How easy is it to get an IT job, or adjacent, in Japan (With a degree) but no Japanese?

Hi all,

I am currently 24(m) living in the USA with a job in IT in the pharma industry (startup) and Im considering moving to Japan. My goal is to move by 2028/29. I took 3 semesters of Japanese in HS (6 years ago), so Im not completely new to the language, but I still intend to relearn it. The way I see it, I have 2 realistic options: 1) Apply/look for employment while still in the USA for companies based in Japan that use English as an internal or primary language, in other words go directly for a work visa, or 2) Apply to language school on a student visa (Admit in 2028/29) and do 1-2 years (Hopefully get to N2 or N1) while continuing my career until then.

My biggest question is, which option do you guys think is bet? Any advice or experience with doing either? And also, how competitive is the IT job market in Japan, especially since I am very new into my career (~2 years now, 4years if I go the language school route).