It's an emacs package. That doesn't suggest "casual user" to me.
there's a faithful conversion as edamagit for vs-code.
It's way more casual than having to know Emacs.
I share your horror for GUIs ineffectively hiding the version control reality; but then, despite being an emacs and casual magit user, I still mostly git add files one by one, having git diff the files one by one, and assembling the changed files into coherent groups.
There are definitely shortcuts I could take in some scenarios but walking the safe path even though it's a little longer is the sane response especially when you can type as fast as most of us and you've been using a bourne shell as long as I have.
Or if I'm being more charitable, it's about staying outside the yellow tape lines on the factory floor. No exceptions.