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IS USING THE DEFAULT RESOURCES IN A MAKER TABOO?
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shogungari
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CloseI'm currently working on my first game, but because I have no talent in drawing or music or creating...well, anything resource-wise, I'm using the defaults that came with the game, barring a couple sheets I pulled from a free resource site for maps. Same for combat mechanics too. Looking at most games on this site it seems people don't use the default resources at all. I'm wondering how the community feels about them. Does the RPG Maker community look down on a game that uses the default resources? Or is it just because they had access to better resources and took advantage of it?
Well, it's that most people have "seen it so often, they rather want something new". So usually anything that is "not default" will be viewed higher, but really, there are many quality games using them as well. And there are just as many who just want the game to come together well.
Using the default resources is by no means a bad thing, especially when you start out. It's your first game - you need to learn how to properly programm your events and stuff, how to write your story best, how to map well, how to put your game together well and much more. You'd better put effort into that rather than making custom graphics or new battle systems or other special features. It's going to be enough work as it is.
If you have access to them or you have talent in something, you obviously want to take advantage of that if possible. If you want to try something new in a certain direction, then you're free to do so.
But please don't hesitate to use them - because if you put it together well, it will still be just as awesome.
Using the default resources is by no means a bad thing, especially when you start out. It's your first game - you need to learn how to properly programm your events and stuff, how to write your story best, how to map well, how to put your game together well and much more. You'd better put effort into that rather than making custom graphics or new battle systems or other special features. It's going to be enough work as it is.
If you have access to them or you have talent in something, you obviously want to take advantage of that if possible. If you want to try something new in a certain direction, then you're free to do so.
But please don't hesitate to use them - because if you put it together well, it will still be just as awesome.
There are definitely people in the community who dislike the RTP resources that come with the game. But as Kylaila said, it'll still be awesome if you do it well, so I wouldn't worry too much about it.
Also, I'd urge you to make your first project a small one, where you set a reasonable goal for the game and work to completing it. I think you'll learn a lot just from that! :D
Best of luck! ^_^
Also, I'd urge you to make your first project a small one, where you set a reasonable goal for the game and work to completing it. I think you'll learn a lot just from that! :D
Best of luck! ^_^
Red_Nova
Sir Redd of Novus: He who made Prayer of the Faithless that one time, and that was pretty dang rad! :D
9192
Well, custom graphics will make your game stand out. That's undeniable. But RTP in itself is not bad. So long as your mapping skills aren't limited to the rectangle tool, you should be fine. Besides, since this is your first game, I'd say go ahead and use RTP.
You can start off by simply editing RTP tilesets by changing around some color tones and such. When you gain more confidence, try making B, C, and D layer tiles so you don't have to worry about autotiles.
A lot of new user forget that there is more to mapping than just RTP graphics. Experiment a little with screen tints, BGSs, events that overlay mapping, and possibly some fog effects. Get creative with your mapping!
Just don't advertise how beautiful your maps are and have screenshots showcasing RTP maps with 10 seconds worth of effort put into it. For your game page, the visuals are gonna be what potential players will see first. RTP maps with no events will make them think that you put no effort into your game, and won't even bother to download it.
You can start off by simply editing RTP tilesets by changing around some color tones and such. When you gain more confidence, try making B, C, and D layer tiles so you don't have to worry about autotiles.
A lot of new user forget that there is more to mapping than just RTP graphics. Experiment a little with screen tints, BGSs, events that overlay mapping, and possibly some fog effects. Get creative with your mapping!
Just don't advertise how beautiful your maps are and have screenshots showcasing RTP maps with 10 seconds worth of effort put into it. For your game page, the visuals are gonna be what potential players will see first. RTP maps with no events will make them think that you put no effort into your game, and won't even bother to download it.
Nope, not at all. Just make sure you use them right and that they're used well.
Frankly, I've no issue with them and they're easy enough to edit (hell, there's a shit ton of edits out there already) to make things a little different and add a bit more of your own personal style. They're about all that I use and I've not heard anyone of import complain about them (probably because I recolour, edit and own dat shit like it was made for me~) ^.^
...and have a lot of practise using them. The music though? That I don't use.
