Banner of the Maid

76%
Game Brain Score Based on 519 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Banner of the Maid Game Cover
Banner of the Maid is an excellent strategy RPG that is hindered slightly by its sexualization of women.
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"Banner of the Maid" is a strategy RPG set during the French Revolution. As young commander Pauline, command troops, manage resources, and navigate political intrigue. Inspired by historical events, the game features a unique battle system and character-driven storyline.

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Phone
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Steam Deck
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Play​Station
  • Tablet
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

76%
Audience ScoreBased on 519 reviews
story82 positive mentions
grinding34 negative mentions
  • The game features beautiful character art and engaging tactical gameplay reminiscent of Fire Emblem.
  • The story, set during an alternate history of the French Revolution, is intriguing and well-presented, with a mix of political intrigue and character development.
  • The combat mechanics are solid, with a unique class system that encourages strategic planning and unit management.
  • The English translation is often awkward and contains grammatical errors, which can detract from the overall experience.
  • Some missions can feel unfair due to unexpected enemy reinforcements and strict loss conditions, leading to frustration.
  • The game can become grindy, requiring players to replay missions to level up characters and earn necessary resources.
  • story418 mentions

    The story of "Banner of the Maid" is a mixed bag, with many players finding it either engaging or tedious. While some appreciate the unique setting during the French Revolution and the character designs, others criticize the weak translation and uninspired dialogue, leading to confusion and a lack of emotional investment. Overall, the narrative is seen as serviceable but often overshadowed by gameplay frustrations and a lack of depth in character development.

    • “The story is pretty good too; it follows a fictional take on the French Revolution.”
    • “Love the story idea, and if you like things about the Napoleonic era—or just like 'Rose of Versailles' for that matter—you'll feel at home here.”
    • “With a strong focus on visual novel-style storytelling, the game creates a unique alternate universe version of the French Revolution as a setting for a detailed story with rich characters.”
    • “The story/dialogue feels uninspired, possibly due to a low quality translation.”
    • “I cannot say if the story itself is bad or just a bad translation from Chinese, but there were several times I had to reread sections just to get a proper understanding of things.”
    • “The story is not engaging at all.”
  • gameplay169 mentions

    The gameplay of "Banner of the Maid" is a blend of tactical turn-based mechanics reminiscent of classic titles like Fire Emblem, featuring a rock-paper-scissors unit system that encourages strategic planning. While many players appreciate the engaging combat and beautiful art, criticisms arise regarding repetitive mechanics, a lack of depth in strategy, and some clunky interface issues. Overall, the gameplay is seen as solid and enjoyable, though it could benefit from further refinement and innovation.

    • “Anime style avatars, visual novel storytelling, and tactical JRPG gameplay is a nice classic mix.”
    • “The gameplay is hard and fun.”
    • “Gameplay-wise, it is reminiscent of the Fire Emblem series, so fans will immediately pick up on the rock-paper-scissors style of gameplay where all units have strengths and weaknesses against other units and the key to your success is planning your attacks and placing your soldiers to take advantage as you lure the AI.”
    • “The gameplay feels haphazardly stapled on to what is otherwise an unremarkable visual novel.”
    • “Gameplay-wise, it's crap.”
    • “But after a while, the gameplay was the same.”
  • graphics66 mentions

    The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beautiful art style, detailed character designs, and smooth animations, creating a visually appealing experience. However, some users noted inconsistencies in the overall visual presentation, such as fuzzy backgrounds and mismatched menu designs, which detracted from the overall aesthetic. Despite these issues, the game's unique blend of anime-inspired visuals and historical themes has resonated well with players, making it a standout in its genre.

    • “The game's graphics, OST, and gameplay are amazing.”
    • “The character artwork is exceptional, and the VN portions of the game are focused and short.”
    • “Fantastic TRPG with beautiful artwork and satisfying core gameplay that makes great use of its historically inspired setting and influences.”
    • “Backgrounds are randomly fuzzy, other things like character portraits are weirdly sharp, almost all the menus look way different than each other, it ends up looking like a strange hodge-podge of randomly designed graphics.”
    • “Graphics - while I'm actually impressed by the level of detail in character artwork and battle animations, it's severely limited and suffers as a result.”
    • “Graphically, the game is obviously not much.”
  • music49 mentions

    The music in the game is generally well-received, with many praising its engaging and atmospheric qualities that enhance the gameplay experience. While some tracks are described as outstanding, others are considered average or generic, leading to mixed opinions on the overall soundtrack. Overall, the music effectively complements the game's art and setting, contributing to its charm and immersion.

