graphics matter. don't bs urself. playing gears without the graphics is not the same. shadow of the collossus used graphics extremely well. okami, stunning graphics. chrono trigger, ff9, ffx. the list goes on. if used well, then any dev can make a great looking game even though it doesn't look stunning from a technical stand point. more processing power just gives more freedom (and a higher budget).

Soo.....your take on this is as follows?

#7 Thou shalt let us play your game with real-life friends.
- You dislike playing with freinds/family IRL

Sorry , I reraley play games in multiplayer , Im mostly a single-player guy 

#6 Thou shalt not pad the length of your games.
- Like games being padded for length with huge stretches of land between objectives
- Enjoy mandatory fetch quests

Hate the fetch quests  , but I actually enjoy when I had to go with a tank/car trough major landscapes ( see : Advent Rising )

#5 Thou shalt not force repetition on the player.
- You don't mind having to replay levels due to limited save points.
- Like being forced to watch cutscenes repeatedly.
- Have no problems with instant failure quicktime events.

Lack of savepoints : harder games ... that can be taken as a pro or a con . Many cutscene actually hides loadtimes so yeah , its often needed for cutscenes to be shown several times , and I have nothing against instant-failure quicktime events , because as somebody who is usually imersed into games I susually beat them from the first time .

#4 Thou shalt make killing fun.
- Like starting with a bullshit weapon.
- Enjoy killing tiny rodent enemies.
- Don't mind attacks that have no visible effect.
- Don't notice/mind games Filled with hordes of cookie-cutter bad guys.

Starting with a week weapon is not a bad thing , it just showes you later on the difference when you get the ultimate one . Small enemies can allways keep the tension up , and sometimes I do like hordes of por AI characters ( Dynasty/Samurai Warriors anyone ?). But it is true , and I hate when weapons have no visible effect on enemies .

#3 Thou shalt admit when enough is enough.
- You like escort missions.
- No problems with CPU-controlled squad teammates.
- Enjoy First-person jumping puzzles.
- Don't think that WW2 games and grizzled space marines are getting old

Yes , I do hate escort missions , and FPS jumps to , but I actually like CPU teammates sometimes ( when they actually have some level of AI ) and I still like WW2 FPSs and manly space marines :P 

#2 Thou shalt make sure your game actually works.
- No problem with devs who port games after about five minutes of beta testing.
- Don't mind games Released on a console that can't really run it.
- Aren't bothered by load times.

Load times dont bother me , untill the game is good . Some fast ports are good ( Okami ? ) and some arent ( POP : Revelations ) oh , and If a game is on a console than it actually runs it . Lower quality ? Maybe , but the core is usually there .

#1 Better graphics do not equal innovation and/or creativity.
- Don't think games need to hire real writers
- Don't mind if devs don't put time into the endings
- And believe graphics make a game great.

Real writers can be lame to , but sometimes they can do miracles ( Dead Head Fred is my fav . ) . Yeah some endings are lame , but IMO thats usually just a small part of the problem , and yes , graphics can make the game excelent ( Syberia , Gears of War , God of War ... all of these top rated series would be far less popular if there wouldent be the graphics to back it . A real cinematic experience needs great graphics , and sorry , MKDS just cant achieve that  ) 

Graphics matter? Sure, they make a difference, but they do not "make" a great game. A game is good or bad on the merits of its gameplay primarily. Sound, Graphics, and Story all supplement and augment the gameplay but gameplay is core. You're BS'ing yourself if you think otherwise. For example, tell me how good the graphics would need to be on this game for it to score in the 9s? 8s? 7s? hell if it could make a 3 I would be impressed. Seriously watch the whole video, it is quite comical.

According to you it simply needs a facelift to be AAA. I'm not seeing it.  It has a metacritic of 8/100.