"To The Moon" by Freebird Games - Highly Recommended Game

Freebird Games' To the Moon is an award-winning indie adventure RPG about two doctors who travel through a dying man's memories to fulfill his last wish: To go to the moon.



I've just finished playing it and it's one of the best RPG Maker indie games I've played in quite some time. I would highly recommend it to those seeking an evocative, very touching and enjoyable love-story game that is quite different from the "norm".

To The Moon is evocative, intriguing and compelling. It's heart-warming in places, tearful in others, but with just the right amount of humour injected in it to balance it out. The plot kind of unravels bit by bit to keep you going until the end, just to find out the reasons behind the request and what ultimately happens at the end.

The music is awesome, especially the piano theme music, and the customised graphics add an extra dimension to the game! It also has the game Whack-A-Mole, which I used to be good at (my record is 95%!).

This is why To The Moon has been pre-selected for my upcoming Wulf's Choice Award.

You can buy To The Moon on Steam or visit Freebird Games' Products Store for additional add-on products.

Tweaks & Add-Ons Script RMXP (TWAXP)

The Tweaks & Add-Ons script is available. It adds several tweaks to RMXP, including for layout. It also adds some unavailable features and functions and other enhancements.

Read more about it on the Tweaks & Add-Ons page.

Blog NOT Abandoned, But Here's Why No Updates

This blog has not been abandoned. Most of the content and updates have now migrated to RPG Maker Times & Companion. To keep up-to-date with the latest news and script updates, as well as resources, be sure to visit the site.

While this site will still not be abandoned, it will be used for updates to RPG Maker Times & Companion, as well as other general updates and fun RPG Maker related things. You can still follow me at Facebook.

For the most part, I've been dividing my time between work and writing, and trying to establish an online business. This means that the time I'd like to devote to RPG Maker and the various projects is limited, so when I am able to it's like tasting candy again after a long absence!

Developer's Mode Script

It can be tedious when developing games to go through the Title Screen each time when playtesting them. Developer's Mode enables you to bypass the Title Screen completely and go directly into the game, without having to select "New Game". Hence, the Developer's Mode Script.

During development (unless you're modifying the Title screen itself), you can turn "Developer's Mode" on and then switch it off to playtest the game all the way through. Then, when the game is finished, the script can be deleted. Or it can be kept in if players want to skip past the title and any beginning cutscenes.

I originally created this during the development of The Gladiator Project, where it became necessary to playtest frequently to fine-tune the layouts and positions of items.

Windowskins & The Gladiator Project Demo

Windowskins

The windowskins are almost completely ported over. All that's left is the finishing touches and making sure all the links work properly. And then I'll be able to create some more.

Coliseum Header Image - From the MMORPG I play, Aion - © NCSOFT

The Gladiator Project Demo

A small demo will be available for The Gladiator Project (TGP) game soon (I'm hoping for the weekend), so you can play at least up to the Training Arena. And then, as progress continues, I'll continue to release further demos or playable areas. Further updates on TGP are on the official site or you can subscribe to its Facebook page.

Windowskins Integrating With The Blog

The Windowskins subdomain is migrating to RPG Maker Times & Companion. The old site will remain but it won't be updated.

This is part of the integration process to make it easier to update. I do have a few more windowskins to update and convert, so once the migration is complete the new windowskins will be added. This also includes the windowskins tutorials, both old and new.

I'll be using the Windowskin Generator and adding my own graphics to create new ones on a more regular basis as well.

Just For Fun: Shut Down The Game With A Keypress

This just-for-fun (and seemingly pointless) scriptlet enables you to shut down the game by pressing a key. This is what happens when boredom kicks in. It might come in handy for a very quick shutdown, rather than going through the Status Menu and exiting that way. (This was created in RMVX, but it'll probably also work in RMVXA.)

Title Screen

So, from the Title Screen, add this bit of code:

#============================================================
# ** Scene_Title
#============================================================
class Scene_Title < Scene_Base
  #----------------------------------------------------------
  # * Frame Update
  #----------------------------------------------------------
  alias cwkpsds_scnttl_update update
  def update
    cwkpsds_scnttl_update
    if Input.trigger?(Input::Z); exit; end
  end
end

Map

Alternatively, it can be used on the map.

#============================================================
# ** Scene_Map
#============================================================
class Scene_Map < Scene_Base
  #----------------------------------------------------------
  # * Frame Update
  #----------------------------------------------------------
  alias cwkpsds_scnmap_update update
  def update
    cwkpsds_scnmap_update
    if Input.trigger?(Input::Z); exit; end
  end
end

Available Keys

You can use other keys too: Z, SHIFT, CTRL, ALT, F5, F6, F7 and F8.

Note

Using this scriptlet means that you WILL lose your progress after any save point. Where this script might be most useful is if you're at work and playing, and the boss is nearby, you'll be able to quickly shut down the game with just one button. That is, if you don't mind replaying from the last save point.

The full, updated scriptlet can be downloaded here.

Just A Brief Update

As regular visitors will notice, I've gone back to the original template. The other one just wasn't working! Anomalies with the style sheets will be ironed out at some point.

My RMVX project, The Gladiator Project (including TGP Arena), is on track with its (re)development. You can keep up-to-date on any or all of its pages:

• TGP "Official" Weblog
• TGP Google+
• TGP Facebook

Future updates will appear on these pages rather than the blogs.

Granny's Resources Lists

I was browsing through Steam's RPG Maker VX Ace Discussions when I happened across something everyone needs and will benefit from. Note that most of these will also work for RMVX.

Grandma Deb has compiled some COMPREHENSIVE resource lists for all your RMVXA needs, including tilesets, portraits and emosets on a wide range of themes.

Among my favourites are the the Star Wars Resources.

Yoda | Star Wars Resources

And also the Animal Sprite Compilation, which includes dragons!

Dragon Charset | Animal Sprite Compilation

The above resource images link to the "original" websites and copyrights belong to the respective artists. If you use any of them - and I'm quite confident you will at some point - give the appropriate credit.

The Gladiator Project Official New Blogsite & Updates

The Gladiator Project blogsite is now live, having been revamped in tandem with the redevelopment of the project. The site's layout and design is still being worked on, but that will come in time.

Newly added pages:

• Character Classes - Details about the various character classes used in the game.
• Glossary - A complete list of the Latinesque words used in the game, as well as on the blogsite.
• About TGP - A detailed history about The Gladiator Project and how it has evolved.

Updates will continue as the project itself evolves and will be implemented on the site.