This is the first and probably/hopefully only time I will rate a game this way, this early in it's development, and then 5 stars, of all things...
I do this for two reasons:
The Developers already created a very similar game before which has lived up to (in my opinion, of course) any expectations early stages could have let to. I therefore have no doubt that they are up to the task of creating such a complex, deep and adaptable Visual Novel, that (again, my personal opinion) could function as a prime example for what a choice based Visual Novel could be at the absolute peak.
This new story, although just in it's prologue state, already comes with a touching, amazingly varied narration. It shows how the system actually works, the game taking into account many details (character design, player choices) in ways that felt very natural.
The cast of characters the player meets is very likeable and the whole sequence reminds me of my own childhood and does a fantastic job of capturing how a kid might see the world we get a first glimpse at.
The second reason is the quality of the writing, the multitude of options to pick for the player character's reactions & their nuances. Then there is the degree of control the player has over the flavour of things by picking certain behavior patterns and relationship levels at certain key-points (e.g. at the start of a "Step" as the segments of the game are called.
This leaves the player with the option to shape the nuances by their choices in the scenes, while not having to worry about picking the exact right options just to follow a general path they wish to walk down.
Furthermore, personally, I never really was interested in the romantic side of the first game, due to my own preferences, but it is still a contender for the best visual novel I know. This game comes with 2 different potential loveinterests right from the start. At the same time the Devs are still actively working and expanding the first installment of the series, continuously proving that their games & the player community are a matter of heart as well. Since they also seem to do well in regards to sells this is an occasion where it seems much more likely for this game to get finished and be great, than not.