Cutscenes: Do they actually matter?

Cutscenes in videogames have been around for a very long time. they were often used as  rewards for completing a level or to advance the story. However in this day and age cutscenes seem to be getting less and less relevant.

With graphics becoming more and more realistic in gameplay, cutscenes just seem like a waste of time. More game designers are integrating gameplay into cutscenes, such as quick time events in Resident Evil 4 and the choosable dialogue in Mass Effect. Perhaps Cutscenes are being seen as a relic from when video games tried to emulate films.

Could the future of advancing storys be through pure gameplay such as the scenes in Half Life 2? Of course cutscenes are still around to this day , but they may be a thing of the past eventually.