This reminds me of a near-miss situation with a forced gate check.

I was flying BOS - ATL - Santiago (Chile) with a Platinum status, and missed my C+ zone boarding only because of a very incompetent agent who took 10 minutes to verify my documents for travel to Chile (only succeeded to navigate the menu with the help of a red coat).

That same red coat started to insist on gate checking.

I managed to insist on not doing so - and the agent suggested to ask the FA. Of course, there was space.

The flight from ATL was cancelled due to a mechanical problem, I was rebooked on LATAM. My checked luggage reunited with me with a 3-day delay (and e-credit compensation 3 months later).

It would have been a very different experience if I agreed to a gate check-in.