"Hey, this series' music is pretty good and people seem to think Kichikuou Rance is amazing, maybe the games are worth something despite what they look like at first glance?"
i.e.:
- ex. 1 ~ Fiend Boss, Rance X
- ex. 2 ~ Mars, Sengoku Rance
- ex. 3 ~ Outdoor Crawl - arrange, Rance Quest
- ex. 4 ~ Influence, Kichikuou Rance (enough examples already, but Rough Edge is also pretty good)

As someone who sometimes gets really interested in a game due to its music, my thoughts were akin to the quote above. And so, I decided to try the series going by release order.
The answer is, at least for this first game, no. Bear with me while I explain why.

Old but gold copper
Beyond its appearance lies a product that has aged as well as a carton of milk contemporary to this game's initial release.
With its extremely barebones and easy-to-break battle system (within 10 minutes of random battles I had leveled up enough that I had no trouble at all for the rest of the game), Rance I's core is flawed beyond redemption.

The game isn't too long to begin with, so it's not like I was expecting some outstanding and profound RPG, but somehow, I was left disappointed. I guess I should maybe even be glad I broke the game that easily, becoming tedious would have been the last straw.
At least the graphics and music are decent for its time, I guess?

A parody to its core
The game's story is pretty much an excuse to make Rance go do something instead of having an actually meaningful plot.
A simplified summary would be something like: "there's a girl that has disappeared, go investigate and bring her back to earn a hefty sum of money", and then you do just that, but adding some minor sidetracking to the mix, so, expecting a lot from this story would not be the smartest move.
To be fair to this game, it pretty much feels like a parody of the average fantasy RPG, so I guess it makes sense it's like this.

When it comes to the humour, this game is an extremely mixed bag, because on one hand, there's a lot of content and puns that can alienate a lot of people, and understandably so, but despite that, the game admittedly has moments where it is genuinely funny.
An example I recall is (paraphrasing it):
+ "How old are you?"
- "I don't have an age."
+ "Huh?"
- "My writers are just lazy."

As you would expect from a game like this, the game does have some questionable content, but personally, the game is so unabashedly goofy that I couldn't take anything seriously and therefore, didn't care about it, I just brushed it off (having played it while talking in VC with friends might have something to do with it). Regardless, it is still something to take into account if you ever feel like playing this series, or this game particularly (for whatever reason).

A proper guidance for the player? Never heard of it
This is something a lot of old RPGs suffer from due to its shorter runtime back then, but this game is just obtuse as hell.
You either use a guide, wander aimlessly trying to take a stab in the dark in the hopes of getting somewhere, or heavily rely on the clue system the game includes, which if I recall correctly, was tied to money (I don't remember how expensive it was though), so... you better get ready to take part in more insanely satisfying battles! Exactly what everyone was waiting for!

Actually cool insights into its development
Before starting the game, there's an option called "Alice's Mansion" that's nothing amazing, but is worth mentioning for anyone interested in old game development, as it scratches the surface of what it entails, and overall, is just a nice bonus.

General thoughts
All in all, this game is definitely a product of its time, somewhat made as a parody to all the fantasy RPGs taking the market by storm at the time.
The setting itself may prove to be more interesting in future entries, but as it stands, with its severely outdated mechanics and structure, weird jokes, and run-of-the-mill storyline, this game is definitely not something I'd call good, at least by current standards.
At worst, the game is annoying, and at best, it's inoffensive. The game also seems to know it is not to be taken seriously, and also doesn't overstay its welcome, so there's that to take into account.

I might have been overly negative with this review, but anyways, it is simply not good, although it's not the worst thing I've ever played either.

If you actually want to play this game, be it for context for further entries, or anything else, download Rance I Rebuilt, it fixes bugs from the original English TL and is probably a better experience overall.

Will the next entries be better than this?
Probably.
Will I keep pushing forward until I reach Kichikuou to see if this is really worth it?
Perhaps.
Did this game make me want to do so?
Not at all.

P.S. why I've made such a long review about this game out of every possible option I could have picked is beyond me. Also, I hope I've been as accurate as possible, but I've played this game more than a month ago, so...