Would it help you to understand that our intentions were for the story to be the meat of the game, and the virtual pet part is just the vehicle to get you to it? The actual physical digital pets from back in the day like, they don't have a lot of depth either. And in the story, the main character is aware of the fact that his job is pointless.
Either way, I did know that the presentation overall was going to make it confusing for some players, and I'm ok with that, I think. I appreciate you taking your time to play it and give feedback, always helpful!