Indie Dev Spotlight: AdHoc Studios Success with Dispatch
AdHoc Studios is an American independent game development company founded in 2018. This week, I wanted to shine a spotlight on this development company, to commend them on their success with their newest game, Dispatch, and how they’ve used interactive storytelling to captivate audiences.
AdHoc Studios Success Story
AdHoc Studios was established in 2018 by the developers at TellTale Games. Founders Michael Choung, Nick Herman, Dennis Lenart, and Pierre Shorette moved on to other studios, such as Ubisoft and Night School Studios, after their time at TellTale, then officially banded together to create AdHoc Studios.
It was a slow start, given that their debut game was Dispatch, which came out late this year; however, I always say good things take time, which is what was delivered to us with this interactive narrative. Audience reception was overwhelmingly positive, with the studio selling over a million copies of just the first four episodes of the game. This is always an incredible feat for indie companies, and a testament to AdHoc Studios’ creativity and understanding of interactive storytelling in video games.
Interactive Storytelling in AdHoc Games
Interactive storytelling is an important concept in AdHoc games. It was the driving force behind Dispatch’s success this year. From an incredibly relatable main character to an engaging storyline that brings players in through immersion and decision-making. Interactive games are always a popular way to engage audiences in playing games.
Dispatch does an amazing job in balancing interactive gameplay and having a good, solid storyline. Reviews of the game have highlighted the storytelling aspect of the game, calling it “triumphant” and stating,
“Excellent voice work and animation shine in Dispatch, but its gameplay, while sparse, adds the workplace tension to the workplace comedy. The choice-based story also opens the door to multiple playthroughs.”
The devs at AdHoc Studios are already veterans in the industry, drawing upon their expertise to give us a successful interactive game this year, and I can’t wait to see what else they’ve got planned in the future.
