That's not remotely what I said.  

What you said can also be said for every game ever. To use such logic for one game means you also do so for every game, unless of course you're unfairly biased so you'll conveniently drop this line of thought for games you don't like.

Really why is it so hard to believe that people who don't like a game you like might actually have valid reasons for doing so? I certainly don't need to brush off criticisms against Splatoon as "whining" to enjoy the game to the fullest.

Nope.  Sorry.  I referred to a specific group of complaints by a specific group of people.  I did not make some kind of sweeping statement about every criticism of this game and every other.   This is basic logic.

It is possible to have valid reasons to dislike a game.  Most of the reasons I've seen for this game, particularly from hardcore fans, are not.

That doesn't change the fact that the same statement can be said for every game ever, all you have to do is replace the word Pokemon in your sentence with any other game. To actually be specific, you'd need to name people's reasons and explain why they're invalid. For example: "Splatoon having gyro aiming is not a flaw when it's completely optional." Here you can't replace Splatoon with any other game as the sentence would no longer make sense, that's how you know you're being specific.

With that said, what are these reasons you've seen? You said most reasons, so you do believe the game has legit faults afterall then despite your initial post, that's good! No game is without flaw afterall.

No... it really can't be said about every game.  Because fans of other franchises may be making valid criticisms.  The criticisms I've seen from hardcore fans (simplified battle system, no random encounters, and so on.)  Do not seem to be.

I don't know why you'd think my initial post implies the game has no faults.  I said I thought a score of 81 was fair.  If I thought the game had no faults, I would be arguing that an 81 is unfair and it should get 100.  Wouldn't I?

Yes it can as every game has criticisms and fans. Whether you think the criticisms are valid or not is only your opinion, just like whoever making the statement would have the opinion that they're not valid, so the statement is always able to be made even if it is an unreasonable one.

So you believe the reasons the game got points docked are completely different from fan criticisms. I've not looked at reviews admittedly but I have to doubt that. Now you've provided a mere two reasons that you say are invalid without any explanation. I'm not gonna agree with you of course, but I would like to see where you're coming from, try to understand the other side and all that.

Yes, if we want to be really technical about it, anyone can make any claim they wish.  Obviously I meant that it could not be made accurately.

"Splatoon 2 criticism is just hardcore fans whining that the game isn't for them." - No more or lesss accurate than your statement due to the lack of specifics as I've explained already.

So not even gonna try to justify your complaining about other's complaints not being justified? Well alrighty then!

Yeah at this point it's obvious that it's a mere blanket statement by him to wave off all complaints.

To be honest, I don't really feel like it, because when someone begins a conversation with a strawman argument, then insists on being absurdly literal I generally don't feel like continuing. But if you insist.

One of the biggest complaints is in doing away with random encounters.  Since the game is made based on Pokemon Go, it makes sense that the game would be more like Pokemon Go, in which you can see Pokemon, and choose which ones to engage.  Similarly, it makes sense that the catching mechanics would be based on Pokemon Go.  

Another complaint is about the removal of features like abilities, held items, mega evolutions, etc.  Which again, isn't an inherently bad thing, just a matter of audience.  Fans of the main Pokemon games have had two decades to get into all of the various nuances, but to newcomers to the franchise, it's kind of intimidating, and somewhat bloated.  If Let's Go is meant to be a bridge between mainline games and Go, then it makes sense to focus on the core rock paper scissors mechanics.  

Essentially, the complaints are that a game designed to be a simplified version of Pokemon and advertised as a simplified version of Pokemon is indeed a simplified version of Pokemon.