As someone who grew up with the NES and Super Nintendo, the OG "Classic"-vania games that kicked off the Castlevania series have always been my favorite. Rondo of Blood on the TurboDuo was the high point (that game still holds up today), but all of the games that preceded it helped build the franchise to that point. Programancer's The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest is a love letter to those NES classics.

Although the game itself doesn't have a release date, a playable demo of the first town and the first mansion hit Steam on Friday (June 19, 2026), giving PC players a chance to give it a go.

With a plot loosely based on Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest has the protagonist attempting to resurrect Dracula, but it's not for a noble cause. You see, another vampire hunter killed Dracula before Simon Quest could do the deed. You need to resurrect Dracula, so you can have the honor of killing him.

The backstory is conveyed via a series of pixel art cinema scenes, complete with faux filmstrip sides. Before the game starts, you can configure pixel scaling options and CRT filters to get the look of the game just right. I preferred the first filter option. It offers up a light distortion effect that softens the otherwise super clean lines of the raw pixel art.

While the visual palette is likely too much for the NES hardware to handle, what's here effectively conveys the feeling of NES visuals – just with more detail and more animations. Controls are responsive and tight, but animation canceling is not a thing. Once you start an animation (such as an attack), you are committed to seeing it through.

This may not sound like much, but it can mean the difference between success and failure when fighting a boss. Trying to get in "one last hit" before dodging can mean getting hit, since Simon can't jump if he's still finishing a whip animation. As a result, The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest forces you to be very deliberate with your actions.

All of the classic Castlevania weapons are present, but there are some new twists. For example, the boomerang (cross) can cause damage to Simon if you're facing away from it when it returns. You can also do nifty things, like hit the returning boomerang with your whip to hold it in place.

Gaining access to the first mansion required solving a basic fetch quest in order to get the required key. This all happens in an overworld of sorts that allows backtracking and exploring. Once I entered Bram Mansion, the gameplay became more linear and traditional.

Exploring the mansion is where The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest felt most like the original Castlevania, but it pulls ideas from the franchise as a whole. The mansion is short, but there are two different paths (and two different bosses) available for players to explore. The main path is clearly laid out, with the alternate path being slightly hidden. I say "slightly" because any retro player worth their salt knows to poke at the background if they want to reveal secrets.

The two bosses in the demo are both challenging until you learn their patterns. Once you identify their attack patterns, avoiding attacks and getting in your hits isn't nearly as challenging as it might otherwise be. My initial run with the giant crab generated much swearing, while my final run was a smooth affair.

If the demo is any indication, The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest deftly mixes parody and homage in a package that is sure to please Castlevania fans as well as players who are new to the genre. I'm looking forward to seeing what the full game has in store. Hopefully there is no kneeling required.

Editor's Note: The Transylvania Adventure of Simon Quest demo is available to download on Steam.