Not necessarily. There have always been lousy games. However, what has changed is that they have gotten far easier (ignoring shoddy controls) in order to cater to the masses. I think what makes it seem like games have gotten worse is because there is very little imagination any more. It's all about the bottom line. And you can't blame them for it, but you can certainly be upset about it.
Gameplay mechanics have gotten far more complicated over time but just because that happens doesn't mean it's harder. Way back when losing was often brutal and resulted in a lot of hard work gone to waste. Now games constantly spoon feed you stuff without any real punishment for failure which was one thing that made games feel like a huge accomplishment. However, newer gamers who got into gaming when the PS2, xbox, and Gamecube came out never really had a chance to experience this. So this leads to a lack of feeling as rewarded as it was in the past because you get constantly rewarded for playing without much effort. I think that is a factor for why older gamers feel like games have gotten worse, if that is actually worse, I think is pretty much subjective.
Another reason would be sequels. Rather than risk a new IP developers would rather milk a franchise for all it's worth. I'm sure you will all start to think of Activision but every company does this. Even the oh so loved Valve will milk it's franchises to death. Even if it is at a slower pace. Froth at the mouth about it all you want but that doesn't change the truth. Now milking a franchise isn't always bad. If people like something, why not release a sequel and make improvements. However, many companies don't actual make any improvements at all. The best example, though I hate to use it, is Call of Duty. The numerous issues like too much aim assist, dodgy matchmaking, hit markers, and weird lag that behaves entirely different from lag found in other shooters were never addressed. Where as in Mass Effect 2, I don't like the simplification of the inventory, and the lack of armour pieces was disappointing, did make improvements. They got rid of the Mako business which was tedious and no one liked it. That's not to say the new method is any better but they removed what people didn't like.
Graphics have improved significantly which can be seen as both a plus and a minus. It can really help you get immersed in a game but too many companies don't want to put the effort in to make the gameplay good as well. It is often one or the other which is far more prevalent now than it has been in the past. Quality graphics have become expected, which was not as much of an issue in the past. So now companies are harder pressed and as I said earlier, many companies don't want to put in the effort, and would rather just make a quick buck.
The advent of online gaming like pretty much everything else, has it's ups and downs. It is now far easier to fix a glitch in a game than it has been in the past. It also encourages designing quality multiplayer. Once again though, many developers aren't willing to have both a quality single player and multiplayer experience due to sheer laziness. Defend them all you want, but you know it's true. That's not to say it's the the average programmer's fault. Rather, it is the fact that companies are unwilling to hire the amount of staff needed because that would hurt there big fat pay checks. So rather than greatly increasing the amount of staff so that the workers aren't over-worked, they try to hire as few as possible. This puts strain on them and thus results in a shoddy experience. I'll get more into the financial stuff later. For now, back to online. This has also lead to developers releasing content that was once free when online gaming first came around for a price. The most notable would definitely be maps. Where once they are free, they no longer are. And once again, newer gamers won't have experienced that free content so they see nothing wrong with what happens now. So that may be a factor as to why games today may seem of lower quality. Not necessarily because they are worse, but because there isn't as much being given to people for free. This also leads to actually paying more because a series of small fees may make it seem like you are spending less money, when in actuality you are spending more. Then you add in that when/if they do release an expansion pack, and the fact that they have always been hit and miss, the misses now have a significant larger impact because of the negative feeling already due to feeling ripped off by DLC. Hence why that may add to games feeling like they have gotten worse.
Next up financing and marketing. As games get more popular, the more money there is to be made obviously. Doesn't take very many brain cells to be able to figure that out. However, this also brings in big businesses. And as we all know, they only care about profit. Period. So the games they release will cut as many corners as possible and play on the psychology of buyers to earn money. What is very important though, is the increase in marketing for these games. Seeing them everywhere increases the impact they have when they are released. And because marketing has increased vastly over the years it means that when these games are released they have a significant impact towards your views of games today based on whether you like them or not.
Another thing to remember is that there are more games being released these days than there were in the past. Meaning there are significantly more stinkers and shovelware. But also more quality games. However, we humans are very good at pointing out the negatives of something, and they often overshadow the positives. (I won't go into detail about that and the studies because that will lead to an entirely different discussion). So combine the fact that humans will point out the negatives far more than the positives, with the increased number of games and you may have the most significant reason for people thinking games have gotten worse.
On a final note, these increases also bring out significantly more fanboys whom can be quite agitating for some people. That strengthens that feeling that games have gotten worse despite the game not being the cause, it's the fanboys defending a game you don't like. nostalgia also plays a large role too but that's very obvious. It can of course mean that modern sequels to very old games may seem far better than they actually are due to name, having visual and audio similarities, and basic gameplay similarities. At the same time it can also make older gamers feel "betrayed" if the game has changed quite a bit and may seem like they are using the name only to get a few more sales.
That's all that really comes to mind right now. Sorry if some of that doesn't make sense, not exactly the most articulate person. :P
TL;DR
Games probably haven't gotten worse, it may seem that way due to various psychological factors. And obviously, it's highly subjective.
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