I think a lot of people that are poopooing the modernization of the gameplay because it breaks "tradition" don't really understand what tradition means in the FF series.

FF tradition has always been about the lore, characters, world, erc. They've pretty much kept up with tradition: chocobos, evil empire, white/black mage, etc.

What they haven't done is make a modern game in terms of gameplay. They've modernized and updated the gameplay for practically EVERY Final Fantasy game leading up to FFXIII. That's why a lot of people are frustrated at this game (and FFXIII). Gameplay is so backwards and barebones, that it feels like you're playing something from 10+ years ago.