I apparently misunderstood the post before. VN's and KN's are my favorites. I don't like mini-games or Sandbox (usually). If the Sandbox is done well and never leaves you wondering where to go it's playable then.
For me, the determining factor is gameplay. It consists of many components, the main thing is a fascinating plot and well-developed characters.
I never download KN, they are not games. I prefer VN with a complex choice system or sandbox. By the way, I noticed a funny thing - many people remembered Summertime Saga as a VN, but in fact it is a sandbox (if you play honestly, without cheats).
As for game engines - RenPy and Unity. Games on UE are often very poorly balanced, requiring too good hardware. But to buy a new video card or processor for the sake of an amateur game? No, it's better to give up the game itself. And RPGM and HTML games are automatically sent to my blocklist.
I hope not! The writing in SS is excellent, across the board, and not least because the characters have distinct problems for the MC to help them with. The stories have twists! There are reversals of fortune! It's not just "pick the right color flower for this girl." "Remember the kind of movie that girl said she liked, three updates ago."
That kind of transactional gamification would just really undermine the development of the emotional connection with the characters.
Visual novels, specifically Renpy or unity (if done right like Time Stamps). There's to many unity made VN that could have just been made in renpy. The reason i choose renpy is that it has the fastest load time and progress through story times.
A VN made in RPGM is redundant, because it has longer load time and especially if you have to walk to around to get to the dialogue. The renpy fanmake fixes this problem in the summer with Mia originals. All story, no walking.
Visual Novel offer a unique and engaging form of interactive storytelling. Its ability to blend elements of literature, anime and video games also allows players to make choices that affect the story and characters, creating a sense of freedom and immersion.
I've been playing a lot of VNs lately, especially if they had beautiful model, interesting story and realistic behaviors. I've been medium fond of games where all the characters are such sluts. But I am more and more interested in games on Unreal, I work a lot with Unreal myself and I know how much time it takes to polish such a game. As if someone could recommend where to get some projects from which I could learn even more, DM me.
It depends on what you want to do. If it's a VN I would go for renpy, if it's walk around game like The Artifact, or any of NLT's games. I would go for RPGM.
I'm not really a fan of unity, except for maybe Lust Paradise, that dev seems to have done it right...