Opinions on how TCR & FG are dealing with AAMFP criticism

[Kurton]

[...] we were heavily penalised for the removal of the mechanics that featured in the original game. Why was that a problem? Well…it just was because, games, y’know, should have, like, mechanics. Duh!

I've yet to read any review, professional or otherwise, that criticized the removal of interactive elements only because "it's different." The grounds for this criticism was, as far as I can tell, that "less touchy, more walky" led to a heavily crippled sense of operational freedom/agency within the game's world. Maybe she's just lumping it together with the responses to Dear Esther though, I dunno.