[JoJo Gunn]

Perhaps it’s not hide and seek but a matter of gradual titration.

Titration by who? Like I said, why should we expect something utterly alien to understand or care about our psychology and whether we as a civilization would collapse when the aliens revealed themselves once and for all? 

And anyway, the idea of getting us slowly acclimated to the knowledge that They're out there is . (It was kind of a hot topic back in '77 when Close Encounters came out).

[GingisK]

why should we expect something utterly alien to understand or care about our psychology and whether we as a civilization would collapse when the aliens revealed themselves once and for all?

Perhaps the concepts of good/evil and free will are universal.