[RM] The Basic Game Making Process

[Ellie]

The Basic Game Making Process
RPG Maker XP, primarily


FIRST STEPS: CREATING A PROJECT

First thing to do is install both RPG Maker XP, and the RGSS RTP. These are available from Enterbrain's websites. Cracks probably exist but to purchase them RPG Maker XP costs $60 as a web download (with a 30 day free trial); RGSS RTP is free (but the license is only for use with RPG Maker XP).

Open RPG Maker XP (hereon "RMXP").
Click "File" > "New Project".
Type a name for your game, a name for a game folder, and a directory you want to save it to.
Click OK. Your game is now created and saved.


OPENING THE EVENT EDITOR

Choose where on the map you want an event; right click and choose "new event".

WHAT IS THIS TUTORIAL ABOUT?

There are a lot of beginner games out there which seem to follow a particular trend. Starting off with RM, straight away looking at the script forums and plonking everything into the project. Nobody is learning the basic steps of making the actual game, which means when we play the games we're left standing in a field with no clue as to what is happening other than that there's a cool menu system and battle system.

Personally, the most important part of a game is the event editor, and it is that that sets Rpg Maker apart from other makers.

First of all, the key parts every game maker needs to know.

• Conditional branch
• Switch/Self Switch
• Variable
• Move Route
• Pages
• Transfer Player

Without these key components it is impossible to make a proper RPG which plays well. Without them, you have a player standing in a field.


CONDITIONAL BRANCHES MAKE A GAME "A GAME"

Essentially, a conditional branch splits your event in two.

If you have one thing, you go one way, and stuff happens.

If you don't have that thing, you go the other way, and other stuff happens.

The easiest scenario to explain this would be: you're talking to an Inn keeper, who will let you stay if you have 100 gold.


@> Conditional branch: Money >= 100
-  - If you have 100 gold this part will be done
@> Else
-  - If you don't have 100 gold this part will be done
@> End


If you were doing this in Ruby it would perhaps be easier to see what is going on:

 
if money >= 100
  do this
else
  do that
end


The basic process is the same, it just looks different.

You'll find four pages of commands to choose from, each of them with hundreds of useful options to test for.



SWITCHES DEFINE PROGRESS

A switch is how you progress in the game. After a major event, you set a switch ON.

You then test this switch with a conditional branch; if the switch is ON you progress through the game, if not the player stays where they are. A simplification but in essence this is true.

For example:


@> Conditional branch: Switch 0001 == ON
- - - @> A message, an event command, a transfer player event, etc to progress in the game
@> Else
- - - @> Guess the player stays here, they haven't reached the part they need to yet!
@> End


VARIABLES TRACK NUMBERS

Variables are exactly the same as switches, but instead of being ON or OFF, they have a number attached to them. This could be the level of the player, how many kills they have had, how many of an item they have; literally anything.

After controlling the number in a variable, in another event you would test for this to progress through the game, as above.

Exercise Number One

Using what you have learnt so far:

• Create a new game, with two events
• The player has to talk to one event before the other will talk to them
• How could you do this?

Spoiler: Answer (try for yourself first!)

In event one:

In event two: