If the gate being blocked has any other effect than no one being able to enter it after death, then it's not just a gate, but a conduit for the gods' influence over the world. Otherwise, why would it have anything to do with their abilities?
I'm going by the godesses' words - it they are unable to intervene, then how could they maintain any kind of "administrative" rules that literally do not allow people to enter an area unless they meet some criteria? That's a far more heavy handed intervention then pretty much any video game or story (most games, even when there are "zones" still allow you to enter, you just get demolished at the beef gate). It's clearly contradictory and points to some kind of BS excuse, like "then only can't intervene for people's benefit."
Yeah, levels and stuff is already unnecessarily gamey, that's why I roll my eyes every time it's used, especially since there's usually no good reason for it, as if the author thought that the reader won't grasp the concept of a fantasy world without it being directly pulled from a game, mechanics and all. This however, exacerbates it to the point that the world feels artificial.