For the first route I always go in blind. I like seeing what "my choices" would lead me to.
After the first ending I usually use a guide though. Gotta get all the endings after all.
it actually depends on the game im playing but in terms of vns mostly yes
i usually first look at the reviews and see how the mechanics work. if the mechanincs are too much hassle for my taste (which happens too many times bc when i play vns i usually play it bc i want to have a casual gameplay) i follow the guide.
if they have a reccomended route order i also follow that bc i want to exprience the story in the cleanest way possible
i ve seen a lot of disscussions abt this topic online which struck me as surprising bc there was a lot of people who said that "ur not playing the game correctly if u follow a guide esp for vns and stuff" which i do agree to some point but i think its kinda pointless.
it doesnt matter if the cake still tastes like cake no matter what toppings u put on or how u make the cake. its still gonna taste like a cake!