I could go on about the gameplay loop, but one hidden gem about this game is the meta-interaction between Rance and the player; the oft-memed picture of whether to assault the miko girl or look at her panties is typical AliceSoft dark humor but perfectly captures how the game forces you into Rance's mindset for worse. Anytime the player tries to play to their own sensibilities or morality they're severely punished for it; not having enough sex lowers Rance's battle performance, making some story battles overtly difficult, and trying to play peacefully or mercifully will have the player miss out on several strong benefits needed to beat the late-game factions. By forcing the player into roleplaying Rance, AliceSoft lets the moral dilemma of the Rance series shine through: how can this supreme asshole be the hero of the story?

Nominally, Rance is really only the hero because everyone else in the Ranceverse is a total piece of shit, including the character literally designated to be the "Hero" of the verse, but more deeply, Rance finds his success entirely by being a undefined, hedonistic shithead in a world where everyone else is simply following the pre-determined roles assigned to them. Rance does what Rance wants to get by; the Player does what they can to get by. The finale of Brutal King Rance was a revolution of the created against the creators, a final No Gods No Masters message from AliceSoft; it's only fitting that the spiritual successor to Brutal King Rance would also re-assert that the player themselves is not the master of Rance either. It's a refreshing take on a JRPG protagonist, and provides a lot of food for thought, especially in contrast to AliceSoft's Toushin Toshi II, where the player is explicitly punished for having a moral center anywhere near Rance. I'm not sure I'm fully onboard with using sexual violence as the emotional hook for a lot of the on-paper narrative here, nor the occasional homophobia, but if you can look past that there's a compelling exploration of existential freedom and amorality that's unlike anything else in the media.

Also the design work is incredibly creative and varied, minecraft-esque characters sitting comfortably next to Masamune Date as an eyeball. It slaps.