I started playing these games at 14 without understanding choices or route guides, so I got stuck in Bad Endings a lot. There was no help back then, but the art kept me hooked until I eventually figured out how they worked.
I absolutely can't stand it if the love interest is a father with kids around the heroine's age, or if he's someone who raised the heroine since she was little. I can never see those types as love interests.
If there are no other interesting characters, I just go straight to the one I like. But if there's a character I'm curious about, I'll play their route first, and then move on to the one I actually like.
Nadeshiko and Toranosuke
Azusa and Darius
Kanade and Kyouya
Yuhiru and noil
Luna and Snow
Choosing only five was tough. I have so many other favorites, but I'll stick to these for now