Dispatch Dev and Nintendo Issue Statements on Game’s Switch Censorship

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AdHoc Studio, the team behind the game Dispatch, and Nintendo have both released statements about the game’s current issues on the Switch. The developers have apologized for the problems, saying they are “truly sorry,” and explained they’re working with Nintendo to find a solution.

Originally released on PlayStation 5 and PC in October 2025, Dispatch quickly gained recognition and won numerous awards. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews, earning a 96% recommendation score from critics on Opencritic and several game award nominations. When Dispatch came to Nintendo Switch on January 28th, however, players were disappointed to find it included significant censorship that couldn’t be turned off.

Dispatch Developer and Nintendo Speak Up on Game’s Censorship on Switch

Following the release of the game and the negative reaction it received, both the developers and Nintendo have addressed the concerns. Nintendo stated that all games on their system must adhere to their content standards. The game’s developer, AdHoc, also issued an apology and explained the reasons behind the censorship and how it affected the release.

AdHoc learned that Nintendo requires all games on its systems to be rated and follow its content guidelines. They initially believed that since mature content in games like The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk 2077 hadn’t been censored, their game, Dispatch, would also be approved without changes. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case, and Dispatch was released in a censored version on both Nintendo Switch and Switch 2. The development team admits they made a mistake too: they meant to clearly state in the game’s description that the Nintendo version had different content than other platforms. However, this notice was placed in the wrong section, so many players didn’t see it before buying the game.

Once it was realized this was happening, the developers updated the US store pages to make the disclaimer more noticeable. They are now updating or have already updated the pages in other regions as well. The team expressed sincere apologies, acknowledging that people are understandably upset and have every right to be.

AdHoc Hints at Potential Changes to Censorship on Dispatch

Although the apology and explanation seem to have satisfied some players, AdHoc is also working with Nintendo to find a solution for the game Dispatch. They can’t make any firm commitments right now, but they plan to update the game to restore at least some of the content that was censored. It may take several weeks for these changes to reach players. It’s currently unclear whether the update will remove the censorship entirely, or if the game will be modified to address the issues in a different way – perhaps by altering scenes instead of simply blacking them out.

Players eager to experience the complete version of the game can currently find it on PC or PlayStation without any censorship. It’s still unclear whether AdHoc’s solution to the censorship issues on the Switch and Switch 2 will satisfy players, but many fans appreciate the developer’s honesty and commitment to resolving the problem.

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2026-01-31 19:04