This Castlevania parody lets you reassemble and slay Dracula as Simon Quest 

Retroware and Programancer’s joint-developed 2D Castlevania homage The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest (TASQ) has just been announced. Scheduled for 2025, it will be released on consoles and PC (Steam). At the time of writing, the game is set to be available in 10 languages, including English.

The title is a clear reference to 1987’s Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest, which was released outside Japan on the NES. Similarly to its namesake, the parody action-adventure game will have you putting the pieces of Count Dracula’s body back together again so you can slay him again. This time, it’s not to remove a curse but to beat your vampire hunting rival Stan Helsing and claim the glory for yourself! The main character in the parody is the aptly named Simon Quest, who will also wield a whip like Simon Belmont.  

In addition to the very Castlevania-like gothic castle interiors, it seems that TASQ will allow you to explore a wide variety of environments that no Belmont has ever set foot in. The trailers and screenshots show lush jungles and swaps, Ancient Egyptian themed stages and snow-covered towers. There even seems to be a stage inside a rather trippy looking beehive, where the bees seem to be attacking the monsters and providing grappling hooks for you to swing on. As in the 2D Castlevania games, each area will feature secret rooms and multiple paths. The game also teases the possibility of alternate endings that depend on the order in which you choose to take on each of the game’s monster-filled mansions. 

Although the Castlevania influence is obvious, the developer Progamancer cited Zelda as the main inspiration for the game’s structure, specifically Zelda 2 and Link’s Awakening, in terms of the game’s non-linear progression options and small details hidden in the world (Source: Steam Community interview). 

TASQ should scratch an itch for Castlevania fans who wish there was a new 2D game in the series. This is not the first time that nostalgia for 8-bit Konami titles has prompted homage or parody games. In 2021, the well-received indie stealth action game UnMetal parodied the original Metal Gear games.  

The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest is due to be released in 2025 on PC (Steam), PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch.