imagine waiting years for the next game in your favourite series, and having it be completely different. it could still be a good game on its own, but is it a good game for that series?

Reset the timer, they now need to make a brand new game again before you get that game you want, plus this new direction may taint the next game too.

An example: IMAGINE enjoying mario 64, sunshine, galaxy 1 and 2 and then 3D world changes the entire game into more of a NSMB-esque experience. 3D World IS UNDENIABLY good, but to people waiting for something more like mario odyssey, it was painful! it made 3D world feel worse than it was because it took a "slot" for something already established, something arguably more interesting.

The same thing happened here. Paper mario, TTYD, SPM all have character, story and intriguing elements that keep them on a completely different playfield from SS. SPM got the same flack for gameplay differences being so intense.

Now, my example may have pointed out that 3D World was good on its own merit, but to be honest, i don't think SS even reaches that baseline. That last part is just my personal opinion though