That is an odd view to consider about Robert. Especially as he basically holds your JOB over your head if you try to brush him off. Yes, I completely agree that he is 100% manipulative. But that factor alone should at least imply that he is going to either 1) push the limits or 2) attempt to guilt-trip you if you refuse, or 3) make it seems as if YOU are the one that is 'closed-minded' to other options.
First of all, I'd like to thank you for the well-put reply. I'm going to argue against that, but I enjoyed reading it. This discussion is gonna be interesting.
I don't necessarily agree that he holds Lena's job over her head. While it's easy to conclude it based on the outcome, it's not what happened. You see, there's one crucial detail to keep in mind about Robert. He has a white knight complex. While being manipulative, he tries to present himself as or actually believes to be a nice guy. He tries to do a "noble" thing first, expecting a reward. If you remember their date in either Chapter 2 or 3, he doesn't resort to blackmail to get a chance with Lena. Instead, he tries his best to make himself look like her white knight, saying that he'd do his best to talk to the upper management, and, while expecting Lena to be grateful, he acts innocent and says that he feels the chemistry between them. If he actually held her job over her head if she didn't have sex with him, that would be straight-up harassment/blackmail and he could easily get in serious trouble for that. So, being the sore loser that he is, Robert just feels butthurt and gets Lena fired, without any prior warning, but she connects the dots.
Before pushing the limits, Robert tries to test the waters first before doing anything. He's not a complete moron and takes baby steps. He isn't bold enough to demand anything from Lena during his first date, except for the date itself. Only after having sex with her for the first time, he gets ballsy enough to suggest public bj or ask to send him nudes. Note that he sends his nude selfie first. It's a pattern with him. He does a "favor" first (even if Lena doesn't ask for it), and only then asks for a return.
Look, I completely 100% agree with him being manipulative. But I have known a lot of manipulative people (Both male and female) who would be presented the possibility of getting what they wanted and being told that limits or restrictions are going to be imposed on them, only to see those people become the most annoying and demanding pieces of human trash in order to remove those restrictions or limits. Robert waiting until the NEXT DAY just for a BJ? Sorry, but that is absolutely insane. Wimp or not (and yes, there is a bit of wimpy nature to him) would be completely over powered by his very own manipulative nature. Especially when you consider that this very same 'wimp" is making a big deal over giving him a BJ while AT WORK of all places.
Not if it compromises his chances with her. You see, he plays the long game and doesn't want to end it in just a one-night stand, and definitely doesn't want to give Lena any chance to blame him for anything if it goes wrong (white knight complex at play). He acts like an annoying brat if Lena tells him he's just an occasional fling and not her boyfriend and tries to guilt-trip the hell out of her. But if Lena suspects that he's an egotistical asshole, it's over for him, and he's perfectly aware of that. So he can swallow his pride and tolerate some misfortunes if it prolongs his chances with Lena. Most guys who have been in the friend zone for a long time can relate to that behavior.
But he IS enough of a jerk to make a big deal about having to put one on to begin with. Only to back down when it is "no glove, no love" as the only option. But instead of hanging around for the next morning to do anything, he would LEAVE in an attempt to make you feel bad for denying him to begin with.
Robert wouldn't do that because it would shatter his good-guy image. Despite being manipulative, he's not actually confident enough to resort to that strategy, because he doesn't believe in its success. Robert thinks that Lena is above his league, and even though he tries to act cocky and confident, he isn't. For all he knows, Lena would simply ditch him and move on if he leaves. So, Robert would leave only if it was obvious to him he ruined all his chances with her, like when she rejects him in Chapter 3 for expecting sex so soon, which makes him flip out and lose the good-guy act. If he's lucky enough to end up in bed with Lena, he sure as hell wouldn't be stupid enough to risk everything and demand raw sex. Especially not during their first time.
As far as Ian? I think we both can agree that as a player you should have the "option" of being pushy about it? At least I hope so. That way you can play both the 'dom' or the 'sub' as you see fit. But Robert? Robert clearly should have been written more down the lines of "pushing the limits" right from the start. At least THEN it would make sense that turning him down results in job being impacted, being approached for BJ at work, and even in his conversations coming across more as a "f**k-buddy" than a serious relationship.
No, I'd have to disagree about Ian
for now. From what this game has shown us thus far, we can't change Ian's personality too much and turn him into anything we desire. He's a
playable character but he's not the
player character, meaning that he's not an avatar for us to self-insert into or modify his personality to our liking. We can guide him to make different choices, and those choices might impact his personality a bit, to make him more relaxed and outgoing "chad" or a timid edgelord like Perry but as of now, I don't see him becoming an asshole and disrespect the women he's with. Because that's simply not Ian. He can dirty-talk, he can try to make things exciting for his partner (public fingering with Alison), and he can act out of selfishness (encouraging Cindy to undress for him during photoshoot or hooking up with Emma despite Perry's interest in her) but when it comes to being a lover, he's very attentive and considerate. Even his selfish motivations so far benefit his relationship with the girls he's trying to pursue. And during sex, he's absolutely selfless. He's a pleaser and a giver. With Alison, he might act a bit more assertive because that's the way she likes it. And if she enjoys him taking charge, I'm sure there will be a moment where he'll enjoy being in charge. But even if he's in charge, his goal is still to please the girl, not make her serve his needs. But as I said, that's what I believe to be the case
right now. Eva Kiss might still choose to go a different route and give players more agency to affect Ian's personality in future updates.
And Robert will definitely get his chance to push the limits, but only after Lena has been dating him for some time, for him to relax enough to drop the nice guy act. It's just so far, his desire to be with Lena outweighed his selfish needs for instant gratification. There will be a time when, if he's denied too much, he'll get disappointed and bail, or as you said, try to make Lena feel guilty for being "boring". Or if Lena never disappoints, he'll push for more and more.
Sorry for the long post, I tried to address every point.
