My mom has been playing JRPGs like Tales of and FF since almost their beginnings, and she strongly feels this way. She constantly complains about newer JRPGs trying too hard to look western or appeal to overtly "manly" gamers, and while she takes it to a degree far more than me, I do agree with her. Especially since I know this article mentions kids were mostly playing Pokemon.
We watched the first hour or two of FF 16, and while I kinda liked the plot, it just looks too gritty and rough (and also the fuck was that softcore sex scene???). I maybe will play it since I'm doing my initial FF series marathon (started with the 3D remake of III), but I just feel meh about the later games.
I played FF XV a year ago and was severely underwhelmed, especially since I didn't know the game is essentially unfinished without the additional story DLC. The setting took me out of it too, I was expecting a way more fictional and creative world than I got because, well, it is called "Final FANTASY", but the reality was just. Watch this boyband drive a car for hours and do sidequests until "Oh shit we need to get the blessings of the titans/guardians/whatever!"
Having that as my first FF game was kinda disappointing lol.
I wrote more about it in my other comment, but yeah FF 15 driving and running in empty fields killed me. And that was literally my first FF game ever. The audacity to say "Great for new and old fans" at the start was funny, since my mom who's an FF veteran hated it too when she watched me play. I think the main party was fine, but the plot basically goes nowhere until we arrive at the water town and Levithan shows up. The the rest of the game is "ride a train and fight bad guys."
I can appreciate games with a more "realistic" look, but I still love more cartoony 3D and pixel graphics, so I would gladly take that over these blockbuster billion dollar movie-games they keep making. Octopath is absolutely stunning imo, and I had a wonderful time playing the second game. The new mechanics were simple, but a definite improvement from the first.
And that's kinda just JRPGs in general. I think Tales of Arise looked fine, but my mom is adamant about the monsters getting uglier. She really just loves cutesy things, so she feels upset when JRPGs with a legacy start to turn more "western" or "manly." But I do feel like there's a growing lack of actual discovery and whimsy in RPGs and just, "this world is big" and "Woah the graphics look so good the water is super realistic"
I keep joking that I don't need to see a close up of every pore on Cloud's face to buy the game. Just make the characters loveable, the story engaging, and the soundtrack good and you've got me.