I agree. Gaming is far inferior today than it was in the 80s/90s. The reason being is the industry is trying more and more to make games "epic" in terms of cutscenes, graphics, etc. They are pulling out all the stops trying to make their games more like action movies. The problem with that is, it usually comes at the cost of the actual GAMEPLAY, and the freedom of choice within games. Try playing a modern game and see how far you can wander off from the main mission/quest. Chances are you'll be stopped by invisible walls. That's because modern games require so much power, and thus there is no room left to make an open world. (There are of course exceptions to this, like Fallout 3 and Oblivion, which is why these are some of the few HD games I like).
Overall, you get these very limited games that sacrifice freedom, and the randomizing elements that make games special, for the sake of extra polygons, cutscenes, etc. Games today just feel like they hold your hand, and are more like interactive movies, as you are merely there to "play out" what the developer has already laid out in front of you. You know longer feel like YOU'RE the hero. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind story in my games. I just prefer that I am the one who creates my own story. Some backstory is ok, but I don't like it imposed too much upon me. People just want to feel in maximum control of their game, and more and more, games seem to be taking control out of the hands of the player, and towards the developer. Now I LOVE rich and engrossing epic movies, but I don't like them mixed with my games. I either like to sit back and be taken away in an epic film, OR play an action packed game in which I am in complete control. I don't like a combination of the two. And I think many people are in the same boat.
This is why the industry is losing consumers, and why you see SO many people talking about the "good old days." Of gaming. I went on a simple youtube video that simply had music from DKC, and scrolling through the comments section, there were DOZENS of people complaining about modern gaming, and how they wished games were still "like this." Clearly, something drastic has changed to deter this large base of oldschool gamers.
