#sanbondo

Publisher Phoenixx and developer Sanbondo will release Touhou Project strategy RPG Fantasy Maiden Wars: Dream of the Stray Dreamer for Switch and PC via Steam in English in 2025, the companies announced.

Fantasy Maiden Wars: Dream of the Stray Dreamer first launched for Switch on March 31, 2022 in Japan. The PC version will also be available in Japanese alongside the English language release.

Here is an overview of the game, via its Steam page:

About

A full-scale strategy RPG set in the world of Gensokyo. Fantasy Maiden Wars: Dream of the Stray Dreamer is a classic tactical RPG where you command a diverse cast of characters and battle your way through stage-based missions. Set in Gensokyo, a world where humans, youkai, and gods coexist, you’ll team up with over 70 unique allies to confront a series of supernatural incidents shaking the land.

Classic Tactical RPG Gameplay

Deploy your units across grid-based maps, take down enemies with strategic positioning and turn-based tactics, and clear stages to progress the story. Multiple difficulty levels and a full-featured tutorial system make this a perfect entry point for players new to the genre—while offering plenty of depth for veterans.

Dynamic Combat Animations

Engage in beautifully animated battles whenever characters clash. From sword slashes and gunfire to devastating Spell Card finishers, every attack is brought to life with flair. Watch your favorite characters unleash flashy moves in the rich, vibrant world of Gensokyo.

Over 70 Playable Characters and Deep Customization

Customize your squad between missions in the Intermission screen—equip gear, assign skills, and build the dream team your way. Each character has unique traits and signature abilities, opening the door to countless team compositions and strategies. Go all-in on your favorites or hunt down the most broken combos—how you play is up to you.

A Massive Story Blending the Touhou Universe

Choose between shrine maiden Reimu Hakurei or magician Marisa Kirisame as your protagonist—your choice will impact parts of the story. The game weaves together reinterpretations of storylines from across the Touhou Project series, uniting them into a single, epic narrative arc for both newcomers and longtime fans.

More Than Just a Game—Dive into the World of Touhou

Beyond the gameplay, enjoy a rich selection of bonus content:

A detailed character and terminology encyclopedia that introduces the world of Touhou.

A massive music room with over 200 tracks from the game.

Perfect for both Touhou veterans and those just beginning their journey into Gensokyo.

Watch the announcement trailer below.

Announce Trailer

English

Japanese

Fantasy Maiden Wars 4 LP, final chapter and epilogue!

It’s been a long journey, for both the characters, for the developer Sanbondo, and of course for us on the LP team (special thanks to Battler, obviously, for picking up the slack). And, well, it’s a nice ending. I especially enjoyed the Yukari and Yuyuko bit in the epilogue, although I think my inexperience in writing romance really comes through there.

Overall, I think this is an amazing series that’s not just “good for a Touhou fangame” but actually like a great game in general. Like, I could totally see someone who’s never even heard of Touhou picking up this series and liking it. Moreso when the Complete Box comes out and adds the later entries’ improvements to the earlier installments.

This is a series that has made me both laugh and cry, and frankly I might’ve even had more fun translating it than I do with the canon stuff. And while obviously it diverges from canon in some pretty major ways, it has a deep underlying respect for canon that I always like to see in a fangame. Like you can tell just by reading it how much these writers have thought about canon, and they always love to insert specific references whenever they can, while carefully adapting them to fit their own unique interpretation of the characters. Like, how in this epilogue where they use exact lines from WaHH and SoPM in totally different contexts.

Of course, it would be remiss of me not to mention how important this project has been to me personally. Through it I met some of my best friends, including the wonderful Christina Rose, who went on to become lead translator for the real Super Robot Wars series, and who’s helped me get my foot in the door for a career in professional translation (and who has an untouchable 100% winrate in Danmaku!!). So, uh, it’s no exaggeration to say that FMW has literally changed my life.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, my 4 readers who actually care about these posts. That said, now that’s it over maybe more people will give it a shot? These slow releases could certainly have killed the narrative momentum, so I’d recommend binging it sometime, even if you’ve already read/played it before.

For convenience, here are some links that should help keep everything in one place.

You can buy the games/soundtracks here.

Translation patches are here.

LP of Fantasy Maiden Wars E (Scarlet)

LP of Fantasy Maiden Wars P (Mystic)

LP of Fantasy Maiden Wars I (Eternity)

LP of Fantasy Maiden Wars Dream

Touhou Project strategy RPG Fantasy Maiden Wars: Dream of the Stray Dreamer will launch for PC via Steam on October 21 worldwide, publisher Phoenixx and developer Sanbondo announced. It will support English and Japanese language options.

Fantasy Maiden Wars: Dream of the Stray Dreamer first launched for Switch on March 31, 2022 in Japan. The Switch version is also planned for a western release in 2025.

Here is an overview of the game, via its Steam page:

About

A full-scale strategy RPG set in the world of Gensokyo. Fantasy Maiden Wars: Dream of the Stray Dreamer is a classic tactical RPG where you command a diverse cast of characters and battle your way through stage-based missions. Set in Gensokyo, a world where humans, youkai, and gods coexist, you’ll team up with over 70 unique allies to confront a series of supernatural incidents shaking the land.

Classic Tactical RPG Gameplay

Deploy your units across grid-based maps, take down enemies with strategic positioning and turn-based tactics, and clear stages to progress the story. Multiple difficulty levels and a full-featured tutorial system make this a perfect entry point for players new to the genre—while offering plenty of depth for veterans.

Dynamic Combat Animations

Engage in beautifully animated battles whenever characters clash. From sword slashes and gunfire to devastating Spell Card finishers, every attack is brought to life with flair. Watch your favorite characters unleash flashy moves in the rich, vibrant world of Gensokyo.

Over 70 Playable Characters and Deep Customization

Customize your squad between missions in the Intermission screen—equip gear, assign skills, and build the dream team your way. Each character has unique traits and signature abilities, opening the door to countless team compositions and strategies. Go all-in on your favorites or hunt down the most broken combos—how you play is up to you.

A Massive Story Blending the Touhou Universe

Choose between shrine maiden Reimu Hakurei or magician Marisa Kirisame as your protagonist—your choice will impact parts of the story. The game weaves together reinterpretations of storylines from across the Touhou Project series, uniting them into a single, epic narrative arc for both newcomers and longtime fans.

More Than Just a Game—Dive into the World of Touhou

Beyond the gameplay, enjoy a rich selection of bonus content:

A detailed character and terminology encyclopedia that introduces the world of Touhou.

A massive music room with over 200 tracks from the game.

Perfect for both Touhou veterans and those just beginning their journey into Gensokyo.

Watch a new trailer below.

Steam Release Date Trailer

English

Japanese

Phoenixx will release Sanbondo-developed Touhou Project strategy RPG Gensou Shoujo Wars for Switch in 2022, the company announced.

The Super Robot Wars-inspired Touhou Project crossover consists of four parts. Gensou Shoujo Wars Kou first launched for PC in August 2010, followed by You in May 2012, Ei in August 2014, and Yume in May 2017. A Complete Box followed in August 2019.

The game, fusion of bullet hell and strategy RPG, “depicts a Gensokyo epic of overwhelming scale, including the bonds between characters, and a thorough arrangement of character backgrounds and stories from their original works.” It features over 70 playable characters, as well as “impactful battle animations, dialogue scenes the fans want to see, cut-ins for every character, different theme songs for each character, and a variety of songs to match the scenario.”

Watch the announcement trailer for the Switch version below.