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Game Dev FAQ, Rules and Notice

DarkMage31

RM2K(3) Master
1,981
Posts
20
Years
New Thread Rule

As of this point, all new game threads must contain a fairly detailed story, and/or at least one in-game screenshot, and/or a demo of the work they have already completed (this would be preferred) in the opening post. Threads that do not follow this rule, will be closed.

Resources Rule

Those who try and pass off other people's resources as their own, will be given a warning from now on. You will have to present some kind of evidence though before you start acuse other members of stealing though.

________________________

Nintendo's Official View on Fangames

Most of the games here on PC are pkmn fan games, so I emailed Nintendo and asked their position. Well? Would you like to hear what they had to say?

From: [email removed]
> > Posted At: 16:22:45.000 11/30/2004
> > Posted To: Nintendo <[email protected]>
> > Subject: Webform: Software Related >
> >
> >Hello. I am emailing you to ask Nintendo's position on derivitive work-
> >specifically, fan games based on Pokemon. Would you give permission and
> >solicit a home-made amature fan game that will not be sold? They are not
> >parodies or criticisms, so they would not fall under the legal definition
> >of fair use and naturally requires your legal acceptance. The games would
> >not be sold in any way, would not impede on Nintendo's sales, and would
> >only help nurture interest in your products and allow creativity to be
> >expressed through your great concepts. I hope you understand, but if
> >Nintendo does not solicit derivitive fan games, I would be more than
>happy
> >to cease action in your interest without need of legal repricussion.
>Thank
> >you.
> >From: Nintendo <[email protected]> To: [email removed]
> >Subject: Re : Webform: Software Related > Date: Wed, 1 Dec 2004 07:32:33
> >--800
> >
> >
> >
> >Message(#6851-000385-0290\3850290)
> >
> >Hello and thank you for contacting Nintendo,
> >
> >We appreciate your interest in Nintendo of America Inc.
> >
> >Because we receive so many similar requests, our general policy is to
> >decline such use of our trademarked and copyrighted material. Although
>you
> >are not necessarily restricted from going ahead with your proposal, you
>are
> >restricted from using our trademarked and copyrighted materials in a way
> >which would suggest sponsorship, endorsement or association of such a
> >service by or with Nintendo.
> >
> >Thank you again for contacting Nintendo.
> >Nintendo of America Inc.
> >Nicolas Ramu
> >
> >Nintendo's home page: http://www.nintendo.com/
> >Power Line (Automated Product Info): (425) 885-7529
>Thank you. Just so I understand fully, using the actual Pokemon logo, for
>example, would be against your policy, but making my own based on the
>"official" version would be acceptable? And so long as it is specified that
>I am not affiliated or endorsed by Nintendo, it's okay? Just making sure!
>:)
>Thank you
>Subject: RE: Re : Webform: Software Related > Date: Wed, 1 Dec 2004
>17:38:49 --800
>
>Hi,
>
>Thanks for writing! To answer your questions, making your own logo should
>be okay, as long as you don't suggest sponsorship, endorsement, or
>association.
>
>Sincerely,
>
>Nintendo of America Inc.
>Kurt Wagner
>
>Nintendo's home page: http://www.nintendo.com/
>Power Line (Automated Product Info): (425) 885-7529
What about using directly ripped graphics from the official games? Or is
that pushing it?
Hello,

Taking graphics directly from a game would be, as you put it, "pushing it."
Nintendo owns extensive intellectual property rights in all of our products,
including systems, game titles, characters and game audiovisual works. To
protect our rights, we must exercise very close quality control over their use.

The same thing goes for images and information on our web sites. All content on
web sites operated by Nintendo of America Inc., including articles, artwork,
screen shots and other files, is copyright 1997 - 2004 by Nintendo of America
Inc., unless owned by a third party. Trademarks and copyrights for third-party
games and characters are owned by the companies that market or license those
products.

All content, including articles, artwork, screen shots and other files on our
sites may not be used on any other web site, in any publications or in public
performances.

Nintendo does not grant permission to individuals to use any content from our
web sites. Because we receive thousands of such requests, our policy is to
decline use of our trademarks and copyrights.

Sincerely,

Nintendo of America Inc.
J.J. Craig McClure
Basically what I got from this correspondance is the following:
You can make fan games
You can not show affiliation or endorsement
You can not used ripped graphics

For more info. on this topic or if you wish to discuss this:
http://www.pokecommunity.com/showthread.php?t=25132

FAQ
________________________
RM2K

This is an FAQ intended for all newcomers and active participants in the Pok?Community RM2K subforum. Please take the time to thoroughly read this and make sure you understand everything covered here.

Q: What is RM2K?
A: RM2K stands for RPG Maker 2000. It is a game development program that allows you to make complicated and simple Role Playing Games (RPG's) from absolute scratch without having to know any programming whatsoever. It has a basic point and click interface that allows you to start making games in minutes with the RTP.

