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Simon Belmont

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Simon Belmont
Castlevaniacharacter
Simon Belmont fromCastlevania: Grimoire of Souls.
First appearanceCastlevania(1986)
Created byAkihiko Nagata
Voiced by
In-universe information
WeaponVampire KillerWhip

Simon Belmont(シモン・ベルモンド,Shimon Berumondo,Simon Belmondo)is a fictional character who serves as the firstprotagonistto appear in theCastlevaniaseries. He appears inCastlevania,Vampire Killer,Haunted Castle,Castlevania II: Simon's Quest,Super Castlevania IV,andCastlevania Chronicles,and acts as a supporting character inCastlevania JudgmentandCastlevania: Harmony of Despair.He also appeared as a playable character inDreamMix TV World FightersandSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate.Simon has received positive reviews from critics.

Character design and appearances[edit]

In 1691, Simon Belmont killsCount Draculain an event that is retold in multiple games (Castlevania,Vampire Killer,Haunted Castle,Super Castlevania IV,andCastlevania Chronicles).[1][2]By the events ofCastlevania II: Simon's Quest,the now deceased Dracula has placed a curse on Simon and all of Transylvania. Simon breaks the curse by gathering and incinerating Dracula's remains, though it is hinted that Dracula will return when his skinless hand rises from his grave. Simon is one of only two Belmonts to have faced Dracula twice in his lifetime, the other being his ancestor Christopher.[3][4]Worlds of Power,a 1990s series of books with stories based on Nintendo games, has a novel aboutSimon's Quest.[5]It was written byChristopher Howell,and the series was produced bySeth Godin.It departs from the original plot and introduces characters not seen in the game, including junior high school student Timothy Bradley, a video gamer who crosses over into the world ofSimon's Questand assists Simon in looking for Dracula's body parts.[6]

InHaunted Castle,Simon is blue-haired and has a wife called Selena, who is kidnapped by Dracula directly after their marriage. It is actually unknown if this is Simon at all. The guide to the game calls him Simons, a descendant of the canonical Simon, while a newsletter by Konami itself names him William.[7]

Although Simon is the first Belmont to appear in a Castlevania game, in the Belmont lineage,Leon Belmontoriginates the direct bloodline of the clan. It can then be presumed that he is followed by Trevor, Christopher, Soleil, Simon, Juste, Richter, and then Julius. InCastlevania: Harmony of Dissonance,Simon is playable in the Boss Rush mode, looking exactly as he did inCastlevania.InCastlevania: Harmony of Despair,Simon is an extra character purchased as downloadable content, the sprite from the original game also being reused here. A special stage that recreates the game's castle layout can also be purchased.[8]

Simon Belmont appears in the rebooted seriesCastlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate,as the son of Trevor Belmont and Sypha Belnades, and grandson of Gabriel Belmont, later known as Dracula.[9]He seeks revenge for the murder of his parents and throughout the game is unaware that Dracula is his grandfather.[10]But, Konami shows the early design of young Simon asGabriel Belmonta new protagonist at the game.[11]

Simon'sCastlevania Judgmentincarnation was designed byDeath NoteartistTakeshi Obata.[12]He has red-orange hair comparable to that ofLight Yagami(the protagonist of Death Note), a jacket with many belts on it that exposes his muscular chest, and bandages on his forearms. The Bradygames Official Guide states that Simon is 23 years old and approximately 185 cm (6 ft 1 in).[13]Series directorKoji Igarashiemphasized that these designs were different from what he envisioned, Simon in particular, but commented that this was how Obata envisioned them.[14]He added that while the design felt radically different, so did Kojima's.[15]Simon's design by Obata was criticized, which was perceived as too derivative of Obata's work onDeath Note.[16]

In other media[edit]

