Samurai Slaughter House: VR sword fighting is out now on App Lab

UPDATE

March 20, 2023:

Samurai Slaughter House is now available on Meta's App Lab store, priced at $29,99. The early access version supports Meta Quest 1, Quest 2, and Quest Pro. Early access for SteamVR will start "soon".

According to the store, the current version already includes a large selection of weapons, NPCs and Yokai monsters that help in battles, stores, player bases, fishing games and much more.

Original article from April 30, 2022:

Samurai Slaughter House brings Japanese sword fights to stylized environments. Try out the demo.

The first-person shooter Lies Beneath already proved how atmospherically dense a VR game with comic graphics can be. Samurai Slaughter House, which is now available in a kind of Early Access, also relies on a stylized design with high contrasts.

Stylized action in the Japanese mansion

In the role of a samurai warrior, you fight your way through a stylized 3D world in comic design. Although everything looks painted, the scenery and enemies give the impression that you are running through a Japanese castle.

The buildings are part of an openly designed estate in the mountains, which you explore freely - as usual in the Metroidvania genre. Loot and extras like shuriken are hidden in drawers and behind secret passages.

They can be found in a backpack, whose design is reminiscent of The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners. You simply take it off your shoulder via motion control. The small, round compartments are practically divided. There is also room for larger items in them.

You can also collect small Yokai spirits and let them fight. Make friends with NPC characters to get even more support. They will also help you later in the battle. You can exchange found in-game currency, equipment and magic ingredients at merchants or sell them for profit.

Even flying dragons and mystical toad enemies appear in the game. Despite the special design, the fights are martial: sword blows often end with red blood fountains - similar to classic samurai movies. Some enemies fly through the air with exaggerated ragdoll animations, but according to Tab Games this is still due to the early version and various bugs.

Samurai Slaughter House: First on Sidequest

Already included are some comfort options like an anti-nausea vignette, optional teleportation, a left-handed mode, and the ability to switch between playing while standing or sitting.

The action-packed VR game from Tab Games was released in an early version on April 18 in the Sidequest Store as well as on itch.io and offers a free demo. A Steam implementation is also planned.

Full versions for Meta Quest (2) and SteamVR are planned for this year, but there is no exact date yet. The release strategy seems to be a bit complicated, so here's an overview in bullet points:

• The Quest version runs on Meta Quest 1 and 2.
• To purchase the Early Access version or download the free demo, you will need to visit the Sidequest store.
• To download the free Quest demo, click on "Download App" in the Sidequest app. This will redirect you to itch.io. There you click on a link again to initiate the download via Sidequest.
• On itch.io you can buy the quest version for a sum starting at 30 dollars to unlock and play it via sidequest. For the launch of the full version, you will also get a key of the game, either for the official Quest store or for Steam.
• The full version will be released simultaneously for Quest and Steam. The release date is only set for 2022, but you can already add the title to your wishlist on Steam.
• On Patreon, supporters of the developer get limited access to current builds of the game for Quest and Steam for about $4 per month.
• If Patreon supporters reach a total of over $30, they get permanent access to current builds of the game for Quest and Steam. Later, they will also receive a key for a full version.