Epitome isn't quite the right word to use, is it...?

I dunno dude. You have to have some competency in mapping. As long as there's some cort of coherent order and everything isn't a perfect square/rectangle/circle or whatever then I'd wager you'll be fine. Look around at some good map and see if you can figure out how they're constructed; the 'best' ones use three layers (events as the third) or extra character sets or something. Few will be interested in your project in screenshots if the mapping isn't good, at the very least; screenshots usually rely on eye-candy of some variety, whether it be mapping prowess, custom sprites, etc.

Regardless of this most people won't take many RM2K3 games seriously anyway, but ya. Who can blame 'em for the most part?

My two cents! I know I've said something wrong in here already but I can't figure it out. I'll post again later.

look man i'm simply not going to bother with your game if you dont get the mapping right. i dont care if it has the best story or the most innovative gameplay ideas, if i see 4 of the same tile in a row or less than 3 light effects overlayed over every map then i'm simply not going to touch it. you gotta work on em maps and its gonna be hard and you're gonna spend 80% of your time working on that one forest map with stuff all over the place that the player can't get from point A to B but can still marvel at the unique combination of rudra tilesets with star ocean trees. rpg making is really about maps, thats why the map editor is the first thing ytou see when you run the application. you dont see the database editor or the event editor do you? if youre wondering why maps are so important remember that this community is built around the screenshot topic. the screenshit topic is very important and no matter how detailed and interesting your story synopsis is or how fun the game systems are, you just cant show that in the screenshot topic so its useless, your task is to impress as many people as possible by making screen after screen (mostly mockups) and posting them, please dont try to be fresh or different, and stay way from unique graphics because who are you to compete with the great artists who did all our chrono trigger and rudra maps. your maps might be empty so you need to fill them and make them look different this is referred as the 3 tile rule and you need to do your own research on how to make a map thats as cramped as possible for a good example look at the legend of the philosopher stone where its very hard to navigate through a forest where you cant step on fungi and grass btu it looks so beautiful with those overlays. another option is to take some generic tileset and do some photoshop work you see this a lot in rmxp but it can be done in rm2k3 basically you use the burn tool to make it look shiny and detailed. if you aren't ready to spend so much time making maps maybe youre better off leaving the community while you still can we do not welcome your kind around here we want to see more ff6 maps with tales of phantasia sprites because at heart we all know we'd rather spend 4 hours making this one map with ripped tilesets rather than spend it on making our own tileset or finding someone who would help us make some. i also noticed you talk about fun battles and unique story and i have to warn you that along with our love for unoriginal ripped maps we also love unoriginal and uninspired stories and systems that are little variations of the games we used to love in early 90s except without any real production values its better if you made a fangame but if you couldn't just make a fangame and give it another name and no one would notice. i'm not trying to discourage you i'm telling you the wayt it really is and i'm concerendd for you because i want to see you winning a misao or two. rpg making isnt really about you having fun and making a game you like, maybe it was that way in the old days before people knew how to effectively use the show picture command but now we are more advanced and things are more competetive and if youre not aiming for a misao then why bother might as well just make a game in game maker or one of those engines "indie games" people use to make their innovative crap. would you rather make the next barkley or the next laxius saga?

ignore the trolls and the hate, make a game that is fulfilling for you first, then worry about sharing it. You learn through it yourself.

dont make a game with maps. thats the answer

what does it matter anyway? this game isn't gonna get done.

what does it matter anyway? this game isn't gonna get done.

alas

You've done your part, now let us do ours!

I kind of wish for every rpg maker game everyone was forced to make their own graphics because for some weird reason it wouldn't accept anything else. Seriously I'd rather see 1000 games with original-looking stick people than one more pixel of Rudra graphics (that always look like the color's reduced too, I don't know if this is just how Rudra looks but it's fecking annoying)

also original music, I want to play games with just weird random noodling on the default piano patch creating tension during the most involved scenes

http://www.last.fm/music/Venetian+Snares/Songs+About+My+Cats/katzesorge+part+1 this this should be the soundtrack to every rpg maker game

Mapping is the opium of the masses. --Blindmind

Mapping is the opium of the masses. --Blindmind

If this were a Facebook status I would totally like it.

I've always had trouble with mapping. A lot of times I just laid stuff out on a grid, and it showed. I tried to cover by setting most of the stuff I started in modern/moderately sci-fi periods so that streets/grids would make sense.

Something I like is when the map feels much bigger than it is. One of my old projects was supposed to be set in this sprawling medieval/fantasy city. I tried my usual grid crap, and it came up lacking because the area always either felt small or empty. Then I tried a different approach, using the exteriors of buildings or walls as my borders so that it felt like the areas where the player could travel were always part of something bigger.

In my opinion, you need to develop story and do some basic area design at the same time. The game I'm working on right now starts off in a space station. When I made the original version, I didn't really think my maps out. I just added on as new ideas came to me, and that added up to a lot of crap. During the re-write, I decided to put more thought into the space station's design. What would you need to have on a space station? Fuel stores, water stores, generators, atmosphere control, hangars, living quarters, pipes/plumbing, a control room... all of that. I started out making a quick sketch with cutaways for a few different levels, and I realized that with a better map I could improve the objectives/goals for the player during that part of the story.

But I kind of wandered off the main topic there, more into "world building", or at the very least, Station Building, than actual mapping. My approach now is to kind of think out the encounters/hazards/etc that the player will come across in an area. How do I funnel them into an area where an ambush or plot scene happens without making it seem too forced, how do I provide the sensation of exploration without filling maps up with a lot of useless dead ends and wrong turns? I try to think of the main path the party will have to take through an area, and then lay down some floor tiles as a guide so I have a general idea of how an area should flow. From there, I add walls and doors, lights and control panels. I'm by no means great, and not even that good, but my advice would be to lay out your maps in a way that doesn't annoy, or put to sleep, your prospective players.

also original music, I want to play games with just weird random noodling on the default piano patch creating tension during the most involved scenes

You would have really dug an old project of mine. The main character suffered from random bouts of insanity, and I tried to convey it with music.

I believe everyone is capable of improving their skills in every aspect of game making: spriting, mapping, writing, coding, etc. So "I'm not good at mapping" isn't really a good excuse. If you're not good, get better. Take a look at good maps, check mapping tutorials, practice. That's it. Yes, of course good maps are important.

Maps are meant to be played on, not to be looked at. If your maps are no good then your game design is no good.

so yes it is the epitome, get good at it or get out!!1

If you are brave enough to know exactly what you want to play, then you already have every tool you'll ever need to make a quality game people will show respect for, even if it's something they might not want to play themselves.

Anybody can do it if they start by using what they know, to identify and observe opportunities where they can experiment or learn.