Maxperson
Morkus from Orkus
I'm going to challenge that notion.The ironic thing about the bolded above, is that when you listen to interviews/watch game play with "game designers" whether RPG or TT, what you invariably see (in my experience) is that these "designers" who want you to "play a certain way", DON'T actually play that particular way at their own tables. They pick and choose rule applications, make rulings on the spot, change things up to suit their campaign, etc. They also tend to get quite a bit of stuff wrong. However, the RULES they put out to the rest of us say "play this way".
The 5e PHB before it talks to the players about anything concrete, tells the players to talk to the DM to find out what house rules the DM has put into place. The idea that the DM would change rules is so fundamental and important that it's one of the first things that they tell the players to find out.
The 5e DMG in about a half dozen places in the DMG stresses to the DM that the DM is in charge of the rule, not the other way around. If they really wanted us to "play this way," they would not have put that into the DMG at all. Instead they are stressing to the DM that he make the game his own and not be beholden to the rules. They further emphasize this by putting almost all of the optional and alternate rules into the DM's Workshop, indicating that changing the rules is something for the DM to work on AND give advice on creating house rules.
They give us a game that can be played as is, but they are not saying that we should "play this way."