I would argue that Rogue One doesn't rely on nostalgia any less than TFA... and I much prefer the way TFA does it (with reservations on some stuff, mostly the Starkiller Base obviously). In TFA, nostalgia is basically what the film is about... it's a new generation having to pick things up from the old. In Rogue One, it's just winks, which is perhaps easier to overlook, but a heck of a lot more annoying. It's a small thing, but we get three shots of that sentry : those shots exist for no other purpose than "Remember that ?". Say what you will about TFA, but at least it tackled nostalgia head-on even if it didn't do it perfectly, Rogue One just uses it as a cheap trick.