You can tell Larian put a lot of effort into their environmental system so it's hard to blame them wanting to showcase it heavily during all parts of the game. It just feels like it was pushed so hard that if you attempt other playstyles your heavily punished for it. I find the same thing happening with Pillars of Eternity except instead of environment it's narrative. Obsidian worked so hard on their stories that sometimes they make the NPCs overwhelming just so you'll beat the quest using story options instead of flat out killing them. It breaks immersion when things like that can pull you out of character.
