@Gwendolyn The game has a very wide range of genres by the time you'd played through it a few times.

That said, it's primarily an open area 3rd person action JRPG. Maybe a bit like Xenoblade Chronicles, map wise, there's a few areas you revisit as "home" but they're not really "home" if that makes sense.

I feel similarly as you do about the art and the fan base. Rest assured, the game itself is pretty separate from that and quite good. Definitely worth replaying a few times.

@Gwendolyn It’s got Bayonetta defeated in its storytelling, woof, those Bayonetta "cutscenes" were rough. It's also not as mechanically tight as Bayonetta, but it's not a slouch or mindless, was made in part by Platinum after all.

Honestly, how much you'll like it depends on how much patience you have for Yoko Taro's particular brand of storytelling. It will either ruin your life as you get swallowed by a Drakengard shaped rabbit hole, or you'll play it once and move on to the next thing.