I bought Royal for ~$22 a few weeks ago and ended up platinuming it (something you MOSTLY get by just completing the game). As a normie that completely ignored it for years and for the same reasons you stated, I’d strongly recommend it if you’re interested in a game that plays like an old school turn based RPG (like FF7 or Super Mario RPG) with modern quality of life improvements.
The story is -ok-. The character interactions and dialogue aren’t as over the top as the art style suggests (to those of us that aren’t furries or weebs).
It is still a VERY Japanese game, but it's part of the charm and grew on me as I progressed through the game. Something else that’s unique (or at least I hadn’t encountered it before this game) is how non-combat activities are paced between major events. There’s a ton of side-quest optional stuff that can have major impacts on your team’s power.