I'm not sure how, I actually like the game design as it is, so me disliking it is out of the question at this time.
I never said it was perfectly designed, in fact, it is inherently impossible for a human creation to be perfect, imperfection is a human trait. I don't need to be in the mindset of looking for the smallest detail and I wasn't in my first play through, only my second, when I was aware of the puzzle in "There Is Nothing" needing certain things from the text. In both play throughs, I got it just fine. In my first play through, I made the mistake of trying to keep information memorized that I thought might be important, I went back to the old pen and paper, literal pen and paper, the second time through. Some people actually do try to skip to the lust events, usually the ones disappointed in the lack thereof because they hold the misconception that comes with a game being on this site that it is a porn game. This one is an adult game, but not a porn game. My 'opinion' about fault is not an opinion at all, if someone makes a choice to do, or in this case not to do, something, they face the consequences, the consequence being getting stuck in this case. That's just a simple fact, make a choice, face the consequences of that choice whether you're aware of that choice or not. Choosing to ignore information that should be throwing giant red flags because it is oddly specific information to just be part of the story at that moment is a choice bearing the consequence of getting stuck when it comes back up later.
Non-excuses tend to be very poor excuses since they aren't excuses, I could agree with that. The game locking events behind other events is a technical decision, an attempt to get the player to read the information presented in the prerequisite event(s). Just because it does that doesn't mean it makes no chronological sense. Not every main event moves the timeline so far ahead that others wouldn't make sense to allow the player to unlock afterwards. Some main events only move the timeline slightly while others, like the last one in chapter 1, moves the timeline an entire season ahead. That's three months in most climates, which is too long for leaving older events in the timeline unlocked. Example, it would not make sense to allow the player to see the Halloween event after the seasonal change into chapter 2. Once the story moves to a point where the context of another event no longer makes sense, it no longer makes sense to allow it to be seen. Moving the timeline of the main story passed the beach event before events that take place before would also not make sense. Can't have Rin still worrying about being rejected by Chika after she's already been rejected. As I already stated, the game bears the theme that consequences are everywhere. Disallowing the player to make the choice to miss or not miss an event because they did not grind enough, went too far in the main story, or did not pick the right choice is disallowing the consequence of that choice, going against that theme. In that case, the consequence might as well not exist because it would never be encountered. Yeah, that means it DOES go against the design philosophy of allowing the player to experience that consequence. If it doesn't happen, then there is no consequence to experience. The game does not need to warn about not focusing on a single character, this is a general route, which typically means focusing on the entire cast, which means don't focus on one girl. If a player does that in ANY VN on a general route, they get stuck or miss content because either the game requires everyone to be at some point or the player didn't have enough points to get scenes that are missable. This is a VERY common thing in VNs, especially if said VN does not have an ending for not picking a single girl.
Some people don't seem to think so, you're not one of them, but I have had multiple times where people complained about not realizing the bad homie thing was going to happen because they missed what you describe as a very clearly communicated warning. The game doesn't need to tell you to limit the grind, but technically, yes. Rin's warning can only be heeded in one way, don't grind Chika's affection to the required level for the one event that will do things Rin said very clearly not to do. This applies to all girls, not just Chika. Don't grind any girl too far or you WILL run into an event marathon unless you specifically avoid that girl at some point between grinding and another girl talking about the trigger girl for a lockout as Rin did with Chika. It is VERY easy to trigger another bad homie scenario if you don't watch how many affection points you have. I learned this the hard way with Rin in my first play through, when I was a bad homie, though the game had not progressed to the beach event update yet when I had my affection points with Chika too high. At this point, it is fairly easy to make the connection that it wasn't a one time thing. There is no such thing as a one time consequence in this game, only one time for now.
So not nonsense at all since there is no other excuse, got it. Time does not have to work realistically and it doesn't in this game nor did I say it did. Myst isn't meant to be anywhere near realistic, so no. The number of days and the actual chronological timeline of the story are two separate things. As you said, time does not work realistically. Just because you are over 500 days does not mean anything except you've taken over 500 turns in your time in game. The season is based on the chronological timeline of the main story, which is not based on number of turns, it is based on what event you have completed last at any given time.
The quote is applicable to the main story timeline because it progresses with each main event regardless of whether you have an event completed on a certain character with the exception of prerequisite events. If you didn't see the lust event around the time of the Halloween event, you miss it because it ONLY happens around that time in the timeline. If you didn't see any of the lust events in the time around the beach event, you miss them because they ONLY take place around that part of the ttimeline. You can't go into winter on the timeline and expect to be able to see those events, it wouldn't make sense. What, does the beach not get snow? Fun fact, beaches DO get snowed on if they are within a climate that gets snow. What, are the girls supposed to wear swimsuits in the snow? You see what I mean, it makes absolutely no sense to let any of that happen, and no, making a separate version is not an option because that doubles the amount of renders, unless Selebus wants, of course. It takes me several hours to get even one render right with posing by hand, so you do the math for how much time that means for Selebus doing twice the number of renders for one event, which already has potentially hundreds depending on event length. Selebus's solution to halt progress is not applicable to missable events because, when there is a progress halt like that, missable events are exempt. This is the case in "There Is Nothing." When he does a progress halt, the events needed are ones that take place around the time in the timeline the main story is halted at, otherwise they too would be missed events like the ones you are talking about, so yeah, time waits for no man, even if they have events they have not seen. Again, adding the missable events to the required list eliminates the consequence that is missing the event. If the event cannot be missed, there is no consequence. The game is all about consequences, so this does go against its design.
Yes, going too far and missing an event IS a consequence, it's called missing an opportunity. It usually happens to lust events, so that's a missed opportunity to carry out player Sensei's plan with a specific girl and further his overall goal. When it happens to a character event, it is a missed opportunity to get closer to the girl and drop her guard a little more, making her that much easier to coerce into a lust event later. It is not a choice in the same sense as in game, but it IS a choice made by the player outside the game. There IS a choice there, it just happens to be made by the player outside the game instead of inside. EVERY choice is a gamble, like the one with Karin in recent builds. Telling the truth is the right thing to do, but it could upset her now and ruin any possible future involving her, locking events. Lying to her is a terrible choice to make morally, but it could keep her from getting upset now and could mean a future involving her. Then there's a secondary gamble in that specific example if you choose to lie. You gamble on whether she will find out later if you don't tell the truth, which could prove even more devastating to her than telling her up front and lock events. There's even a third gamble assuming she does find out after lying to her, how she'll react to it. She could choose to join in, she could shut you out of her life completely and permanently, locking events, or she could choose to report you as a teacher taking advantage of a student, the third of which is game over for player Sensei completely.
2) Again, adding a missable event to the requirements eliminates the element of consequence from that event. The game is partly themed on having consequences pretty much everywhere, so this does not fit.
It does not make that indication nor does it need to. I mean, it technically does since it is indicated in one speciffic instance that grinding too much is bad, the Rin thing, but at that point you are on your own. As the game typically keeps things like that single use temporarily, adding more instances of usage over time, it does make sense without being stated that it WILL happen again. Example, the Rin thing. We got it on the beach and, while it isn't the exact same, we now have something with Karin that bears the same consequence for the same offense. Choose poorly, get locked out.