Introduction

If you’re reading this book, you are probably interested in learning about RPG Maker VX Ace. If you’ve just started using RPG Maker VX Ace, the amount of features it offers for your roleplaying game development may be confusing. That’s what I’m here for. During the course of this book, I will give a basic overview of the engine, give tips and tricks that will help you start getting a foothold on understanding RPG Maker VX Ace, and even give you some of the code I’ve personally used for some of the neater events in my game. So, take a deep breath, and let’s go!

What is RPG Maker VX Ace (RMVXA)?

RMVXA is the latest roleplaying game development engine created by Enterbrain. It was designed with ease of use in mind and allows a total beginner to create a complete RPG without needing a single day of programming experience. It was released internationally in 2012, and many RPGs have already been developed with it. Here’s a list of features that RMVXA brings to the table:

• A powerful eventing system. Events are essentially precoded instances that allow you to do many of the most common RPG things, such as create treasure chests, a shop, an inn, force player movement and non-player characters (NPCs for short) that change what they say based on the player’s actions.
• A fully developed turn-based battle system. If you don’t mind the forward-facing view of old classics such as Final Fantasy: Mystic Quest and Phantasy Star, this will work great for you. If you don’t like it, then you can script your own battle system. However, that is an advanced topic and I will not be touching upon it in the context of this book.
• A character generator. This generator allows you to create your very own characters by using and mixing predetermined art assets. It can create both the character sprite and the portrait.
• Modifiable skills and item damage formulas. If you want to change the default formula for the Attack command, you can. Likewise, you can change different skills and items so they damage or heal based on both the user’s and the enemy stats.
• The ability to create and use multiple tile sets, and edit the passability and terrain tags of those tile sets. Terrain tags can be used with switches and variables to create damage floors, among other things.
• The ability to create enemy encounters and define the regions they spawn in, all with the help of the self-titled Region Tool.
• The ability to use events and scripts to give additional effects to items and skills above and beyond the already extensive functionality that RPG Maker VX Ace provides out of the box.

What is a roleplaying game (RPG)?

Chances are that, if you’ve picked up this book, you probably already know what an RPG is. Most likely you’ve played some of them by now. Sticklers would say that every game is technically a roleplaying game given the fact that you control a character or group of characters in your attempt to win the game. So, on that note, here’s a list of criteria I feel are essential for a game to be considered an RPG.

• A system that rewards character progression. The most common of these is the experience system. By gaining a certain amount of experience (commonly abbreviated to XP or EXP), the player’s character gains a level. The higher the character’s level, the stronger they are. Leveling up normally grants new abilities and perks for the character as well.
• A predetermined storyline. While most other genres of video games have a story, nowhere is it as important as in an RPG. It is, usually, the main reason why people play RPGs.
• A player character (PC for short). This is the human player’s persona within the in-game universe. The player experiences the game’s story through the eyes of his character.
• Non-player characters (NPCs). Real life would be boring if you were the only one in it, right? In the same way, a video game would be fairly dull if you were in a completely blank slate devoid of all interaction. NPCs help give the RPG world life as well as serve the many roles required in virtual society. By definition, every character that the player cannot control is an NPC.

There are surely other criteria by which an RPG can be defined, but the ones listed above are, in my appraisal, the most important.