Frankly, I've no issue with them and they're easy enough to edit (hell, there's a shit ton of edits out there already) to make things a little different and add a bit more of your own personal style. They're about all that I use and I've not heard anyone of import complain about them (probably because I recolour, edit and own dat shit like it was made for me~) ^.^
...and have a lot of practise using them. The music though? That I don't use.
Thanks, I'm already learning a lot about the Maker. :) But eventually I would need people to playtest it and I didn't know if people would dismiss it as just another game if it had the default sprites. The last thing I want to do is turn people off to my game just because it looks vanilla. ._.
Edit: And I actually like the music. :( There's some really awesome themes included.
Edit: And I actually like the music. :( There's some really awesome themes included.
I personally don't dismiss games that are just RTP. If the story and characters sound fun, and it looks well-made, I give it a look-see :D
Aegix_Drakan
6037
As long as you make the maps look good, there's no shame in using the RTP.
I mainly use the RTP myself (with a few additions here and there) as a matter of fact.
The music though...try not to over-rely on the default music. There's MUCH MUCH better stuff out there. Look up the Community music pack, for starters. Holy crap it's got some great stuff in it. For free, AND royalty free too.
I mainly use the RTP myself (with a few additions here and there) as a matter of fact.
The music though...try not to over-rely on the default music. There's MUCH MUCH better stuff out there. Look up the Community music pack, for starters. Holy crap it's got some great stuff in it. For free, AND royalty free too.
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
I don't think I've ever seen a game with the RTP music. That and the title screen are the two things everyone replaces. Music doesn't require any formatting to be used in RPG Maker so I guess it's one of the easiest things to replace. And the title screen is the face of your game of course, so please find something for that.
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
My general opinion of RTP is that if you're not really serious about making games and are just screwing around, making something to amuse yourself and whoever you show it to, it's perfect. And if you want to make something legitimately good, if you want to build the RPG you've always dreamed about, it's a good placeholder until you find better graphics.
One of the nice things about RPG Maker in my opinion is all the placeholder content you start with when you make a new project. You don't have to create all your graphics, your interface, your characters, spells, items, animations, sound effects, music, maps, etc., up front before you can even get started. You can just make one of those things, and playtest the game to see how it works, using the built-in stuff temporarily for everything else. I do think it's worth replacing most/all of that stuff eventually, though, if you want your game to be good. It's not necessarily bad stuff, but most of it is probably a bad fit for your particular game, and all of it is stuff that people are mostly sick of seeing.
One of the nice things about RPG Maker in my opinion is all the placeholder content you start with when you make a new project. You don't have to create all your graphics, your interface, your characters, spells, items, animations, sound effects, music, maps, etc., up front before you can even get started. You can just make one of those things, and playtest the game to see how it works, using the built-in stuff temporarily for everything else. I do think it's worth replacing most/all of that stuff eventually, though, if you want your game to be good. It's not necessarily bad stuff, but most of it is probably a bad fit for your particular game, and all of it is stuff that people are mostly sick of seeing.
I'm not making Skyrim, I'm just working on something in my spare time. ._. But if I decide to upload my final project and give the required information like a description and screenshots, assuming I'm smart enough to not spam the rectangle tool on random tree stumps or not have the balls to call a 20x15 town with one square roofless house and a hole in the bottom for a door a "town", when people see those screenshots are they going to move to the description and think "Hm, this sounds interesting, I'll try it." or are they going to go "Ugh, RTP base sprites. Noob work, not worth my time."?
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
It's fine. Just try not to suck.
You can use RTP poorly:
...or you can use it well:
You can use RTP poorly:
...or you can use it well:
author=LockeZ
It's fine. Just try not to suck.
