Banner of the Maid

If you can get past the stiff localization, Banner of the Maid is a great tactical RPG with an inspired concept.

Banner of the Maid puts the reins of command in the hands of a young woman who has achieved the almost unbelievable. If the game has any significant flaws, they’re only the ones you notice at first glance, and when it comes to saving Paris, these trifles must be set aside.

I love tactical strategy games and there is enough depth in this one to keep things interesting. It is simple in some areas, but with subtle depth in others. I’m looking forward to playing this one to conclusion.

Banner of the Maid is rough around the edges but past the pacing and localisation issues, players will find an engaging and unique narrative, along with easy to pick up gameplay that offers plenty of room to tailor the challenge.

In this alternate reality version of the French Revolution, a group of women seem to hold magical abilities within themselves. Can they change fate?

Although the initial impact generates a bit of awkwardness, Banner of the Maid has a very impressive success in what it proposes to do. The French Revolution serves as a backdrop for a great story around its protagonist and the elements of SRPG are very fun and interesting throughout the journey, making it a game that needs to be on everyone's radar.

Banner of the Maid deserves a recommendation as one of the best tactical RPGs and independent games on the Nintendo Switch. If you are a fan of SRPGs and are looking for a new experience that lives up to the influences of the genre, this is a title that deserves an opportunity. Here we hope for a sequel to expand and realize even more of the potential of the franchise

Banner of the Maid deserves credit for its pleasant visual style, interesting characters and thoughtful gameplay. The unique setting also wins some points with me as I don’t believe I’ve played a game set during the French Revolution since L’Empereur on the NES. That being said, pacing and difficulty spikes will turn off some gamers and I really do wish the localization had been better as well. There is a solid story with some interesting characters to be had here, and tactics fans such as myself should find plenty to like here, but a few of those rough edges probably could have been smoothed out.

Banner of the Maid is a genre-defying tactical RPG that challenges players to discover the one way the game will allow them to win battles - and bitterly punishes those that attempt other strategies. 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. Not entirely welcoming for newcomers, Banner of the Maid is an interesting alternative for genre fans.

I would be lying if I said I didn’t expect a wildly different game than the one that I played in Banner of the Maid simply because of its screenshots. They do not do the game justice. They’re chock full of cleavages and while that’s certainly a way to garner a large portion of the public’s interests for obvious reasons, and they don’t do enough to show that there’s much more to the game than mere fanservice. This is a competently put together strategy RPG that happens to feature a lot of that, to ultimately its detriment. On the other hand, if you can look past that, you’ll find that Banner of the Maid not only plays that part really well but is also an amusing twist on history.