The problem with sci-fi and the conceit of time travel, is that one has to take such changes to reality seriously. (Never mind the paradoxes that result, and render it all rather silly.) So if Jim Kirk does not have the same life experiences as before, and therefore does not act or react in certain ways, he is not really the same person as before. And that does have an impact on the audience's identification with the character. (If one takes time travel and the altering of time lines seriously.)
Otherwise it makes the very bad assumption that everyone is born with a certain kind of character, or worse, that character is reducible to having strong innate emotions and impulses.
Is it the case that moderns value characters more than the direction and end of a story? So much so that it is akin to celebrity worship and having an excessive fantasy life and other distortions of the imagination and will? If we do not have an end that lies outside ourselves, then why shouldn't we adore and be inspired by some ideal person as they exist in a particular time, in some fixed, idealized ever-present now, even if that person and now are imaginary? (Does a TNG fan appreciate the timid Picard who never rose above the rank of Lieutenant JG? No, they want the bold starship captain.) If that's all the fans have, why take it away from them, just for the sake of 'reinvigorating' the franchise and generating more profit? (Obviously it's the bottom line that matters for Paramount.)
The new Kirk may not be as bad as the timid Picard; however we will see if the initial impressions of some that he's just a CW adultlescent with issues are correct or not.
Edit: You can read the interview with Bob Orci here. My suspicions seem to be confirmed:
His statements reveal a rather poor understanding of human nature...Anthony: OK, well then some fans will say ‘fair enough, alternate timeline, we are used to that, but that is not my Kirk, that is some other Kirk.’ So is this still our movie, or are we seeing some other version of Star Trek?
Bob: Well that depends on whether or not you believe in nature or nurture and how much you believe in, for lack of a better word, their souls. I would argue that for the characters, their true nature does not change. Our motto for this movie was ’same ship, different day.’
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