If I see abstract elements on an app's store page or landing page, I immediately close it because I feel that not only is it wasting my time, but it also lacks the confidence to show the actual interface, which probably sucks. Similarly, games that don't show real footage also don't deserve my attention.
My thoughts exactly. I used to use Thunderbird back in the day and I would like to be able to go back to it. I can’t even remember anymore what turned me away at the time. I’m always curious to see how it’s progressing though, and screenshots of a modern UI would probably get me to download.
When I see a website advertising a product without actual screenshots, I usually assume the product is absolute garbage. But that's for commercial products normally, not free software like Thunderbird