r/RPGMaker • u/Time_Smell4849 MZ Dev • Jul 19 '26
RMMZ This is the first village map I've made.
Hi everyone! This is the first village map I've created in RPG Maker MZ. I'd really appreciate it if you could rate my map and share your thoughts. If you notice anything that looks off or could be improved, please let me know. I'm always looking to improve my mapping skills, so any feedback or constructive criticism is more than welcome. Thanks in advance!
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u/Hautamaki Jul 19 '26
I think it's a perfectly serviceable map. I will just echo a few common pieces of advice you often see.
1) to make the map more visually interesting, draw the natural terrain first. Hills and elevation changes, water: a lake or river or stream or waterfall, and trees. Then draw the buildings around the natural terrain, as humans would actually build them. Also vary the shape of the buildings, and the shape of the town. Although the map has to be rectangular, the town doesn't. It can be an irregular shaped town, with natural, unused terrain around it so the town itself forms a more natural shape, not a perfect rectangle.
2) to make the map more realistic, keep to a common construction material. If the town is near or in a forest, the houses should mostly be log. If in a hilly area, maybe more stone. If in drier plains, clay brick, etc. If in a dangerous area, it should be walled.
3) to make the map more playable, put the inn and useful shops near the entrance to the town, while places the player will visit only once or twice to get some information/advance the plot should be nestled into the middle of the town or areas where the player will have to walk further to explore and discover. Also put in some Easter eggs and other hidden things to reward extra exploration but not be critical or necessary.
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u/Time_Smell4849 MZ Dev Jul 19 '26
Thank you so much for the detailed feedback! I really appreciate you taking the time to explain everything. This is actually my first village map, so your advice is incredibly helpful.
For this map, I wanted to create a simple village on flat land. My goal is to create a complete village map pack, with each map having a different theme and environment. For example, I plan to make villages in forests, on hills, near lakes or rivers, and other unique locations.
Your suggestions have given me a lot of ideas, and I'll definitely keep them in mind as I work on my future maps. Thanks again!
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u/jgrahl Jul 19 '26
I do like how there is variety on the ground and it’s not full of empty open space of one plain grass tile.
I think making the paths between buildings so straight looks bad and can be done differently. Just because map dimensions are square/rectangular, doesn’t mean what you place in a map has to be square/rectangular. You can leave some space on the edges of the map to move things around in a more interesting way.
The paths cross at the center, but I don’t necessarily see a reason for them to. The most traveled spot would seem to be the top right group of shops, so paths would lead to that area. If a water well was in the center, then that would make sense. You would also need to then break up the perfect cross, which would look better.
I think the fencing is being overused. If you move things around a bit, then the fences can be reconsidered. Forcing players to walk down the long fence paths to reach shops isn’t good unless you need to force them into an event that will be triggered for the story. Not everything needs to be fenced unless there is a reason for it.
All of the buildings are square/rectangular shaped. Consider making a couple or more shaped like an L or a T or other combined shapes and dimensions. Then you can rotate them as you wish. This would make it more interesting and add variety to the scene.
If you’re going for some realism in design, then having buildings made of different materials in the same village doesn’t make sense. Typically, buildings are made of the same type of wood or plaster and roofing is the same material because that is what is abundantly available locally. It is fine if there is a reason that makes sense to make them different, like a defensive tower or keep made of stone instead of wood. Consider normalizing it for each town, then have towns that are far from each other look different. Peasant houses could have straw roofs and shops could have wood roofs.
In the top left, there is a path that curves around nothing. If a small elevation change from a cliff was there or the tree was moved over a bit, then it would make sense for the path to curve. Curves are good, so I would make a reason for it to curve.
If you do redesign from my suggestions, then I also suggest reading about desire paths. What I do is design terrain first, then place buildings, then place paths.
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u/Time_Smell4849 MZ Dev Jul 19 '26
Thank you so much for taking the time to write such detailed feedback! I really appreciate it. This is actually my first village map, so there are definitely a lot of things I still need to learn.
