I mean, if he means to do right by his patrons he'll release the game on the 30th so that they don't get charged for December due to Steam problems. If he doesn't even do that then I don't give a fuck anymore, dude's 100% milking on purpose in the most blatant, heinous way imaginable.
What you're assuming doesn't make a lot of sense, considering people won't immediately jump ship from his patreon after the game is done. I even think releasing it early will increase patreon numbers. Hes smarter if he releases the game through all channels and stores instead of waiting.
If he keeps developing games and considering how good Aurelia is, people will keep giving him money while people purchase the game on steam and itch. Patreon in this case serves more of a side venue and means to boost ones ego. The real issue is that keeping the game under locks when its clearly done gives a precedent to other developers that this sort of anti-consumer behavior is acceptable, as long as people willing to support developers that act in accordance to that.
If I would be in Mirthal shoes, the solution is simple. Give Valve a few days and then release it on all other possible channels and stores. This way, you ensure to frame Valve as the bad guys, instead of me as the developer willfully withholding the game intentionally, which is not what I would want for many reasons as the release date was already announced prior. You just ruin your own name, when it comes to marketing.
