NO
and after reading it
yes
No, the problem with middleware is that it has resulted in the developers becoming complacent with their solutions. There is no desire to innovate beyond the means of the middleware, because much of the work has already been done. When the company writes the engine from the bottom up, it is creative along the way. The games design doc is written not to take advantage of an existing solution, but for the sake of the games vision and the creativity behind it. Furthermore, by coding their own engine the developer is able to insert new and innovative aspects into the game, because they wrote the engine and know what can and cannot be done without breaking it. In the case of modern middleware, some programmers have been delegated to the position of little more than glorified scripters: unable to modify the source of the engine too much for fear of breaking it.
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