AdHoc Studios has revealed the creative reasoning behind their decision to move away from the traditional “gamey” mechanics that defined previous Telltale-style adventures in their upcoming project, Dispatch.
In a recent conversation with Game Informer, AdHoc Studios co-founder Dennis Lenart noted that streamlining the experience was a necessity. He observed that when discussing past projects like The Walking Dead or The Wolf Among Us, many potential players would hesitate, feeling that the interactive elements made the experience “look too much like a video game” for their taste.
Lenart elaborated on this design shift, stating, “With Dispatch, we wanted to test a theory: Can we bring these immersive, interactive narratives to a much broader audience by dismantling common barriers to entry?” He explained that the game’s aesthetic was specifically developed to mirror the visual language of high-end animated television, providing a sense of familiarity to non-gamers.
This design philosophy led the team to excise elements that traditionally disrupted the narrative flow. “In a standard TV show, you don’t see a character stand up from their desk and spend five minutes wandering around a room just to find a coffee mug or initiate mandatory small talk with everyone in the building,” Lenart remarked.
Director Nick Herman, who previously worked on numerous puzzle-heavy exploration titles, added that the classic adventure game formula had begun to feel repetitive. “Dennis and I spent years building those kinds of systems,” Herman noted. “Eventually, we realized that the format was starting to feel stale.”
There is a distinct irony in this perspective; while core adventure fans often argued that Telltale’s titles were becoming too simplified after The Walking Dead, the developers themselves felt they hadn’t gone far enough to truly modernize the medium. By leaning into a cinematic structure, Dispatch aims to bridge the gap between television and interactive media.
Stay Updated with the Latest Gaming News
Get weekly digests, deep dives into gaming communities, and exclusive features delivered to your inbox.
Source: gamesradar.com
