Absolutely 100% agree. I’ve read some CoGs and HGs that were very explicit about how the author wants you to behave, and every time you break out of that mold it feels like you’re being talked down to. That’s a big no in my opinion.
It’s a very easy trap to fall into as an author because we put so much of ourselves into our games. But we need to be able to write FOR other people when we’re allowing others to compose their own narrative.
It’s hard to remember that we’re not writing the story ourselves. We’re designing the framework so the player can write their own story. Once you get a handle on that, its easier to stop injecting personal bias into the narrative.
I’m certainly not perfect and I got a few fingers wagged at me for Werewolves 1 by players who wanted to be absolutely ruthless (there were several scenes where players who had killed ruthlessly would be haunted by the memory.) I still personally think that was the right call, since the MC is a teenager who has never killed anyone before, but I tried to let go of that perspective in Werewolves 2 and let things open up a bit more for less pacifistic players so they weren’t guilted by their choices. Live and learn!