Older games definitely operate differently i.e. they don't assume you need constant dopamine hits to maintain your focus so there is a lot more "breathing room"

I love playing my old favorites but when playing a classic like FF7 for the first time now I found myself getting frustrated even though it operates on similar principles to like Ocarina of Time for example. I definitely looked up what I was supposed to do to get past that snake thing and how to get a Chocobo etc. but back then it was just kind of expected that you would talk to all the NPCs and check out all the areas to get this information.

I definitely don't disagree with your point though. Somehow, the genwunner thing in Pokemon has now come all the way around and people rag on it far too much. Like, you think Pokemon Red and Blue, the biggest video game phenomenon I've still ever seen, is a bad boring game? Every kid in America was addicted to it. Similarly, the endless pursuit of "realistic" graphics is fucking stupid. I thought the graphics looked great on the 64, GameCube, PS2, etc. it's not like everything magically keeps getting better, I enjoy everything the same amount.