert begins his first day at the SDN, and we get to meet our colourful cast of characters that you'll be in charge of dispatching.
Our team consists of Sonar (Charles White), the batboy conman; Flambae (Lance Cantstopolis), an ignorant fire freak; Coupé (Mayanna Berrin), a mercenary in the sky; Punch Up (Sean McLoughlin), a man half your size but with the strength of ten; Invisigal (Laura Bailey), an asthmatic that must hold her breath to go invisible; Malevola (Alanah Pearce), a portal-teleporting demon; Prism (Harvey AKA Thot Squad), Phoenix Program's own pop star; and finally, Golem (Matthew "Yung Gravy" Hauri), who's just made up of clay and dirt. It might be thanks to Critical Role's involvement that we got a lot of talented people on board to voice the characters, but without them, Dispatch would just be a beautiful game to look at. Erin Yvette has the charm of Blazer, Paul nails Robert's nonchalant behaviour, and Laura Bailey plays the ignorant Invisigal effortlessly. It's a strong cast without any weak links that help make Dispatch be this entertaining game that does extremely well at feeling like an animated show.
So far, there's one dispatch section per episode, which lasts a good 10-15 minutes, and you learn quickly that you can't just dispatch any of these characters to any crime you want. They all have strengths and weaknesses which you must remember to ensure that you're sending them to the correct crime, in hopes of a successful mission. Sending the wrong person can lead to failure and affect your experience at the end of a session. The dispatching remains engaging, as you're kept on your toes the entire time, ensuring that you're ready to assist your team while they're already engaged in a crime, which can vary from choosing the right option for them to getting involved yourself as their hacker, bypassing security and gaining access to cameras.
The hacking minigame is the second game that you'll come across; it's quite easy as of now, and the most challenge it offers is by making them timed or splitting up passwords that you must find and remember. It's a mechanic that doesn't offer much, but when mixed in with the dispatching and making decisions that could make dealing with a crime successful or not, it allows for there to feel like you have entire control over everything in the game. It doesn't sound like much, but it's not only thrilling but also fast-paced, and you'll want more once your shift comes to an end.
The first two episodes of Dispatch highlight that AdHoc Studio have come with their very best. It's a game that boasts stunning animation with great interactivity and engaging gameplay that's all brought together by a voice cast that delivers hilarious humour while also balancing the story's drama. Although the episodes may be short as of now, it allows for you to yearn for more instead of feeling bored during the playthrough. With six episodes left to release of Dispatch, there's a lot of time for it to improve or get worse, but as of these first two episodes, Dispatch is one of the most fun experiences I've had gaming this year and feels like a complete throwback to Telltale Games' prime.
Rating: ★★★★☆
About Dispatch
Release Date:Â October 22, 2025
Played On:Â PlayStation 5
Director: Nick Herman, Dennis Lenart, Chris Rebbert
Writer: Pierce Shorette
Developer:Â AdHoc Studio
Publisher:Â AdHoc Studio
Platforms:Â PlayStation 5 and PC
Synopsis: Dispatch has the player take the role of Robert Robertson, formerly the superhero Mecha Man, who has to take a job as a dispatcher for misfits-turned-superheroes after his signature mecha suit is destroyed in battle.
A review code was provided by the publisher.