Back then, games didn't cost as much to make, neither did they require the collaboration of several teams of hundreds of people.
Taking a risk in the late 90s was different from taking a risk these days.
Like it or not, the reality of the game industry has changed a lot and now indies are the true beacon of creativity and innovation.
Not every game needs to cost hundreds of millions to make. Great looking games at a reasonable cost can be made. Just look at games like Yakuza 5, Captain Toad, and to an extent, No Man's Sky. The problem is that those mid-tier games are ignored by publishers and it seems to be that most games that come out these days are either ridiculously expensive AAA blockbusters or bargain bin indie garbage. Not to say that all indies are bad, because they aren't, but most look like proof of concept type games that never got off the ground.