RPG Maker: Create, explore, enjoy

Do you like role-playing games (RPGs)? Do you like creating? More importantly, do you like playing RPGs with a lot of heart and soul? Well, I’ve got some sweet RPG picks for you.

RPG Maker originated in 1992 as fun and easy-to-use software for people to create games with very little experience with coding. It offers default assets and tools to be used by a creative, outside-the-box, community of game designers. 

RPG Maker developed a solid reputation in its native country, Japan. Most of the games and software from this region did not make their way to the United States until the PlayStation 2 RPG Maker games or the RPG Maker ‘97 era. Unfortunately, the reputation of games made with this software has diminished abroad. There are countless games saturated by eager and lazy designers, using default assets and underwhelming writing. However, there are diamonds in the rough of this vast sea of games, often made by solo developers. There really is nothing like the experience that you get when playing a game made by one mind, with one vision. 

Here are some of the most unique and fun RPG Maker games that I can think of. Though surely, there are many more that I’d like to recommend too. Stay tuned!

Helen’s Mysterious Castle:

Made by Satsu with RPG Maker ’98

I played this game alongside the launch of the behemoth that is Monster Hunter Wilds. I quickly lost interest in the highly refined, super open-world, 4K resolution, 90 frames per second, $70 experience that was Monster Hunter Wilds in favor of this highly addictive, unique Japanese role-playing game (JRPG).

In this game, you play as the titular hero, Helen, as she fights her way toward the Demon King. Dueling monsters one-on-one, almost dancing with them tit-for-tat, and calculating each move with razor precision in order to work your way up to the Dread Castle of said Demon King. 

Players take on his generals and uncover the mystery of Helen and the world that she keeps dying in. The mechanics are tight, the story is fascinating, and it acts as a very early example of a rogue-like game. The music goes hard and features classic techno and an ambient score for its more somber moments. With Helen’s Mysterious Castle’s low price, I couldn’t recommend this game more.

Hylics:

Made by Mason Lindroth with RPG Maker VX

Ever wanted to do acid but were too responsible or scared to do so? Here’s a game for you. 

Claymated and drenched in trippy visuals, Hylics wanders about in the surreal, right into the strange and beautiful. With lofi surf rock music and abstract writing that hints at a depth that may or may not exist.

It is what you make it. Trying to describe the plot of this game is an entire essay on its own, and even then, you’d end up more confused.

A sequel was made too, with many improvements, but I’ll save that for another list.

Omori:

Made by OmoCat with RPG Maker XP

If you’re looking for a more story-based experience, it’s hard not to recommend the poignant and emotionally riveting game Omori. 

This game follows a group of kids harboring a dark secret and features a whimsical world steeped in pastoral mystery. Omori paints a beautiful and painful tale of friendship, death, trauma, and how we recover from it. There’s a huge fan community surrounding this game, only rivaled by the cute puzzle game OneShot! 

This game is easy to spoil due to its many early, mid, and late stages of gameplay, so I’ll remain mum on this one. While $20 might seem steep, sales exist, and honestly this game is worth more than the $70 clones out there.

Irene: Homecoming:

Made by Masuku Studio with RPG Maker MZ

I stumbled upon this wonderful action-adventure RPG (AARPG) during the 2025 RPG Maker Game Jam. It’s a travesty that it lost, as its atmosphere and storytelling were downright riveting. 

You play as Irene, an armless lady with a ghost sword, seeking Santa Claus in order to ask for arms as a gift. The game is bleak, kind of funny, and endlessly compelling in its mysterious world. The sound effects used throughout and the excellent use of the Sang Hendrix Engine made a very competent action RPG. 

It’s worth mentioning that it’s free to play and the creator had released a prequel prior to this game, with the title ‘Irene.’ That game plays more like a traditional turn-based RPG, though the lore throughout and the saga of Irene is worth the trek through both games. I really hope Musuku Studio continues the quest of Irene sometime in the future. There are few games like it, on many levels.

Shivering Hearts:

Made by Mischa

I found this beautiful, completely watercolor-painted game while digging through countless tutorials on animated parallax layering (a visual effect where background and foreground images move while the player scrolls.) The creator had put in nearly two years of work, meticulously painting each asset, character, and landscape. It truly is candy to any artsy gamer. 

While the mechanics are a little basic and the story isn’t going to knock your socks off, the visuals and music really carry the experience very nicely. The music is a soft piano to accompany the soft vibes of the game.

RPG Maker is easy to use and often on sale. It offers a truly incredible and versatile set of tools and an even more incredible community of creators, players, and coders. It’s accessible for folks at any level of coding experience. If you’ve ever been interested in game design or would like an intuitive database for all of your audio, visual, story, and character-based creations, I couldn’t recommend RPG Maker enough. 

I’m thankful for Gotcha Gotcha Games, as they’ve given us dummies a way to make our games, create new game-makers, and share truly brave and unique RPGs.