New Dispatch update tones down censorship on Switch

1 hour ago 10

Published Jun 17, 2026, 12:01 PM EDT

Though butts and birds fly free

When Dispatch launched on Nintendo Switch in January 2026, it came with a rather clunky, inelegant surprise: big black boxes censoring things like butt cracks, Toxic's free-flying green dong, and even Sonar giving Robert the middle finger. Developer AdHoc Studio is toning some of the severity of that censorship down in a free new update and apologized for not being transparent about what Switch players could expect at launch.

The update removes the black boxes and no longer censors "breasts, butt, and birds" in Dispatch, AdHoc said. However, Nintendo still requires censorship for genitalia and explicit material. Toxic gets covered up with a pixelated blob — or, if you want him to wear "strategically placed jorts," you can choose that option, too — and the audio during Invisigal's dream sequence remains muted. You can also elect to keep the black bars if you're fine with it, and AdHoc is adding censorship options to Dispatch's PlayStation 5 and Steam versions for anyone who'd prefer to make the game a bit less NSFW.

AdHoc said the team knew Nintendo had certain censorship requirements during the port process, but didn't realize they applied to every region — not just certain markets.

Aaron Paul (I think) stands between jacked dudes while holding a puppy in key art for Dispatch one of the best games of 2025

"Approaching launch and running out of time and resources, we were surprised to learn that our game would require some level of censoring in all regions, not just the few we were already planning for," AdHoc said in the community post outlining these changes. "In a difficult spot, we decided to use a single Switch build that complied with Nintendo’s strictest regional rating. This led us to deliver a more censored version of Dispatch than Switch players were expecting.

"The censorship itself wasn’t the only problem, though. Those of you who wishlisted, pre-ordered, or bought Dispatch on Switch did so based on what you'd seen in trailers, previews, and reviews from other platforms. The problem was we didn’t make it clear enough, before you spent your money, that the version you were buying was materially different from that game. And for that we’re truly sorry."

Dispatch's free update is available now on Nintendo Switch, PS5, and Windows PC.