Correct me if I'm wrong, but this looks like you're referring to a literal vs liberal translation dichotomy.
I feel that at least for VNs, the readers prefer TLs to lean towards the literal side.
More often than not, people see liberal translations as an attempt to conceal an inability to comprehend the original text, and rewriting it through guesswork.
Also, leaning towards literal translations might be better for VNs because most of the audience are pretty familiar with the nature of the original language and culture. You could use 'bento' instead of 'boxed lunch'(or whatever) and people will still understand it.
Then again, it's definitely not a good idea to reside at the edges of both spectrums. Completely literal translations sound like sh1t, and a story completely filled with liberal translations is just fan fiction. Perhaps this is indeed something that differs between people, and each translator should find their own sweet spot, considering both the target audience and the source material, medium etc.
Some of the aspects of VN translating(or JP-EN translation in general) are discussed in articles like http://www.neechin.net/article/113/literal-and-liberal-conscious-translation-style-choice/
Give it a read, look through the archives, I'm sure you'll learn a lot