This all depends on how you define "RPG", as there is no concrete definition for the term.  Therefore, there is a problem in the statement made in the article's title.  I'm sure the article elaborates on this more, but just saying "Game X is/isn't an RPG" doesn't really say anything.  Any argument over whether Zelda is or isn't an RPG is actually an argument over the definition of the term RPG.

The problem with modern zelda games is incredibly simple and obvious. They haven't changed in over a decade. Look at the difference between FPS from 1998 and now, or GTA2 (1999) and modern open world action games of today. Zelda games just haven't evolved. Our expectations from games have changed. Zelda hasn't. I could care less about whatever the new wii zelda is because everything I've seen looks like every other zelda game from the past decade but *gasp* I can swing my wiimote vertically to slash vertically! Zelda just hasn't kept up with the times.

What is new Zelda supposed to be like, in your view?

EDIT: Ugh, you quoted the obnoxious version of my post.

I'm not a game designer, I'm a game player. And the designers of zelda have failed to create something interesting enough to peak my interest as a player.

Following the EXACT same formula since the NES days just isn't interesting now. I can pretty much garauntee that I will need to collect 6-7 pieces of something because an evil something is threatening hyrule or some adjacent land, to collect these pieces I will go to a dungeon, each containing a map, a compass, and a big key as well as an item that I must use to solve puzzles, there will be simplistic minimalistic combat (but with directions specific slashing this time), until at the end of said dungeon I will get to a room with a 5-10 second cinematic of the boss entering the room, I will procede to use my new item to stun the boss and hit him with my sword (directionally specific for the new one), and repeat until defeated, I will get a full heartpiece and exit out to the hub world where I will now have access to the next dungeon. I will do this till I have collected all 6-7 pieces of said magical item, and if the production values are high enough, there will be a boss battle followed by a second set of mystical items necessary to collect each with a dungeon until I confront Ganon, or maybe maybe, some different villian.

While I realize the obvious fanboy response is to pick some genre and describe roughly the gameplay elements in it, you'd have to be facetious to not see the difference in describing roughly the tropes of something like infamous 2, and the ridiculous specificity of how predictable zelda games are. I (as well as a great deal of people here) could probably even describe most of the items you will aquire in the new zelda. Zelda has ceased to be a series of sequels and at this point is nearly just a series of remakes pretending to be sequels. It's not because Nintendo doesn't know what an RPG is, that's overintellectuallizing a simple problem. Zelda from 1998 (which was just a flashy, but fantastic zelda from 1986) just isn't interesting in 2011.

@padib  you hit the nail on the head, we are resistance to change. well, depending on the person and series, i think vagabond has just outgrown the series and there is nothing wrong with that. Im sure we all have that series that we used to play but got tired of. I would like Pokemon to change up alot, but that really not fair to the millions of people who buy the games and like it for what it is. Im not one to talk either i love SF and KOFs and they havent changed that much (especially you KOF) but as long as they make them ill play em. Not sure i agree with the movie thing, i think some games benefit from that cinematic experience and attention to story, for me at least it motivates me to see how the characters will end up. Im sure people arent playing all these RPGs because of the amazing random battle system, im sure the story development has something to do with it. i wouldnt have finished Uncharted 1 or 2 or any of the MGs if the stories sucked

The last few Zelda games weren't as much fun as their earlier counterparts?

Good thing someone told me this because I really enjoyed them. Maybe that was just a false sense of joy and Nintendo brainwashed me. More study is needed.

Malstrom needs to shut the fuck up. I've always thought he was an ass but every thing he writes just proves it more.

I have yet to play a bad Zelda game.

Some people like some more than others, some get more good press than others, but I have a hard time believing anyone could claim the games were bad and do it with a straight face.

@rocketpig  outside of the CD-i games your right or are we not counting those? Just asking

Yeah, we'll just go ahead and forget those ever existed.

Sean Malstrom may be public enemy #1 in the Nintendo subforum but it's worth noting that gaming wouldn't have expanded so much this gen if it wasn't for Nintendo deliberately targeting the "lapsed gamer" (which is basically his schtick. He thinks Nintendo should cater to this demographic). Adults who grew up with the Arcades, Atari, 8-bit and 16-bit Nintendo and Sega, etc. but then lost interest in gaming once it started shifting towards 3D, becoming more complex and adding more buttons and sticks to the gamepads. Recently when chilling with my ex-girlfriend she told me that she hates videogames because she sucks at them. I bet if I brought my Wii or DS Lite to her place and set it up with some pick up and play games, she'd change her mind. After all, she is a fan of boardgames (like many women). I see no reason why she couldn't be converted into liking videogames.

Malstrom may have only a little Wordpress and forum corner. But there are tens of millions of people who can sort of relate to the basics of Malstrom's old-school philosophies. The Wii and DS brought back a lot of adults to gaming and also brought in new adults. These games focused on a "back to the basics" type of experience for gaming with a more simplified control scheme than the dual-analog modern gamepad.

I really think that Nintendo should create a 2D New Legend of Zelda to compliment the 3D Zelda line. There would be a strong market for it. Old-school Zelda would appeal more to fans who want Zelda with more action and non-linearity in their exploration.