[quote name='elwood731']It isn't too big a stretch. I seem to recall an interview with SOTN's producer saying Simon's Quest was a favorite of his. The fact that there were other game in between doesn't negate that it, along with Metroid, had an influence on SOTN.[/QUOTE]
An influence doesn't mean it's the "father of the modern 2D Castlevania." None of those GBA & DS games that have come out over the past few years would exist if it were not for SOTN knocking everyone on their ass. SOTN would very likely exist if Castlevania II was just a souped-up redux of the first game.
Hey, I love Simon's Quest, maybe even more than SOTN depending on how cranky I am, but it's still a stretch. Yeah, it sounds cool on paper to say "man, way back in '88 Simon's Quest groundwork for all those games we're playing 20 years later!" and there are elements of it here and there...but it's hardly the reason that SOTN exists. Please.
[quote name='Morpheus']Simon's Quest is the first Catlevania that "aped" the Metroid style (but not perfectly and with a few twists).[/QUOTE]
Uh huh, and Half-Life is Doom "not perfectly and with a few twists."
Whatever. If it gives you guys a boner to envision this strong, deep-rooted connection between the two games, that's your perrogative. I'm not going to argue with you on this anymore, I already feel like a

ing dork discussing the origins of Castlevania titles to this depth, so go nuts.