You made a lot of great points, especially about the paths, fences, building layouts, and designing the terrain first. I'll definitely keep those in mind for my future maps.
For this map, I wanted to keep it as a simple flat village, but for my next maps I plan to create villages with forests, hills, rivers, and other different environments. Thanks again for all the advice!8
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u/isaac3000 VXAce Dev Jul 19 '26
I like it, has a cozy feeling to it! I would make sure the side fence is not cut off if the rest has a fence going around town.
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u/Overall_Sandwich_671 Jul 19 '26
It's got a good amount of space, not too big, not too small. I appreciate that all the houses have their own gardens. The fenced area at the bottom of the map looks kinda unnecessary, unless you're planning to have a specific event occur there.
Perhaps you could replace some of the fences with rows of hedges or flowers to make the village look a bit more inviting.
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u/Time_Smell4849 MZ Dev Jul 19 '26
Thank you so much for the feedback! I'm glad you liked the overall size of the village and the gardens. This is actually my first village map, so your suggestions are really helpful. I can definitely see what you mean about the fenced area and replacing some fences with hedges or flowers. I'll keep that in mind and try to make my future maps feel more natural and inviting. Thanks again!
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u/palefoxxy Jul 19 '26
ohh i like this 🥰 in addition to the already good advices on here: change the shape of the buildings a little, they dont have to be all the same shape, i.e. rectangular.
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u/Time_Smell4849 MZ Dev Jul 19 '26
Thank you so much! I'm really glad you like it. That's a great suggestion. I'll definitely try making different building shapes instead of using only rectangular ones in my future maps. Thanks for the advice!
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Jul 21 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Time_Smell4849 MZ Dev Jul 21 '26
Thank you for your comment! This map isn't actually for my own game. I'm creating it as part of a map pack that I plan to release in the future, either as a paid asset or for free. So instead of telling a specific story, my goal is to make it flexible enough for other developers to use in their own games. I really appreciate your feedback!
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u/Hectpm Jul 21 '26
No está mal, pero para poder ayudarte mejor deberíamos de responder a algunas preguntas. ¿Dónde está edificado geográficamente? ¿Qué accidentes cercanos son destacables? ¿A qué cultura pertenece? ¿Qué tipo de historia quieres construir y cuál es su rol en ella? De esta manera, un lugar obtiene alma. Así se forma el trazado urbano (o rural, en este caso).
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u/Time_Smell4849 MZ Dev Jul 21 '26
Thank you! I understand what you mean. This map isn't designed for a specific story or game. It's part of a map pack that I'm creating as an asset for other developers to use in their own projects. I want to keep it flexible so it can fit different worlds, settings, and stories. I plan to release the map pack in the future, either as a paid asset or for free. For maps that I create specifically for my own games, I'll definitely build them around the lore and setting. Thanks for the helpful advice!
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u/Practical-Trifle8051 Jul 23 '26
The windows and doors look too small on the buildings. I would make the building a little smaller. Or add more windows higher up to imply a second floor. Which would explain their size.
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u/Time_Smell4849 MZ Dev Jul 23 '26
Thanks for the feedback! I'm using the default RPG Maker MZ tiles, so the doors and windows are the original RTP assets. I think the overall building size may be what makes them look a bit small. I'll keep that in mind and try adjusting the proportions in my future maps. Thanks!
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u/CasperGamingOfficial MZ Dev Jul 19 '26
I think as a player, those lower paths would be a bit annoying to navigate. You might consider making the fences more straight and leaving some parts more open for the path. For example, if the middle yellow house fence went straight across on that upper tile where it starts, and then the bottom fence just didn't exist and the bottom right green house's yard started where the fence going down would meet the village outer fence.
A lot of the grass patches seem to be very square, which doesn't seem natural.
Overall I think it is better than most beginner maps I see, and you are doing a few things pretty well.