For "bonus routes", Russell and Zach sure seem more plot relevant than any of the 3 currently available options, and also have more depth to them thus far. It also bothers me how Ben tends to be critical or distrustful of Russell and Zach, but doesn't act the same regarding most of the other characters, despite half of Carlos' lines being "hmph" and Bryan just acting horny more often than not. It's like those 3 are just... there, for the purpose of being the generic/default romance options.
Getting to know a little bit about their past was a step in the right direction, but it's still not enough to see them as real characters instead of tropes most of the time, and so I keep playing just to see more of the main plot, which is actually very intriguing, along with characters like Zach, Russell, and maybe even Chris, since I feel compelled to find out what's behind their outward appearances and what they've been through/are going through.
With that said, the whole Russell situation in this update made me really upset, mostly because of Ben's assumption that Russell's silence was confirmation of what he supposedly did (which to me just came off as Russell's failed attempt to get Ben to confirm that he was his friend and trusted him) and the implication of cutting ties with him altogether, but other than that, it was really engaging and a lot of fun, in a thrilling way. Looking forward to the next update!