You can use RTP poorly:
...or you can use it well:
To be fair, Locke, the top screenshot's mapping isn't that bad. If anything, the simplicity looks good. A poor map would have the rocks in random places that don't make sense, large rectangles of them in the middle of the road, and cliff edges that have inconsistent heights.
author=Link_2112
I won't pay any attention to a game that uses any RTP. I'm different.
I am actually somewhat like Link in this matter. If a project uses only RTP, I am sad to say I will rather think less of it. It won't mean I won't try it out, but I definitely will be more hesitant, because to me it is an indicator that the developer may not have put much effort into polishing the game. That said, when I start seeing edits and stuff, I'm like, "Well at least this guy knows how to import graphics into his tileset". Also, I do not like the default battle system. But I'm weird, because I don't actually like battles, full-stop (eek!). So ignore that.
What I will say is, I would recommend learning how to create custom tilesets ASAP in your game creation lifespan, or even how to do parallaxes. I believe they artificially boost the quality of your game, even if the rest of it happens to be crap (I've played such games). I mean, of course terrible art won't suffice, but even passable custom art is better than the RTP in my opinion, because it shows to me that you care a lot about the project and have some experience in doing stuff.
These are just my biases, however, and first impressions. When I enter the game, then I judge it based on the experience alone. Some RTP-based games have given me an immersive experience (due to well-told story, pacing and/or gameplay), whereas others have fallen flat due to what I believe is laziness or lack of skill/tact. It's a hard balance to keep upright, but I think that if a person has the right amount of skill, hard work, good decisions and luck, then they have the potential to create something/s beautiful.
At least that's what I believe to be true.
RyaReisender
200
In the RPG Maker community, it's not really looked down upon. In fact most people here even defend using default assets.
However, if you step outside the RPG Maker community like for example going for Greenlight with your game or just posting about it in normal RPG communities, you will receive a lot of hate.
However, if you step outside the RPG Maker community like for example going for Greenlight with your game or just posting about it in normal RPG communities, you will receive a lot of hate.
There's no reason to just use the RTP. You can use other free resources too.
I would recommend looking up REFMAP and Celianna.
And if you have money.
The DS resource pack is the best in my opinion.
Go ahead if you want to use full RTP especially if it's your first game. You may learn many things if you don't get bothered by the graphical thingy. I mean, let just make a balanced game.
orochii
6740
Do things as you feel pleased. It ends up better than trying to please every other person in the world, which is impossible by the way.
If you like full RTP, go for it. Just put all your heart on it. AND don't get demoralized by people's douchery, OR objective criticism. Actually, if you mind about criticism, you better have something to critique instead of being forever at the planning stage thinking about how to get a 5 star mark in your first attempt.
If you like full RTP, go for it. Just put all your heart on it. AND don't get demoralized by people's douchery, OR objective criticism. Actually, if you mind about criticism, you better have something to critique instead of being forever at the planning stage thinking about how to get a 5 star mark in your first attempt.
synbi
267
author=shogungari
Looking at most games on this site it seems people don't use the default resources at all
Most games use some form of default resources in fact. Sound effects, default UI layouts, message box styles, font etc. RM scene is very forgiving and generally supportive of the RTP.
One problem is that some of the default resources don't always seem to be in agreement with each other, basically. Some RTP graphics clash horribly with each other and seeing them used together just feels to me the game maker is putting less effort into his game than they should, and in return I'll be a little less willing to try out the game with those impressions in mind. In the best case it doesn't do the game any harm, but poor or devil-may-care attitude to mixing RTP resources never adds to its credit.
Ace's faceset generator is a prime offender, those portraits just never seem to work well with anything, they don't mix with RTP tilesets/charsets at all and are an eyesore almost universally. Another is Verdana... the horrible default font that thankfully any beginner can change easily with a few lines of code.
Worry less about using default resources, pay some more thought to the hard stuff like balancing and how not to get overwhelmed with eventing and engine limitations at first.
author=shogungari
Edit: And I actually like the music. :( There's some really awesome themes included.
Sure, only it doesn't tend to mix well with much anything else than other RTP music though, so you don't have that much to work with.
