Review · 9.2/10 · Played on PS5
Melbourne-made · Independent since 2016
Gaming coverage with a controller in one hand and a flat white in the other.
ThrillDispatch is Melbourne's independent gaming blog — honest reviews, spoiler-safe walkthroughs, esports breakdowns and indie discovery, published from a tiny studio on Little Bourke Street.
Our Story
From a share-house LAN party to Australia's loudest little gaming blog
We started ThrillDispatch because Aussie gamers deserved coverage written in their own timezone, at their own prices, without the hype-cycle noise. Here is how the last eight years played out.
- 12016
First post goes live
Two friends in a Carlton share-house publish a 4,000-word review of a JRPG nobody else in Australia had covered. It gets 12 comments and we are hooked.
- 22018
We move to Little Bourke Street
A one-room studio in the CBD becomes the newsroom. We start hosting Thursday-night play sessions open to readers, still running today.
- 32021
The Dispatch newsletter launches
Our Friday round-up hits 20,000 subscribers across ANZ, curated entirely by humans — no algorithmic filler, no paid placements dressed up as reviews.
- 42024
1 million reads a month
From esports finals in Melbourne to indie gems out of Ballarat, our team of five now covers the local and global scene for a million monthly readers.
What We Cover
Four beats, covered properly — not scraped from a press release
Every piece is played to completion or reported first-hand. Pick a beat to see how we work and what it costs to partner with us.
Full-playthrough reviews
We finish the game before we score it. Every review logs total hours played, the platform tested, and a spoiler line you can stop reading at. No early-access verdicts pretending to be final.
- Minimum 20 hours logged before a numbered score
- Platform, patch version and hardware disclosed
- Sponsored coverage clearly labelled — from AUD $450
Latest Work
A recent slice of the Dispatch
Filter by beat to see the kind of coverage that lands on the front page. Every card is a real style of piece we publish weekly.
Guide · 118 collectibles · Updated for patch 1.4
Every hidden shrine, mapped and spoiler-tagged
Esports · Live blog · Melbourne
Grand final diary: the reverse sweep at Rod Laver Arena
Indie · Made in Australia · Developer Q&A
The Ballarat two-person team behind this year's scariest demo
Review · 8.0/10 · Played on PC
Is the remaster worth a second purchase? We replayed all of it
Guide · Completionist tier · Video embeds
Boss rush survival: no-damage strategies for the final act
Reader Love
What the ANZ gaming community says about us
No astroturf, no bought reviews — just messages from the readers who show up every Friday for the Dispatch.
The only outlet that actually finished the game before scoring it. I bought a $110 release on their word and they were spot on — saved me from three others that weren't.
Their spoiler tags are genius. I could follow a walkthrough for the tricky bits without having the ending ruined. No other guide site respects that.
Went to a Thursday play session on Little Bourke Street on a whim. Ended up talking meta with the writers for two hours. This blog is a genuine community.
They covered my mate's indie game before anyone else and asked real questions. As a small Aussie dev, that kind of coverage is everything.
By the Numbers
Eight years, one honest scoreboard
1M+
Monthly readers across ANZ
2,400+
Games reviewed to completion
20K
Friday newsletter subscribers
400+
Thursday play sessions hosted
Good to Know
Questions from new readers
Yes. Every review, guide and news piece is free with no paywall. We keep the lights on through clearly labelled sponsored features and reader support, never by locking editorial content behind a subscription.
Any paid placement carries a visible "Sponsored" label at the top of the piece. Sponsors pay for the slot, never the verdict — our scores and opinions stay entirely independent, and we will tell you exactly what was and wasn't paid for.
Absolutely. We host open play sessions every Thursday evening at our Little Bourke Street studio in Melbourne. They are free, capped at 20 people, and announced in Friday's newsletter — first in, best dressed.
We love hearing from local developers. Send us a build or a demo link through the contact form below. We spotlight three Australian-made games every month, and even if we can't cover yours immediately we read every single pitch.
PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and handheld PCs like the Steam Deck and ROG Ally. Every review discloses exactly which platform and patch version we tested so you know the verdict matches your setup.
Get in Touch
Pitch a story, flag a correction, or just say g'day
Whether you're a developer with a build, a reader with a tip, or a brand after an honest partnership, the whole team reads this inbox. We reply within two business days.
Newsroom details
- Phone+61 3 9602 3937
- Studio57 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
- Email[email protected]
- Open hoursMon–Fri 9am–6pm AEST · Thursday play sessions from 6pm