No.
And I find it funny that you called "non-Castlevania fans" as "lowest common denominator". And Castlevania fans of course are "elite"? LOL. That self-esteem is hilarious and unreasonable. To say the least. It's like saying "all non-Metroid fans" are inferrior to the ones who like this series. A WTF moment really.
Not really, because Castlevania fans, most of them, are on the series from the very beginning to the very end, so they know far better from someone who came to the series later, what they were known and what they have become. When you see that they have bastardized the game that for so many years you have loved, only for making more money, it's your right to complain and when someone who isn't fan of the series and has just played the last games, he can't criticize the fans for complaining, when he doesn't know what the old games they look like.
Konami in the past has made an attempt to change the series with Simon's Quest, but it wasn't accepted like it was expected, so it return to the old formula, for game play mechanics and improving the exploration element of the games.
Later, we have Koji who has taken the series to the next step, with Symphony of The Night. He took the exploration style and the use of a map from the Super Metroid and implement it on Symphony of The Night, but that was the only think in common it had with Super Metroid, the exploration style. He also used RPG elements on the game, he used the characters from the older series and he made what we know as SotN. The problem with this one started, when he has started making copies of the game play core from SotN for the latest games with a few add-ons to give some spicies to the game play and he's also accused for making copy paste of bagroung graphics and enemies sprites. He only started to recognise his errors with his latest game, Order of Ecclesia, but it was too late for him.
Now, we have Cox and Mercury Steam, leading the series. They have reboot the series with a new timeline, by redesigning the characters, something that isn't bad, something that if it's made right, it's good. They have copied elements from other games, like Koji made with SotN, but personally i believe that they have overdoit with that, but that's my opinion here. Also that's not a big problem, it is accepted. The problem is you see, that for whatever IGA was accused, it seems to happen with Cox. IGA was accused for game play copy paste, the same thing seems to do Cox with Mirror of Fate and LoS 2. He has copied the game play from the first game, without making any improvements or at least some changes, when he knows that most of the older fans are displeased with that decision. He's also using the same style for music, something that also displease most of the fans. conclusion? The two new games are clones of the first, so more or less, Cox is guilty of the same crime that IGA has been accused. Before you rush and say that they are sequels or that they are connected it's game with the other, don't forget that IGA's games they were also connected each one with other, as they were telling the story of Dracula in the passing of the years and no, i am not saying that IGA has made a better work with the serries, but at least i can't see Cox different when he's doing the same mistakes that IGA has made and he is talking with with arrogance for the old fans(
David Cox: Well, you say that, but it's the most successful Castlevania ever released, so there are a few people moaning about it, but…) At least IGA was having some respect for the fans of the series, old or new ones.