The problem is when interesting and engaging design starts taking priority over functionality. This is fine for entertainment focused sites that are meant to capture your attention and help you burn some time. This is terrible for sites that fulfill some real purpose. For example, I don't want my healthcare website to have a flashy design, I want it to just work in a reliable way.
This web design reminds me a lot of when Apple "bravely" removed the 3.5mm AUX jack from the iPhone. Everyone scorned and mocked their simplified design, then copied it a year later. However, I don't know if there's anything equivalent to forcing companies to make better Bluetooth headsets in this case - maybe making people appreciate big fonts more?
I just don’t see much “interesting and engaging design” that isn’t riddled with horrible performance or ridiculous dark patterns. The Reddit redesign is a perfect example of the former, and newsletter popups are an example of the latter.