Standing Picture Maker (RMVX/VXA)

Here is a site where you can create a full set of resources for your RMVX/VXA project. It's in Japanese but it's easy to figure out without translation. The site can be found here.

This is an angelic character I created using the online maker.

There are very few actual parts to create a wide range of resources, but you can still create some decent ones. The site also has a lot of different facesets. It's well-worth a visit.

Character Maker XP Resources

Unfortunately, the Character Maker XP Online website is no longer available. However, there are still some character generators for RMXP. Bear with me as I finish work on Flower Mint's Garden, my commissioned website, and I'll be able to focus on the matter in hand again.

In the meantime, there are a few RMXP Character Makers that I know of, thus:

• Loose Leaf Character Generator - This site is in Japanese, but it appears to work if it's translated.
• Chibi Character Maker - This site allows you to create and download individual sprite sheets. The link has been translated into English from its original Japanese.
• Character Maker XP - Here is the "original" software previously downloadable from Megaupload before it went offline. I think this version is slightly out of date, but I'll be updating on the RPG Maker Times Companion blogsite soon.

Thanks again to all those who have pointed out the "missing links" and for providing alternatives. I'll collect them all up and place them on the Companion blogsite as soon as I'm done with the commissioned website.

Profile/Character Makers (Online)

Profile characters for the Status screen gives it a more aesthetic feeling, rather than sticking with the defaults, which tend to be too commonplace. Below are a few websites that will help create alternative for the Status screen. (Click on the titles to go to the corresponding websites.)

Anime Character Maker 2.2
This is a reincarnation (more like a reinvention almost) of one of the most well-known character makers online. This is one that I'm sure most RPG Maker fans will recognise. The original version had fewer options to choose from, but it looks like much more have been added already. One of the things that annoys me most is the garish colours, but it still works out. Unfortunately, as of yet, there's still no option to save, but that can be overcome by doing a Print Screen shot, although version 3 may well have the option to save. Look forward to that.

Hero Machine - Super Hero Generator

This generator is designed (as the title says) to make super-hero type characters, although it has enough options to make appropriate characters in RPG Maker and it's certainly NOT lacking in options. You can choose two colours for your output, the first is the primary colour and the second is the highlighter. You can also add a companion, from a frog to a griffin and a background (you can't recolour the black-and-white backgrounds). There are also various themes to choose from. I absolutely love this and I'd recommend it to everyone, if not for RPG Maker then the sheer enjoyment. The one above was randomly generated and recoloured.

Portrait Illustration Maker
While this is specifically "a service which provides character icons completely free of charge...available for your blog site or SNS.", the graphics are cartoonish, but its online editor has a wealth of features. Output is 96x96 in PNG or JPG formats, so it might be a fun replacement for the facesets. (Caveat: I thought I saw somewhere on the website that images are not redistributable, although I'm not sure if it would be viable for RPG Maker. They require a "copyright link", which shouldn't be a problem for anyone. Just make sure you read through their terms before implementing them in RPG Maker.)

There are inevitably some I've overlooked. If you know of any decent ones, let me know in the comments and I'll check it out and update accordingly.

Character Creator Studio VX

RMXP Unlimited Just like the Character Maker for RMXP, Character Creator Studio VX allows the creation of RMVX character sets. It does have a lot of resources available to create some decent characters, with the ability to add multiple items.

What I like most about this program though is its simplicity and ease of use, and its features:

• Large Preview - A separate window for a much larger preview of characters, updated "live".
• Undo - Unlimited undo's if something doesn't look right.
• Reset - Resets the character set to its default "naked" state.
• Save - Save your creations as individual charsets. (These can be imported directly into RMVX and used if they are saved with a $ at the beginning of the filename.)
• Import/Export Allows you to import and export additional resources either premade or from existing character sets.

All images are saved as PNG format, including the character building resources, which means that, if you know what you're doing, you can create your own hairstyles, clothes, etc. and use them directly.

Not only that, Character Creator Stuido also comes bundled with another program, called Sprite Stitcher. This allows you to "stitch" individual character sets together (created with the Studio or somewhere else) into a single character set, up to the maximum of eight.

In short, this program is the best one I've come across so far. I know that for myself I'm so glad I stumbled across this program simply because spriting is NOT something I'm good at. And I know that others will find it as much of a boon as I do. Highly Recommended.

Character Maker XP

Direct Download When it comes to designing character sets from scratch, I am stuck so rely on these kinds of utilities to help me out. Character Maker XP makes life much easier, as it will create character sets and sprites for you.

Although it is limited as far as the number of resources, you can still create some reasonably good custom character sets for RMXP, even with a small set of graphics available.

As you can see from the snapshot above, characters are highly customizable, with a virtual mannequin to model the clothes and extras to work with. You can then export your finished product to RMXP character sets and import them into your games. It also has a feature to edit the resources, but use with caution since it directly modifies the program's default graphics, with no way to undo the changes, except to reinstall it.

Its ease of use makes it a worthy addition to your games creation software, but there are slightly better ones out there, including online web editors.

Edit (18-Feb-2012): Previously downloadable from Megaupload and we all know what happened to them. Thanks to "Anonymous" for pointing this out. Anyway, download should be working now.