Okay, listen. This was my first JRPG game and I had a lot of doubts before I bought it. I was also a little confused by the turn-based combat, as I'm not a big fan of such games and most of the time I get bored with them quickly.
Thank goodness I bought this game and tried it out for myself. It was an incredible experience that confidently paved the beginning of my love for this genre.
This game has absolutely everything - interesting professions for the characters, a good combat system with beautiful special effects, awesome voice acting and music. This game has a HUGE number of other mini-games and various entertainments that are not much related to the story, but all of them are definitely worth a try. There was never a chance for me to get bored or not know what to do in this game. I'm ready to list the benefits of this game endlessly. But yes, you might sometimes feel like you're not playing the game, but rather watching a very long movie, beating everyone around you during the breaks - but I found it very relaxing and enjoyed going through it.
I'd like to share with you my impressions of the story - I've never gotten this range of emotions from games in general. I was both amused, interested, and sad. There's faith, loyalty, love, friendships, cheating, disappointment, betrayal, murder, self-interest, and much more. At some points I wanted to cry and at other points I wanted to rejoice like a child or just laugh at the local humor. I was angry at the antagonists and I empathized with the main character, as if I really knew that person. I've never experienced such twists and such mood swings in a game (lol). I don't want to spoil anything because it's really worth trying for yourself.
I recommend this game to anyone who likes a really deep story. That's the main reason why I fell in love with this game in the first place. I also recommend it to people who like turn-based games, who like JRPGs, Japan in general and especially the Yakuza theme. And anyone who looking for a new gaming experience, because I'm sure Ichiban's story won't leave anyone indifferent.
10/10, no options.