People on the internet get judgmental and angry about things they're not into or don't understand, and you just have to ignore them because they're not who you're making your games for. I can tell that your project came from your heart, and that's infinitely more important than whatever the "broader audience" may like. It sounds like you've had a lot of fun with all of the new stuff that you got to try and that's a really precious experience that you wouldn't have had otherwise!
I think you're completely correct about the mechanical text, it just makes the story more personal by giving or taking something away from the players themselves rather than just the character.