Simon the Sorcerer Origins Preview

30 years ago, players wondered just who was this Simon guy, where did his purple robes come from, and just why was he chosen from hundreds to save the wizard Calypso? Well, in this prequel point-and-click adventure, Simon the Sorcerer Origins, you can finally discover the answers to these questions.

Originally announced in 2022, there’s been a bit of a delay in getting our hands on this game by Smallthing Studios, but it’s finally on its way at the end of October. I got a chance to play around with the first hour, and honestly, I was quite excited to be clicking about in the purple robes again.

Simon the Sorcerer Origins starts with Simon and his parents moving into a new house. He’s reluctant to help bring in boxes and wants to go and check out his new bedroom, so the tutorial takes the form of Mum shouting through instructions on what you should not be doing; such as clicking on objects to pick them up, or combining items in your inventory — big no-nos!

After retrieving his bedroom door key from the kitchen plug hole (what was it doing there?) Simon is whisked off to a strange land. He’s given wizard clothes and sent off to the Academy to find answers. I can’t really comment more on the story, as my time with the game ended before I could even collect the items I needed to get into the Academy.

While there is the option of using a controller, I’m over 40 years old, so I still play point-and-clicks with a mouse, thank you very much. Mouse click to move, press the space bar to open the inventory, click on items to pick them up, click other things to use said item… all your usual controls.

The graphics are all hand-drawn this time around, and everything looks fantastic. I still enjoy pixel graphics; there are some fantastic-looking games around with that art style, but the cartoony style allows the characters to be more expressive than ever. My only issue with the art is the fact that the camera sometimes gets too close to Simon, which means I see less of the environment.

The music is great, very reminiscent of the original in places while being its own take. It also has a track from Rick Astley, just to prove how set in the 1990s it is. Together Forever, in case you were wondering.

As for the voice work, it’s genuinely the highlight of the game for me, they’ve brought back Simon’s original voice actor, Chris Barrie (of Red Dwarf and The Brittas Empire fame), to reprise the role, and there’s no noticeable difference between the original game and Simon the Sorcerer Origins. Unfortunately, that’s not entirely a positive thing, as the direction could have used a bit of work. Simon will sometimes emphasise the wrong parts of a sentence, or yelp in an unconvincing way — just like in the original.

The rest of the voice cast is great, too, and they do a great job with the script. It helps that the writing is top-notch, with a lot of funny stuff throughout. There’s no reason for you to check out the bookcases — unless you’re looking for funny book titles. If so, then you’re absolutely in luck.

Simon the Sorcerer Origins is a magical return to the series after a 16-year hiatus, and I am very much looking forward to the game’s release. It’s coming to PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch on 28th of October 2025.