I'd have agreed when KotOR was new, but now that I'm used to the thought I don't particularly mind melee combat. It's a different age and it is even explained (stupidly or not) in KotOR why they use melee weapons. I can agree that if you think of Sith troopers as Stormtroopers, the vibroblades look stupid. It's just what frame of mind you view it with.
That said, I'm in total agreement regarding eye candy and detail. Computer games designers of today approach this in the wrong way, either overdoing it and sacrificing gameplay in the process, or they seem to disregard it almost completely. The thing is that an RPG is very much about getting "in character", and then the ability to tinker with the physical appearance is much more important than your average FPS. Replayability can actually sky-rocket with just some more options and greater variety in costumes, without having to take too much time off development of other game aspects.