I can understand where you're coming from, but this is where I have to disagree. And this is fine, it's all a matter of opinions anyways. But I think that simplifying the design of a VN to instantly gratify the player is one of the biggest disservice one can do to a good narrative, because it leads to the blandest, most generic game experiences. You can expect a dog, or a small child, to have a temper tantrum when you're taking him to the doctor's - not an adult, who's expected to mitigate his instincts.
I've played way too many VNs where choices are front-loaded: compliment the girl, you get one point. Praise her enough, she'll fall in your arms. Now, as a counter-example, I'd like to take one scene from "Light of my Life". You're driving home your daughter Macy from her job. She's in a foul mood, so you try and extend an olive branch telling her there's a candy bar in the glove compartment - her favorite flavor. She smiles, reaches for the candy bar... and throws it out of the car window. You actually unwillingly made her angrier. Do the same a couple of days after, when she had time to mull over some complicated feelings, and she'll gladly accept. Context is everything, and doing "the right thing" may not be always the right thing to do.
That's why I adore narratives that ask more of the player than the usual "choose the blatantly obvious choice". Neither because I like to be a contrarian, nor because I like my expectations to be subverted just for the sake of it: simply because I agree with TD, story and character motivations should always have precedence over gaming the system.
Moreover, while I understand that the episodic nature of Patreon-funded games can lead to the player forgetting some story beats and the rationales of some events, I don't think the narrative should be built around that fact. One day, some years from now, we'll be able to play a completed game, as it was meant to be played: I prefer narratives to be built around the finishing line, not the intermediate release dates. That's also why intermediate release are not always people pleasers ("no sex with my favorite character, worst update ever") - and they really shouldn't mean to be.
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