What to play this weekend: vampire visual novels, bass-heavy action, and another summer sale!

Happy Friday, Watchers! Congratulations on making it through another week — I’m proud of you for surviving whatever life threw at you. Let’s celebrate with some video games that are definitely high on the “unique premise” list.

Important to note: this is our first weekend games post that features mature content for both titles. We’ve included those warnings below. If you’re not interested or looking for something family friendly, check out our backlog of recommendations!

Indie darling: Vampire Therapist (visual novel)

Content warning: sensitive and potentially triggering topics in a historical context, such as war, abuse, sexual oppression, and extremism.

We’re kicking off the weekend with Vampire Therapist — an indie visual novel with a bloody (hah) twist, written “in the vein (get it) of What We Do in the Shadows, the horror works of Mel Brooks, Monty Python, and Horrible Histories.” Take on the role of Sam, a former Wild West gunslinger turned creature of the night. After your first hundred years, you’ve realized there is more to the afterlife that blood and murder. But where does a vampire go for help?

Your quest takes you to another vampire (obviously), found in a goth club in Germany, who teaches you how to handle your history. After learning the techniques of therapy, it’s your turn to tackle the clients including “self-hating vampires, agoraphobic social media addicts, supernatural narcissists, and victims of centuries-old capitalistic systems.” Help them accept their pasts and situations, assuming you can accept it first.

Vampire Therapist is especially interesting because it’s leveraging real therapy concepts and tools that the developers vetted with licensed therapists. The main system — cognitive behavioral therapy — challenges client statements to identify cognitive distortions, identifying where statements don’t match reality. The title also includes mindfulness meditation minigames — things like focusing on breathing while taking out intruding thoughts. Have fun and learn some healthy tricks in the process.

Get Vampire Therapist for $14.99 for PC on Steam and GOG.

Release of the week: Anger Foot (first-person shooter)

Content warning: bloody violence and gore in a cartoony setting.

Anger Foot is… weird. You might think you know the kind of weird — fast moving, brightly colored, bass thumping backed bundle of FPS action with an art style reminiscent of an 80s comic book, but no. I mean, yes, it is all those kinds of weird, but so much more.

You, as the main character, are taking down a city full of anthropomorphized enemies with your deadly feet. No matter your preference — style, speed, or power — you’ll have a method available to kick butt and take names. Yes, of course there are the standard features of replayability such as gaining new weapons and upgrading your powers in “absurd and wonderful ways” but let’s be honest with ourselves, it’s really all about the absolute slew of sneakers you can unlock for yourself along the way while listening to music that’s an “assault on all your senses. Including common sense.” After all, the only thing kicking harder than your feet is the beat.

Get Anger Foot for $24.99 for PC on Steam.

Steal of a deal: Epic Games Summer Sale

Hot on the heels of Steam’s Summer Sale comes Epic Games’ own event. While it’s occasionally frustrating to go between two launchers, sometimes you can find some truly excellent deals by shopping around. For example, It Takes Two (mentioned by Watcher MoveWoW last week) is available for $13.99 — a respectable 65% off for the adorable co-op title!

Check out the Epic Games Summer Sale at the Epic Games Store, running from July 18 to August 1.

Now tell us, Watchers — what are you playing this weekend? Share in the comments below, and we’ll feature your new interest in next week’s round-up!