The banner API is supported by HTML/Multimedia interpreters, and also by console/terminal text-mode interpreters. It’s not supported by text-only interpreters.
HTML Tads: Yes
QTads: Yes
t3run: Yes
FrobTADS: Yes
Gargoyle: No
Banners aren’t widely used because most games don’t have a need for them. The only exception being the status line; text-only interpreters without banner API support have a fixed status line that lacks the information displayed by interpreters that do support banners. The status line is a banner on interpreters that support banners.
You seem to do have a need for banners. Your choices are basically:
- Use banners and require that people use one of the above interpreters, except Gargoyle.
- Use banners but make them optional, so that the game is playable in Gargoyle too.
- Use WebUI and implement banners in HTML and Javascript, and require people to play the game in Windows HTML Tads (the only interpreter that supports WebUI), or through the internet.
- Don’t use banners.