Considering the frequency at which I bemoan the decline of DC Comics and Marvel Comics you might get the impression that I hate superheroes, but in actuality the truth is I’m a huge sucker for capes and tights storytelling. If anything the decline of the big 2 just galvanized me to catch up on the classics and seek out new alternatives. So when fellow CGR contributor Honey Badger kept championing a new superhero video game called Dispatch it was probably only a matter of time before I checked the game out for myself.

Dispatch was developed and published by AdHoc Studio, a studio composed of former Telltale Games staff, with additional support from Critical Role Productions. With devs like that it should come as no surprise the game is primarily story focused with an emphasis on player choices that can affect the outcome of the narrative. Dispatch isn’t completely devoid of gameplay, which I will elaborate more on later, but keep in mind that the experience is far closer to a TV show than a traditional video game.

The story is set in Los Angeles and follows Robert Robertson III, known to the world as Mecha Man, a 3rd generation superhero who pilots a mechanical suit he inherited from his father and grandfather. Driven to bankruptcy after the suit is damaged by his archnemesis, Shroud, Robert’s days as Mecha Man appear to be over until he’s approached by the heroine Blonde Blazer, who offers to help repair Robert’s suit if he becomes a dispatcher for the Superhero Dispatch Network(SDN). Though Robert accepts the offer, his new job at SDN won’t be easy as he’s placed in charge of the Z-Team, a group of ex-supervillains Blonde Blazer hopes to reform into heroes.

Since Dispatch is so narrative focused any further discussion of the plot would ruin the experience for those who haven’t played it, but I can say that it was a largely enjoyable experience. At its core, Dispatch is a story about second chances and redemption, which fits the superhero genre like a glove and appeals to my Catholic sensibilities. Every time the player is given control over what Robert says or does, it sets an example for the people around him and shapes the direction of their character arcs. The choices the player makes throughout the story won’t change the fact that the game ends with an epic showdown between Robert and Shroud, but it does change whether or not Robert successfully gets members of the Z-Team to embrace heroism.

All this praise does come with a few caveats however, the first of which being the Whedon-style humor. Popularized by Marvel’s The Avengers in 2012, if you’ve watched a movie in the past 15 years and saw a side-character unceremoniously interrupt a serious conversation or a character commenting on the inherent ridiculousness of their situation in the middle of a chaotic action scene you’ve seen this style of humor. The strength of this humor is in its subversion of expectations, but when overdone it comes off as insincere. Dispatch unfortunately has a fair amount of jokes that fall into this category so if you’re tired of seeing it in other movies, superhero or otherwise, this game will probably be an irksome experience. Personally, I found there were enough genuinely sincere moments in Dispatch that I could tolerate the subversive humor, but it definitely took a little willpower at times to grin and bear it.

The other major caveat is Dispatch’s relentless raunchiness. The game is filled with swearing, innuendo, nudity, sex, and other adult themes from top to bottom. Thankfully Dispatch allows you to censor these aspects of the game with black bars and bleeps if you find these elements to be in poor taste, but even with the censorship enabled its still an undeniably raunchy game. If there was no censor option available I probably wouldn’t be writing this review at all, but even with the option I would still strongly recommend vulnerable, less mature audiences avoid Dispatch like the plague.

Beyond the story and dialogue choices, Dispatch’s main gameplay loop comes in the form of the dispatching mini-game. The player answers calls made to SDN and selects which members of Z-Team should be sent to handle the situation. Success and failure is determined by the strengths and weaknesses of your heroes’ abilities, and the set of abilities useful to specific jobs isn’t always obvious so judging the needs of the job is critical. Additionally heroes can’t answer calls if they’re already occupied with a mission and require a period of rest before they can be sent out again, so there is an element of risk management in sending less qualified heroes out to save your heavy hitters for potentially more difficult missions.

The dispatch mini-game is surprisingly engaging despite its simplicity. Things get even more strategic as the game progresses because heroes will unlock new abilities and new complications will be introduced based on what’s happening in the story. That being said, if you’re hoping for a really meaty gaming experience in these mechanics you’ll probably be disappointed. The gameplay is serviceably fun, but always secondary to the storytelling.

Visually Dispatch looks great, or at least very fitting for a superhero game. The world is filled with bold, vibrant, primary colors used by superhero comic books for decades and the characters have manga-like faces with large, expressive eyes. The game’s music did a decent job setting the mood of any given scene, but it never left much of an impression. The voice acting leans heavily into celebrity actors including Aaron Paul from Breaking Bad, Matthew Mercer and other cast members of Critical Role, and a few popular YouTube personalities like MoistCr1TiKaL. The talent on offer is pretty uneven across the board, but it’s generally solid and the less experienced voices mostly occupy less prominent roles.

As I alluded to earlier in the review, the appeal of Dispatch to me from a Catholic’s point of view is the theme of redemption. The life, death, and resurrection of Christ was all for the redemption of mankind’s sins, so stories about redemption naturally invoke Christ regardless of authorial intent. Dispatch places a lot of emphasis on the example set by Robert in the redemption of the Z-Team, which reminds us that we must set the right example if we wish to help others be redeemed, just as Christ’s example redeemed us. Recently, especially on the internet, I’ve seen lots of angry people condemning others as irredeemably evil not only for criminal acts, but simple disagreements on creed and ideology. If we truly wish to reconcile with criminals, or our misguided neighbors for that matter, setting an example and offering reconciliation is just as important for us as it is for them to realize the error of their ways.

Trying to recommend Dispatch leaves me incredibly torn to say the least. The gratuitous profanity and sexual content, even with censorship enabled, was incredibly difficult to get through and not something I’m particularly interested in endorsing. On the other hand, underneath all that degeneracy there’s a genuinely fun story about redemption that I can’t help but enjoy in spite of everything else. If any of my readers think a story like Dispatch sounds right up their alley, I would recommend they check it out so long as they are mature adults capable of discerning whether or not it is truly prudent to play a game with such raunchy trappings. Don’t feel bad if Dispatch isn’t for you, there are plenty of other superhero stories beyond DC and Marvel out there if you’re in need of a colorfully costumed adventure.

About Gaius Requiem