I like it, but propose a counter-point: most Mario games. They have some skill checks in the main game, but not many -- most of the difficulty lies in completely optional challenges. Often, you get to pick and choose your own difficulty by picking which stars/moons/etc. to collect to progress, only requiring that you get i.e. 5 out of 10 total.

I personally prefer the option of going for harder goals, but FWIW I did enjoy the Spyro remake (didn't play it as a kid).