Well, they were supposed to be the voice of the player instead and blah blah.

Nowadays they're mostly gone of AA and AAA games with Link being the only major offender left. Interestingly, such game design philosophy was so strong in Zelda that it wasn't before BoTW that characters even called "Link" by the name of "Link" I think?

Depends on the game for me, is very much a case by case basis.

For some of your examples like XCX and BotW, that is more how the story is told that doesn't work for some rather than the main character. Same people could adore previous Zelda stories like Wind Waker or Skyward Sword that also feature a silent Link, but don't like how the story in BotW gets told through individual memories rather than a linear story, personally I love it, but I can see why others don't get engaged with it.

Then there is Xenoblade X, where the main story isn't as impactful or that well paced compared to 1 and 2, because that takes a backseat in favor of its worldbuilding, is pretty much a game where you won't get much from the main stuff but rather the side stories.

Haven't played Astral Chain, but for these kinds of crazy action rides, the more personality filled characters like a Bayonetta, a Dante or a colorful bunch of heroes like W101 is more appreciated for me.

I do think certain franchises work better with it than others, and I also think it's possible to change from silent to voiced. Remember when Jak went from silent protagonist in Jak in Daxter to angry badass in Jak 2? They handled that pretty well, honestly, or at least as well as could be expected going from a simple collectathon to a story driven action adventure. They actually addressed it in game, it was the result of two years of torture, which made it seem like the protagonist in the first game was just innocent and shy, but could in theory talk, just chose not to because he was a bit timid, and after all that torture hardened him, he just didn't give a fuck anymore. That wouldn't work so well with any incarnation of Link we've seen. Perhaps if they ever completely remade Ocarina of Time, he could start out as a similar silent, shy protagonist as the outcast of the forest only accepted by Saria, then find his voice as he grows up and has to face the world in the dark state Ganondorf left it in. Or something like that, I dunno. They'd have to handle it just right. Zelda's story has always been kind of light, with its deepest development being in its lore rather than the actual plot points. It has the makings of a deeper game though, and a voiced protagonist could probably help with that, but it would take the perfect vision for a voiced Link to make the fans accept it, and I doubt Nintendo is ready to risk that anytime soon.

I don't mind Link and Gordon Freeman but only them.. however i think it sucks in Astral Chain that you character doesn't speak and it's really strange and just feels wrong i have more problems with Astral Chain than that i don't think it's an amazing game the way fanboys portray it on Metacritic for example.

But yes i agree with you i guess.

Because for many players it's easier to feel more immersed as the main character when they're silent as the player is more able to fill the gaps with a personality of their choice rather than one the developer has chosen. Voiced protagonists are imo one of the most overstated in how people make them out to be as a lot of the time we get the same generic personalities which is why I'm glad Zelda still doesn't have Link speak.

I didn't think about Gordon Freeman, that's actually a really good example of a game with great story done well even though the protagonist is silent. Of course, that's largely because of Alyx. Imagine if BotW 2 is super story heavy, and Zelda is traveling with you a lot and does all the talking? They could really do a lot with that.

Good point just goes to show what an masterpiece HL2 and the two other parts are.

I'd rather them be silent like the Luminary in DQXI than having the most annoying voices possible, like Tidus in FFX or Vanille in FFXV.

The Zelda series might be the only series that has made this work. BotW is considered weak plot wise because you can miss it almost entirely if you don't seek out the memories. The problem with Switching Link into a talkative character is that it could divide the Zelda fanzine especially if Nintendo doesn't nail it.

That said to me the best open world plot I have seen has been HZDs mainly because of Aloy, so generally I do prefer strong protagonists with a voice.

I mean, I don't mind it because I am at a point where I don't need the main character to talk all the time. Some of my favorite games are games that feature silent Protagonists. Dragon Quest, Chrono Trigger, Zelda, Pokemon, etc. and they explore storytelling in a different light. I know people shove off the idea that the blank slate is for us to emote to, but I uphold that idea. It's easier for me to connect with narratives without having to think the set way that the protagonist thinks.

Now don't get me wrong, I love character arcs when they're done correctly, but I do prefer silent protagonists in my games these days. If you would have asked me a decade ago, eh, you may have gotten a different answer.