At the time of my writing this, AL has a rating of 4.5 or so, and nearly 600 pages of discussion. I cannot for the life of me understand just why. If I had to hazard a guess, I'd chalk it up to BaDIK's influence, which admittedly had an impact on my own expectations from the outset, too.
See, I think one major problem with this VN is that it's just inconsistent/unfinished. You get these quintessential Telltale notifications to indicate major choices and consequences, and the dev even makes an admirable attempt at implementing some of your (minor) decisions. Up until a certain point where it's arbitrarily decided you do this but not that.
Just to illustrate what I mean:
Why does MC fall for Megan, despite my choosing every option to show otherwise? You get plenty of choices to shut the others down, but when it comes to MC's feelings for Megan, your options are either wishy-washy or do fuck-all. If MC's ex was a cheater, wouldn't it be logical for him to have an early option to put his foot down and say, frankly, he wants Melissa or Rena instead, no more lies. No, instead we are a complete pushover who waits until he really does become a cheater (you have to if you want the others and not the wallflower) because, ostensibly, he is mentally retarded.
Perfect example of this behaviour:
Midway through the story, you can get Melissa to confront you about the two of you (after your just having fucked Megan). You get a fucking flashback sequence of Melissa giving you unambiguous signs that she is fond of you. Your reaction: Wow, I held her hand, kissed her, had sex with her, saved her from an abusive stepfather, selflessly gave her best friend and herself food and shelter -- you mean to tell me all of those things meant something to her? :surprisedpikachu: Not even a hint of fucking irony in sight.
I've read somewhere on this site the dev is from Sweden, and I can well believe that, but I mean, fuck me running, why does he have to be so aggressively Swedish? I feel as if his idea of a romantically involved, albeit emotionally abused, man is a wee bit skewed. Perhaps I am unfair in equating the protagonist with the author -- after all, to his credit he didn't go for the low-hanging interracial cuckold fruit with Liam -- but I swear, if he intended that scene where you're cucked by your fiancée and a gay-looking Indian man to be a genuinely heart-wrenching moment, I don't think he succeeded. The real kicker was a reference to this scene in the last chapter. Your ex found your life as a crypto-rich homebody too dull, so she cheated on you to make you care and liven things up again. Your reaction at the time was to flee and feel betrayed. Your reaction in retrospect? Well, she was wrong but for the right reasons! There's just no winning in this fucking game, no suspension of disbelief, unless you're spiritually Swedish.
(The game gets an extra star for including Melissa because she's cute. I'd pull her out of a house fire any day.)