    • “Great music and gameplay.”
    • “+ absolutely gorgeous soundtrack!”
    • “The art is beautiful and exceeds the quality of most AAA tactical RPGs that I've seen; the music, while not plentiful, strikes the perfect mood every time it's played.”
    • “Music is alright, nothing bad, but it's nothing special either.”
    • “And that the garrison doesn't have any music unlike other locations.”
    • “For each stage, you pretty much only have two soundtracks, one for your move, and the other one for the enemy.”
  • grinding34 mentions

    Overall, players find the grinding in the game to be excessive and often tedious, particularly in the late-game where it becomes almost mandatory to progress. While some appreciate the challenge it presents, many criticize the lack of variety and the need to repetitively grind for experience and resources, leading to a frustrating experience that detracts from the enjoyment of the game. Despite some players managing to navigate the grind with minimal effort, the consensus leans towards it being a significant drawback.

    • “After the first 10 missions, the overall experience quickly gets grindy, boring, and annoying.”
    • “However, near the late-game the game almost forces you into grinding experience for units in order to stand a chance, and this is where my main criticism comes: it feels like the devs made it so that you would spend more time grinding for experience over and over again for the sake of completing the next mission.”
    • “I thought I was enjoying this game until 25 hours in and I realized they never give you any money in this game, they expect you to perfect every mission even though they give you weak characters as 75% of the recruits who die to one hit from the enemies, and I don't feel like grinding for 10 more hours to earn a bottle of wine to sell for 150 gold pieces just to save until I have 3700 gold pieces for my next 10 characters.”
  • character development15 mentions

    Character development in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising the appealing and unique character designs, particularly in the context of its European historical setting. However, criticisms arise regarding the depth of character development, as many players feel that while the designs are visually striking, the narrative and interactions lack the promised depth and complexity. Overall, the game excels in aesthetics but falls short in delivering a rich character-driven experience.

    • “It has interesting backstory and great character design.”
    • “Decent character development and intuitive controls.”
    • “Character design is poor, with an overemphasis on physical attributes for most female characters.”
    • “The story is linear, and I certainly want more character development.”
    • “As well as interactions and character development from the side characters.”
  • replayability7 mentions

    The game offers solid replayability through various replayable quests and a New Game+ mode, appealing to fans of turn-based gameplay. While some players appreciate the additional challenges and post-game content that enhance replay value, others feel that certain fixed elements and unnecessary grinding can limit the overall experience.

    • “If you liked turn-based games, then give this game a try! Grind those replayable missions if you're stuck or just find a mission hard.”
    • “There are few difficulty levels and some additional challenges to each mission, which adds to replayability.”
    • “Its fixed, which limits replayability on my account.”
    • “There are replayable sub missions to grind your units, but I found it unnecessary.”
    • “There are several replayable quests that unlock as the game progresses, which are solely there for leveling up.”
  • humor5 mentions

    The game features a mix of humor and drama, with players finding amusement in its quirky elements, such as typos and odd grammar that often add to the comedic effect. Characters like Napoleon are noted for their humorous portrayals, and history buffs may particularly enjoy the entertaining narrative, even if it lacks depth. Overall, the humor is a notable aspect that enhances the gaming experience.

    • “It has its fair share of humor, intrigues, and even some drama.”
    • “There are tons of typos and weird grammar mistakes all over the place, but they are usually pretty funny.”
    • “I'm a big history buff, so the story is very entertaining and sometimes even hilarious, even if it isn't anything too special.”
  • optimization3 mentions

    Overall, the game is well-optimized for PC, delivering smooth performance in most scenarios. However, players have reported occasional stuttering and hiccups during battles when selecting units or taking actions.

    • “Performance-wise, the game works great.”
    • “The game is optimized for PC and runs smoothly.”
    • “Occasional stuttering and hiccups during battles when selecting units or taking action.”
    • “The game suffers from significant frame drops, especially in crowded areas.”
    • “Loading times are excessively long, disrupting the flow of gameplay.”
  • atmosphere2 mentions

    The atmosphere is enhanced by a fitting musical score that complements the game's time and scenery, with unique tracks that align well with the missions, despite the limited variety.

    • “The music and atmosphere perfectly fit the time and scenery.”
    • “There aren’t many different songs, but they are quite unique and enhance the atmosphere of the missions.”
    • “The music and atmosphere fit the time and scenery perfectly, but it often feels repetitive and lacks depth.”
    • “While the atmosphere initially draws you in, it quickly becomes stale and fails to evolve throughout the game.”
    • “The setting has potential, but the atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, making it hard to stay engaged.”
  • stability1 mentions

    The game demonstrates excellent stability, running smoothly on various hardware, including the Steam Deck, with no reported issues.

    • “It isn’t a game that’s going to push your hardware or anything; it runs great on Steam Deck with no issues whatsoever.”
  • emotional1 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is perceived as lacking, with reviewers noting that while the plot is decent, it feels thin and fails to evoke strong feelings.

Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

72% average critic score

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Play time

14hMedian play time
28hAverage play time
2-69hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 5 analyzed playthroughs

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