As others have said, this is a constant resounding complaint about modern Lego, and I don't think there's much truth to it right now, if there ever was. I agree that very large, single-purpose piece like large molded rocks or entire wall sections aren't great, but in my experience most of the smaller "dedicated" pieces aren't single-purpose at all, and really encourage creativity.
Personally, if I have a big pile of mostly plain bricks, I tend to make a few generic things like a stick figure and a car and a rocketship and then run out of ideas. But give me a piece with a weird angle, or a bar sticking out of it, or a weirdly-shaped socket, or an engraved texture, and I start thinking, "What else could this be? What could I attach to this and how?"
Online Lego galleries (and official sets!) are full of designs that use apparently single-purpose pieces--handheld items for minifigs like weapons, tools, food, and flowers; larger components like doors, radar dishes, and wheel wells; even minifig limbs that were never even designed to be popped off of the torso or pelvis piece--to build weird new joint assemblies or imply small details or represent all sorts of objects. Limitations foster creativity.
Personally, if I have a big pile of mostly plain bricks, I tend to make a few generic things like a stick figure and a car and a rocketship and then run out of ideas. But give me a piece with a weird angle, or a bar sticking out of it, or a weirdly-shaped socket, or an engraved texture, and I start thinking, "What else could this be? What could I attach to this and how?"
Online Lego galleries (and official sets!) are full of designs that use apparently single-purpose pieces--handheld items for minifigs like weapons, tools, food, and flowers; larger components like doors, radar dishes, and wheel wells; even minifig limbs that were never even designed to be popped off of the torso or pelvis piece--to build weird new joint assemblies or imply small details or represent all sorts of objects. Limitations foster creativity.