Its not a bad article and I can see how the author and his friend have gripes, but there isnt a video game out there that those 2 cant scrutinize under the same criteria. Video games are crafted narratives and any “choice based” game is only going to get you to a couple different outcomes, and usually only one minor ending is different.
“then we could say that chess or soccer are bad games.”
And Ill argue soccer is a bad game, but thats just my opinion. Whether that makes me right or wrong doesnt matter