Toy Bounty Hunters Asks ‘What Happened to Simon Belmont?’

Following the recent Working Designs retrospective, I was looking at other videos on the Toy Bounty Hunters YouTube channel and came across one of particular interest to me: a single episode series called “What Happened to Our Heroes?” that focused on Simon Belmont.

My appreciation for Simon Belmont as a hero of the Castlevania series is pretty much without question. From celebrating his return as a more distinct character in Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate to championing him for a slot in the latest Super Smash Bros. games, it’s easy to see why this video grabbed my attention.

Watch for yourself as the Toy Bounty Hunters examine the aesthetic evolution of the original vampire hunter:

I have to admit, though I was largely aware of what most of this video covered, it also brought to life some things I hadn’t considered before. For instance, the more armored look of Simon in Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest being a result of his wounds? That makes perfect sense to me, and I’m surprised I never thought of it before. I thought he just updated his wardrobe because… why not?

Ayami Kojima’s has always been sort of iffy for me. I never hated it outright, nor did I like it quite as much as earlier designs. It was a thing, but still far, far better than his attire in Castlevania Judgment, for which my opinions are practically legend (if being cited on Wikipedia for them can be considered legendary, that is).

Sadly, though, where things are now with Konami, it’s hard to tell whether we’ll ever see another Castlevania game, Simon or no Simon. Personally, I think it’s more likely that Konami will license it out for someone else to do with what they will, legacy be damned. They’ve already done something similar with the mobile remake of Contra, which I actually loved and would love to see in high definition on a console. I think Double Dragon has seen similar treatment a couple of times now, between the excellent Double Dragon Neon and the decidedly less excellent Double Dragon II remake.

At least we’ll still have licensed merchandise.

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David Oxford is a freelance writer of many varied interests. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.

David Oxford

David Oxford, or “LBD ‘Nytetrayn’,” as he is sometimes also known, is a freelance writer of many varied interests who resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.

For a full list of places to find him online, click here.