Again, meh. You don't spend 56 hours engaging in an activity you dislike unless it's your job or you're insane. I think the developer's response was wholly appropriate.
When I was still involved in MMOs, there was a game I desperately wanted to like since I loved its predecessor.
I got into the beta and spent nearly 200 hours over the course of 6 weeks trying things, providing feedback, and trying new iterations hoping I was simply not "getting it" and the game would snap into a place. It was not to be. I felt the game, frankly, sucked. I did not purchase it on release. I hear it stumbled badly out of the gate and was eventually shut down after 3 years in 2005 -- its predecessor survived until 2014 giving it a 15 year run.
The developer's response was understandable, but not appropriate.