Q: What is RM2K3?
A: RM2K3 is the upgrade to RM2K. RM2K3 stands for RPG Maker 2003. There are very few upgrades, so I don't recommend getting this unless you want a few extra features. It's better than 2000 if you're making a Final Fantasy game, but not as good for Pok?mon games.

Q: Where can I get RM2K(3)?
A: To download RM2K(3), go to www.rmdownloads.com to get the files and the RTP as well as several games and utilities.

Q: Where can I get RMXP?
A: Because RPG Maker XP (RMXP) requires a crack to run, it is considered warez, and thus it is against the rules of PC to allow linking/distributing. Please do not Private Message people asking for it, or create threads asking for it. No more info can be given on this subject.

However, if you are interested in downloading the official trial english version:
http://www.enterbrain.co.jp/tkool/RPG_XP/eng/


Q: What is this RTP you speak of?
A: RTP stands for Run Time Package. RTP is inclusive of all the files that RPG Maker comes with to help you get started.



Q: What kind of files does RM2K use?
A: The actual resources are divided into: Charsets, Chipsets, Panoramas, Battle Animations, Monsters, Backdrops, Facesets, Gameovers, Title Screens, Movies, Pictures, Music, Sounds, and System. If you use RM2K3, you will have additional BattleCharSets, BattleWeapons, Frames, and System 2.

Charsets are the graphic you see for your hero and the NPC's. Chipsets are your map tiles. Panoramas are clouds and other stuff used in maps. Backdrops are backgrounds in battle only. Facesets are face graphics that can optionally appear in an onscreen message. System governs how the message will appear onscreen. The rest is self explanatory.

The resolution of the images RM2K uses are dependent on which kind of resource you are making. For example, a title screen will have a higher res than a charset. See the Help file for more details. Also, they must be 256 Colors or it won't work.

Q: Is making a RM2K game the same as making a "hack" of a ROM?
A: No no no no no!!! They are totally different!!! Making an RM2K game is making an original game using either prefab or original resources and a built-in script generator. It has nothing to do with ROMS or Emulators. Don't come in and post about ROMs, Emulators, or even call your game or anyone else's game a hack, because it's not!

Q: I have the program and made my first test game. It looks like Final Fantasy, and I want it to look like Pok?mon. How do I do this?
A: First, you must get Pok?mon resources. These can be found in this thread under the Resources sticky thread as well as at several locations linked to at the end of this FAQ. You should get some character graphics that were ripped from the GameBoy(R) games as well as a Pokemon "System" graphic so your messages have the traditional look and feel of Pok?mon. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me or any other experienced members you will find in this subforum.

Q: Help my font is messed up, how do i fix it? (Courtesy of Avatar)

A: This is easy, there are two ways to do this, either go into your control panel, go to Control Panel >> Regional Language Settings >> Advanced (tab) >> check Japanese language support, then click OK.
NOTE: Have your Operating System disc ready.

Or you can download the font fix, which can be found here:
http://www.lrpgm.com/site/?page=downloads&id=21

Q: How should I go about making a team to help work on the game?
A: First, you should have some work done already. You should probably have a basic demo out, some screen shots, or anything to prove your worth. No one is going to join a team (especially the best programmers/artists) who have no idea what they're getting into, let alone the ability level of the person they're working for. Don't ask for a dev team if you've done nothing yourself; what that's like saying is that everyone does everything, and you get your name tacked on in the credits. Needless to say, this isn't fair.

Q: How do I make a menue and/or battle system that looks like in Pok?mon?
A: A custom menue system, or CMS, and a custom battle system, or CBS, don't happen over night. They require a little bit of experience and lots of hard work. My advice to you is to:
A) Make test games and learn the basics first
B) Download other games that are better than yours and open it in the editor to see how they made it
If you have any questions about custom systems, you can PM me or any other experienced member and it can be taken step by step. Also for the battle system, there is a group project attempting to replicate the official CBS from the GB games, so there is a demo released of that if you want to use it in your game for free. In fact, everything around here is free!

Q: Where can I find tutorials to help me with my games?
A: Here are some sites you can learn from:
Rgss for dummies *GamingW
Tutorial 1 *DubeAlex
Tutorial 2 *DubeAlex
Tutorial 3 *DubeAlex (not finished)

Syntax, variables, switches etc.
Rgss Syntax *DubeAlex
Rgss components *DubeAlex
Rgss Variables & Switches *DubeAlex
Rgss Variables *DubeAlex (bigger then link above, but read the link above first)

Q: Alright, I made my game. How can I share it with others so they can download it?
A: This is THE killer question. The answer really depends on the filesize of your game, however. There are places like Yahoo! Briefcase that will host it up to 30 Megabytes, but you can only upload files under 5 megs. Be careful for this kind of stuff. If www.google.com doesn't turn anything up, go to www.free-webhosts.com and search their massive database for free hosters. If you would like a free website, I recommend www.freewebs.com for easy and professional-looking design. You can also use Lycos and their www.tripod.com or www.angelfire.com. However, the best host I have found yet is located here, specifically for RM2K:
http://projectdev.lateralshift.net/

Q: Where can I find resources and games to download?
A: We have a resource thread here, but here are links:
www.gamingw.net
www.gaminggroundzero.com
www.skytowergames.net
www.rpginfinity.com

Q: I'd like to write a tutorial. Where should it go?
A:There's a tutorial sub-forum, so you can go post it there.