Simon appeared inCaptain N: The Game Master,a television cartoon featuring characters from contemporary games released for the Nintendo Entertainment System. He is depicted as an arrogant and egotistical vampire hunter who competes with the main characterKevin Keenefor the heroine Princess Lana, who he carries a torch for. Simon has a whip and a backpack of resources which he uses throughout the series. His appearance in the cartoon was met with criticism. Ben Rhudy of Monsters and Critics stated that he looks nothing like his video game counterpart, and that the show's creatorDiCshould have consulted the game before choosing this design.[17]CBR is critical of the "cowardly" portrayal of Simon in the cartoon series, and felt that the creators should have drawn more from the source material.[18]

Simon also appears in several games outside theCastlevaniafranchise including the 2003 crossoverfighting gameDreamMix TV World Fighters,[19]the 2017action gameSuper Bomberman R,[20]and the 2018 crossover fighting gameSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate,[21]as well receiving anamiibofigure later.[22]He will also debut as a playable fighter inBrawlhallaon October 19, 2022.[23]First 4 Figures made a figure of Simon as part of a line of Halloween figures which was modeled at the original NES box art.[24][25]The vampire survival game V Rising by Stunlock Studios added Simon Belmont Vampire Hunter as an optional Boss upon its version 1.0 release on May 8, 2024.[26]

Reception[edit]

CBRrefers to Simon as the face of theCastlevaniaseries, having been the protagonist of the original game, as well as multiple games overall.[18]This is also the view ofTheGamer,who calls him "the face of the franchise and the Belmont who started it all, Simon had headlined more games than any other Belmont in the series."[27]In another discussion of theCastlevaniacharacters,TheGamercelebrates Simon's multiple character designs, and decides that he is the most legendary vampire hunter of the Belmont clan.[28]

Nintendo Powerlisted Simon as its seventh favorite hero, stating that while it respects all of the vampire hunters inCastlevania,he was the first.[29]According to Nintendo Power, the worst cover for a Nintendo Power was one depicting Simon Belmont holding the severed head of Dracula (the scene was a depiction ofCastlevania II). It is considered the worst cover because hundreds of parents called in to complain about the goriness of the cover. It was reported in the complaints that children suffered nightmares resulting from the image.[30]The use of a whip is considered one of the features that makes Simon Belmont a memorable hero character,[31]which is echoed byCBRin saying "he's not Simon Belmont unless he cracks out his classic whip."[18]GamesRadar+stated that Simon Belmont deserves his own movie,[32]whileKotakuexpressed concern that in such a movie Simon might be armed with a sword instead of whip.[33]GamesRadar+also called Simon inCastlevania Judgementsexy and said that "Simon's Judgment apparel is a lot of belts and leather wrapped around an exposed torso".[34]Game Informercriticized the character design inCastlevania Judgement.[35]Chris Morgan forYardbarkerdescribed Simon as one of "the most memorable characters from old school Nintendo games".[36]

Complex Networkslisted Simon as a top 10 best vampire hunter in video games,[37]and top 2 among most drastic character makeovers in gaming.[38]

Simon Belmont's inclusion in the roster ofSuper Smash Bros. Ultimatewas received enthusiastically. Before his inclusion inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate,multiple gaming websites called for his inclusion, includingGameRadar,[39]Game Informer[40]andComplex.[41]He has been described as a fan favorite character.[42]USgamer praised the addition as he defines "old school Nintendo nostalgia".[43]VentureBeatalso praised for giving a neglected character a chance.[44]WhileDestructoidpraised and said "The axe, the cross, the holy water items, they're all here, and they work wonderfully within the confines of Smash".[45]Polygonranked Simon as top 12 character inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate,[46]whilePaste magazineranked him as top 5.[47]Gavin Jasper ofDen of Geekranked Simon as 48th ofSuper Smash Bros. Ultimatecharacters, criticizing his appearances as it lacks the impact of most of the other guest characters.[48]HobbyConsolasincluded Simon Belmont on its "The 30 best heroes of the last 30 years."[49]

References[edit]

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