Shacknews Best Narrative Game of 2025 - Dispatch

Dispatch gave us an unforgettable story filled with lovable characters and memorable moments

Dispatch absolutely floored us over the course of its eight-episode story. AdHoc Studio’s debut title reinvigorated the interactive narrative genre with a compelling universe, meaningful choices, and oh so lovable characters. The team, which includes veterans from Telltale Games, Ubisoft, and Night School Studio, brought their expertise to deliver the year’s most unforgettable story.

At its core, Dispatch is a game about redemption and legacy. Robert Robertson, a down-on-his-luck hero, is the perfect everyman. After taking a job as a Dispatcher at SDN, Robert works to rehabilitate a group of former villains. This crew—the Z-Team—goes from being a bickering group of assholes to a family (that of course, still bicker). There’s not a single member of this ensemble that won’t win you over by the end of the final episode.

As any good interactive narrative should, Dispatch’s story can play out in multiple ways depending on the choices you make. Many of these choices revolve around two of its central characters, Invisigal and Blonde Blazer. These women propel the story forward and influence Robert in ways that make some of Dispatch’s biggest choices feel impossible. Both of them instantly became iconic characters in the community, which is a testament to their excellent writing at the hands of Pierre Shorette, as well as two impeccable performances from Laura Bailey (Invisigal) and Erin Yvette (Blonde Blazer).

Through its episodic format, Dispatch built momentum like few games have this year. During its run from October to November, each Wednesday afternoon saw social media flooded with discussions about the latest story events and players reflecting on choice statistics. There was a real grassroots, communal aspect to playing new Dispatch episodes every week. The model has existed for a long time, but AdHoc Studio has given it a reinvention.

Dispatch challenges players to find the good not only in themselves, but others. It’s a message that feels more important now than ever.