Q: Help! I'm getting an error when playing someone's game!
A: Chances are, this error is because RM2K referenced a file that doesn't exist. For example, if your Hero graphic can't be found, the RM2K engine has no idea what to put in its place, so it closes out with an error like, "The file "x" can not be found." This is caused by not having the RTP installed on your computer. However, some game authors will include all the necessary files with their game so you do not need the RTP. If you post the error on the game's thread, the author may be able to post it so you can insert it into the necessary folder to get rid of the error. Or, you can rename any old bmp/png image to the missing file name as a temporary substitute. To avoid this problem, game authors, use a RTP dependency scanner called RM Tool. This will search the engine file and import all the missing files for you. Go to www.gamingw.net for more details.

Information Courtesy of Avatar
http://www.phylomortis.com/
http://www.svatopluk.com/rm2k/material/

http://pwds.client.jp/
http://www.mogunet.net/~mack/
http://www.mogunet.net/~fsm/
http://page.freett.com/tycompanys/
http://f19.aaacafe.ne.jp/~koou/top.html
http://www2.tcn.ne.jp/~katsuura/
NOTE: Some of the above are Japanese.
_______________________________________
Good luck, and happy game making!
 
Last edited by a moderator:

DarkMage31

RM2K(3) Master
1,981
Posts
20
Years
Warning to Fake Nintendo Reps

Since the last thread didn't go so well, here we go again.

We have had two registrations by people posing as fake representatives from Nintendo. One even went so far as to threaten legal action and try to shut down a project.

For anyone who want to try this stunt: moderators have access to every member's IP address, a unique number for each computer. If you are already registered, we will cross-reference the 'representative's' IP with other registered members, and your name will show up. If you have a dynamic IP each of the IPs you have used to access PC are logged. We can also trace the location and Internet Service Provider of any IP.

The point is, we will know of any fake registrations, and if you are already registered will will know which member tried to play the prank.

For all of you creating games/resources: If anyone claiming to work for Nintendo tries to stop your project or threatens legal action, consult a moderator first. We will check the member's legitimacy. Be sure to see the "Nintendo's Official View on Fangames" thread to make sure you are on the right side of the law.

Thank you.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Kairi

The Original $staff_title
10,285
Posts
20
Years
  • Seen Feb 3, 2021
Here ya go. Good work as always DM. ^_^
 

Booda Sack

Sphere Master
300
Posts
19
Years
Pretty good except for one thing.
You dont make games completely from scratch.
There is already various things built into help you.
I.e the event creator.
If you are using something like sphere,now that is making it from scratch because you have to code everything.
But even still sometimes it isnt from scratch considering if you use already made graphics.
 
2,405
Posts
20
Years
Booda Sack said:
Pretty good except for one thing.
You dont make games completely from scratch.
There is already various things built into help you.
I.e the event creator.
If you are using something like sphere,now that is making it from scratch because you have to code everything.
But even still sometimes it isnt from scratch considering if you use already made graphics.

Yeah i would agree if you use already made graphics, like RTP or Mack and Blue (some of the chipsets is now known as REFMAP material, because they were modified, and some newer ones were made), or the default battle system etc, but if you make your own graphics / cbs / cms / anything else that you need, it would almost be made from scratch, since you have to code it.
 
1,279
Posts
20
Years
Hey DM, what is the frames folder for..? I never figured it out! I just can't put my finger on it.. I am sorta new to rm2k3 and I havent used the frames thing.. It's something to do with the default battle I think..
 
2,405
Posts
20
Years
Krazy_Meerkat said:
Thanks anyway DM. I guess nobody knows..

Frames are screen-sized (320x240) graphics with a transparent color serving two entirely different purposes: Either as decorative graphics displayed all the time in the foreground (truly frames), or as layered, optionally scrolling battle backgrounds, mkay.
 
1,279
Posts
20
Years
Why was I not informed of this sooner? We could have used frames for the battle or something...
By the way, thanks avatar :)
 

Sorye HK

Looking around here and there
3,363
Posts
20
Years
  • Seen Dec 1, 2021
What program did you use to decompress the file?
And what type of file did you download?
 
2,405
Posts
20
Years
Either try re-downloading it, or get it from another site, that should probaly work.
 
Last edited:

Illusion

RMXP game maker
155
Posts
19
Years
  • Seen Oct 17, 2011
help for projects laterashift

I have a problem in projects laterashift, i can't find the upluad link.
Could someone tell me please?(thanx in advance)

I'm not shure if this is the right thread but it says rm2k faq so i put it here.
 
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