Yes go the opposite extreme and generalize instead of looking at my explanations of criticism.
1. Of course they like it AND they know it's the right move. I didn't say they don't like it. That's the problem, they changed their minds about the beautiful metal music they made and they literally look down on the fans who love it as if they're idiots. They've now done that for years. Thus, alienation of their original fans even though as a metal band they are the foundation of your following.
2. Now of course there's guitars in the songs... But they're not guitar-DRIVEN songs... driven by memorable, digestible and/or catchy riffs/melodies. These songs, are not. And sure, lump me in with all the idiots who make claims like that. "WAHH THEY SHOULD HAVE ZOMBIE INC SOLOS IN EVERY SONG WAHH" Because yes, that's what I sound like. People can appreciate a couple tracks but these are not songs that are a breath of fresh metal/hard rock play, more just a radio rock band that focuses on the words instead of the instruments as a whole.
3. A small percentage of Youtube viewers hit the like/dislike buttons on videos relative to the total views of videos. Look at that Lady Gaga song with 600million views, only 900,000 likes and 190,000 dislikes. They show a representation but at the same time most people don't even care to hit the buttons. And again with the generalizations, I didn't say ALL the comments are negative. But go look at the largely discussed comments(a lot of "thumbs up") that have hundreds of comments of discussion within them that have literally become their own thread basically... Adding up all of them there are thousands of random people saying how much they don't like what they're hearing and discussing their opinions. To be fair there are many people saying it's good, but most just simply going "THEY CANT MAKE THE SAME ALBUM TWICE" as if that's the only argument people who dislike the new stuff have. I didn't say there's anything wrong with liking this stuff I just said from observation, it looks like MOST people who normally would buy their albums won't this time.
They are alienating a LOT of their fans that have been with them for a long time (even the people who've been around less than 10yrs ago STYE and on...). Both by how they literally look down on the people who love their old stuff and by the uninspired musical direction they're taking. Now whether that's a conscious decision or not, it's still not good for them to allow this to happen. They're entertainers first and foremost, after all. Make what you want, but at least keep your following interested... somehow.
Now be sure to come back with sarcasm and instead of actually listening to detailed criticism, lump it all into one big pile of somehow unfathomable "hating". Make sure you associate ALL of my opinions as comparable to the one-sentenced-dismissals many people are doing online which I myself find unfair and nothing but retarded negativity without explaining oneself.
1. That's the problem, you take it personally somehow. They don't look down on anyone, if you think that, you are retarded. They've said it numerous times, they are perfectly fine with people who only like their old stuff, they are even happy if someone just likes 1 riff or 1 song. They are the same with some bands themselves, Björn only likes the first couple Metallica records for example. They write the music that the love, and if people don't like it, or even hate it, what should they do? Since it's music everything's subjective. Just because they don't make music that suits the old fans it doesn't equal looking down on them. If you think that, then it's your problem.
2. The music is still guitar driven. The vocals is just taking more place than usual at the same time. Memorable riffs? Subjective opinion. Catchy? Subjective opinion. While you think there are none, I hear plenty memorable guitar melodies and catchy riffs, catchy vocals. You really need to listen to the album more, you probably haven't heard most of the guitar melodies. When you write that IF is a radio rock band, then it's hard to take you serious. I have still not heard any band that sounds like In Flames.
And nowadays it's hard to make a breath of fresh metal unless you start a new genre. It's all been done already, all genres already exist.
3. Those people have done the exact same thing on the last couple of albums as well. You don't remember when Deliver Us was released? Look at In Flames facebook as well. It's called vocal minority. People feel a bigger need to shout out their disappointment than other people shouting out their enjoyment. Many people will not buy this album, many people will. Your speculations that lots of the newer fans hate the album too are based on Youtube comments. Like I said, we'll see. To your ears the album is completely different, I think it is because you haven't listened to it that much to be honest. I've listened to it a lot, and it clearly still is In Flames.
I still don't understand how you are trying to say that they are alienating people. That would be true if they said ''fuck you who only like our old albums''. They don't make music that you and many other people like anymore, well that's sad. What can we do about it? Nothing. Listen to something you like instead. I doubt even Justin Bieber doesn't make music that he actually doesn't really like. I rather bands be like Opeth and In Flames and write whatever music they want, and don't give a crap about what people are going to say. I mean sure, if it turns out that literally 95% of their fans hate their new album then yes, it's debatable that they must've done something very weird. There's bands that has abandoned genres 10 times worse than In Flames, even changing genres fully. Now I know you're going to say ''it's okay to change style as long as the music itself is good''. Again that's subjective.
I like all IF albums, the earlier ones are more raw and angry and the newer ones are more melodic. I like it all. They always mix aggression and melody. As much as I love the chorus of The Hive, I love the chorus in Paralyzed the same, although they sound very different. You might think it's uninspiring and boring and The Hive is the most inspiring and interesting song ever created, that's called opinions.
And if they wouldn't be entertaining, they wouldn't be playing bigger tours, getting the headline slots and selling out venues in places they didn't a couple years earlier. They are constantly growing.
It's like Anders said, when they released Whoracle people were whining because it didn't sound like Jester Race, and then the same thing when they released Colony. Maybe not to the same extent as when they released R2R, but it's always been the same story. Bands always make music for themselves first and foremost, other people outside the band always come second. I almost don't know any band at all that people don't consider their first couple albums their best. It's always like that. First couple albums from a new band are always the classics, there's no way to change that.
Also while I generalized and exaggerated, your post was in the same vein.
It's pretty good, ballads are very good. I listened them hundreds of times now. On few songs Anders cleans are still weird but most of them is good. I guess this is the first IF album that I'm going to buy. 
