Personally I used games like "wagotabi" and "hiragana forbidden speech" for my first steps, and I do think this was a good idea.These games have only 350 resp. 250 words currently, but they make it up by focusing much more on teaching you these few words. Of course, after reaching the end of the games, you will return here because for the real world you will need much more words and grammar than these games can offer.
There are many people out there who promote just listening and reading japanese as a way to learn. The word they use is "immersion". This does not work all that well for me, it is a useful addition but not my main focus. Which is not to say that these people lie, just that not every way works for everyone.
In any case much depends on a) how you learn best and b) what your budget (time, money) is. There are courses out there which cost a lot, but may be much better. Or not, like the one I tried. There is so much which depends on you personally and your situation that a better answer is impossible.
Anyway, if in doubt start either here on renshuu or look up the free demos for the games I mentioned, or any number of other free resources out there. The main thing is starting and not giving up the first time it gets difficult.
I learn Japanese at home, thanks to Renshuu,Youtube videos and ChatGPT.
Recommend schedule: start with hiragana and katakana -> japanese basic: grammar and word . If you are struggling with conjugation of word and nound then add "verb conjugation" and "noun conjagation" while studying grammar. -> level up to Kanji when you are ready (at the start of N5 level). The rest of schedule depends on your purpose of studying.
Note: you can freeze hiragana and katakana if you think you have a strong grasp of it and don't want to waste time on it.
P/S: Renshuu is a website with many settings and can be quite complex for beginners, but don't be discouraged. This is also an advantage of the website because you can personalize your learning path to your liking. If you don't know how, ask ChatGPT and it will suggest learning methods based on your goals.
