RPG Maker 2003 Text Tutorial

In this tutorial you will learn..

-What tilesets are

-How they work 

Welcome to my very first tutorial on RPG Maker 2003. This tutorial will cover all you need to know on tilesets. First thing is first, and we will begin by opening you database through the program by pressing the F8 key. It should then bring you to something like this...

You database will not look exactly like this, but I have highlight and numbers the main important options from the tileset tab.

Window #1) These are your tilesets that you have. The program originally comes with five default sets such as the following; World Map, Town, Inside, Dungeon, and Ship. One fascinating feature that RPG Maker 2003 has that the other versions don't have is the option to have unlimited tilesets. This will be explained how to be done later on during the tutorial.

Window #2) This window shows how your tileset would look like in the editor. You may be wondering what those numbers are, so take a look at window #3.

Window #3) This is the editing mode which will explain the numbers on the tiles in window #2. The editing modes allow you to customize the terrain, passability, and directional pass of each tile.

-Terrain will determine what type of land form the tile is. For example, the upper left tile is labeled 9. All the way on the right you will see Defined Terrain Types. Number 9 is labeled as ocean, which makes sense because the upper left tile is a tile of water. Personally, I do not find terrain something important while creating a game. So try not to worry about it too much.

-Passability will determine whether the tile passable or not. There are four different type of passability options.

The circle option means that the tile is able to be walked over. This is usually something you would use as the floor, such as the ground or carpeting.
The square option is probably the most complex of them all. It means that the first row of something will be able to go under, but after the second row of that item it is impassable. This usually works best for walls and outdoor roofs.

 The star option means that the tile is above you which allows you to walk right under it. This usually works for indoor materials with a high top such as a book shelf.

The x option means that the tile is impassable. This usually works best for walls and other objects you can't walk through such as a table or shelf.


Window #4) This is just the name of the tile which is only useful so that you can select the one you want easier.

Window #5) This option allows you to change a tile. Select the tileset you want to change on the left side of the database. After that go back to the tileset file option which I numbered window #5. Click on the "..." and it'll give you a variety of tiles you want to set the tileset as.

Now that we've covered the database, now let us put the tilesets to a test. On the toolbar of the program, you will be able to find three different layers of tilesets. These consist of the lower layer, upper layer, and the event layer. The layers are in order from left to right just as I listed them.

Lower layers are usually used as the floor and walls of your map. The upper layer is usually used for items such as a table, shelf, window, statue, etc. They can be placed over the lower layer. The event layer allows you to create events for cutscene pursoses and more. When you click it the screen should be covered in square tiles. Only one event cant fit per tile. I will explain events better in my next tutorial.