Ok so your whole argument is pretty bad because what made those games successful wasn't visual mixing exclusively, it was the different style of progression and the learning the arrests of the open world and getting better at racing because you understand the streets you travel on as you play. Also characters are good to have sometimes but the biggest thing is the satisfaction of your progression showing in your cars and having favorite places in the city's. I've played the older games like hot persuit and high stakes and I have to say I do enjoy those other games But the problem is I don't feel great progression aside from unlocking maps and buying cars with any color you want each time you use them. Yes I had favorite places in hot persuit but they where only in the form of free mode maps and it gets boring tracing the same map going the same direction with cops in the same spots saying the same thing. It's not great so I deal as if you can't grasp the concept of different styles of gameplay. Yes having a franchise go open world is jarring and people will freak out a bit but in the right game type, like a street racing it is objectively a better solution to that type of progression. But either way I don't expect you to except it you sleep to be sticking to the old way too hard