Heh, that's the coolest thing about Castlevania: Symphony of the Night in my opinion.
The PlayStation was all about 3D gaming, yet in this game, Konami showed what could be done with the old 2D side-scroller format on a more powerful machine. Way better animation than was ever possible on the 16-bit games consoles, larger levels, better backgrounds, nice special effects.
Unfortunately, it never really caught on, and although there are obviously some fantastic 3D games around now, the general consensus seems to be that 2D side-scrollers died along with the 16-bit consoles.
Just imagine what sort of 2D side-scroller the Xbox 360 could be capable of today... then imagine a new 2D Castlevania game.... or Shinobi... or maybe even a 2D Sonic the Hedgehog. I miss the old days...