I mostly agree I wouldn't say he's a hack I just think fans put way too much stock in how much one man does in game development when thats not how it works

@FranKle that's an issue with credits in general. Hideo Kojima this, Yoko Taro that. At the very least Takahashi was a consistent thread (and themes) across Xeno in its entirety.

@TsukiruP I disagree generally I feel the quality of the games ranged too far for me to see the consistency.

@FranKle Hence I never said anything about consistent quality. I meant literally, he's been consistently involved in every game in the series. His name is always there.

"Relied on nostalgia baiting" Yes and...? This isn't a negative by itself, man. Everyone and their mother knew this was going to be the case from the Expansion Pass banner. Base game didn't focus on the past nor returning characters too much, so of course this DLC was going to be fan service. What the hell were you expecting? You have the confidence to say it's baiting from a better game (with no elaboration, for the record) but don't like that it's a tribute and sendoff to the same game 13 years later? Pick a struggle.

"They're just soulless husks of what they used to be" congratulations, that literally the theme of Xenoblade 3. Not even 1 used that concept to its fullest, the titans are stationary for 95% of the game.

"He directed 1 good game" you mean you only played one game, lmao. You go on about originality but are seemingly unaware of how much 1 takes from the other Xeno entries. It's genuinely embarrassing.

And who's calling him "one of the best writers in the industry"? Certainly not anyone whose input actually matters. Because you and I know they're wrong. So why are you so upset at this imaginary someone? That "1 good game comment" doesn't really mean anything when your other reviews are as vapid and useless like "just play xenoblade 1 lol". Listen to yourself.
Same goes for "discourage directors for taking all the credit for their projects". It would be a good point, but Takahashi doesn't do that. Every interview I've found for 3 he mentions "the team", never taking credit for everything. It's not his fault that people happen to default to attributing everything to one person. Man, you should be mad at the people who actually get this wrong rather than the side effect!

If you want originality, there's this neat game called Xenoblade Chronicles 3. It's all about moving on from the past. But apparently you don't even like that one! Consider taking your own advice and get a grip.

@TsukiruP ok if its an issue than its worth pointing out

It is worth pointing out, but this review isn't doing that. It's screaming at the symptom (that's made up) instead of the cause. Advocate for more knowledge about game development rather than this facsimile of a review.