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RPG Maker 2003 English Translation by RPG Advocate

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| Contents of this File |
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1. Version Information
2. Installing the Software
3. If the In-Game Fonts Don't Look Right...
4. Known Issues with the Program
5. Known Issues with the Translation
6. About the Fantasy Picture Book
7. Regarding "Hacks"
8. Support
9. Special Thanks
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| Version Information |
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Initial Release Version: Version 1.04 3.18.2003
Current Release Version: Version 1.04 3.18.2003
Help File Version: Version 1.04 3.18.2003
* NOTE: The initial release of the help file was completed on a tight
schedule. Any inaccuracies will be corrected promptly,
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| Installing the Software |
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To install the software, simply run the "rm2k3-install.exe" file included
in this archive and follow the instructions. Both the software and the
RTP (runtime package) will be installed. Once installed, run "RPG2003.exe"
to begin making your game.
NOTICE: If you were using another translation before acquiring mine, the RPG_RT.
exe
files associated with your existing projects will not be updated automatically
when you install my translation. The process for updating the RPG_RT.exe files
is
as follows:
1. Once you install my translation, create a new project.
2. Go to that project's folder, select the RPG_RT.exe file, and select "copy"
3. Go to your existing project's folder, and paste that RPG_RT.exe file into
your project, overwriting the old one.
4. You can then delete the new project's folder.
IMPORTANT: This piece of software depends heavily on the relative locations
of files. In order to ensure proper operation of the software, don't move
files around once the software is installed. If you want to move it to
a different directory, you're better off deleting and reinstalling.
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| If the In-Game Fonts Don't Look Right... |
+------------------------------------------+
If the in-game fonts appear squishy and the letters run together, try the follow
ing steps,
in order, to solve the problem:
1. Install the "msgothi0.ttc" and "msmincho.ttc" fonts by copying them from the
fonts
directory included in the installation to the \windows\fonts directory and doub
le-clicking on them. See if the fonts look correct now.
2. If the step above didn't work, install the "RM2000.fon" and "RMG2000.fon" fon
t files
into windows\fonts as described above (note that installing these files isn't ne
cessary if you already have RPG Maker 2000 installed), then copy the "RPG_RT.exe
.dat" file included in
the fonts directory over the one in the main application directory (the same dir
ectory as the RPG2003.exe file). Create a new project and see if the fonts look
correct in that new project.
NOTE: If you have to use method #2 above to fix the fonts, projects you created
before performing the fix will not be fixed. You must copy the RPG_RT.exe file
from the new project over the one in your existing project(s).
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| Known Issues with the Program |
+-------------------------------+
Following are known issues that were present in the original
Japanese version of the program. They are not bugs that arose during
translation:
- Sometimes when MIDI music is playing, only the piano instrument will
play. Enterbrain has officially acknowledged this bug and is
attempting to fix it.
- The damage values for skills will often show before the battle
animation associated with it finishes playing, sometimes resulting in
odd behavior like the monster dying long before the battle
animation associated with the skill ends. Enterbrain has not
officially acknowledged this bug at this time.
- Error-checking in RPG_RT.exe is flaky. If you give the party
an invalid skill or item, RPG_RT.exe will not show an error until
you open the item list or skill list. Enterbrain has not officially
acknowledged this bug at this time.
- Even though variables can be up to seven digits, you can only make
comparisons using values of up to six digits using the Conditional
Branch event command. Although Enterbrain has not confirmed this bug,
I have no doubt it will be fixed in a future version.
- Only the first line of a comment shows up in green. It's unknown
whether this is intended or not.
+-----------------------------------+
| Known Issues with the Translation |
+-----------------------------------+
Following are known issues that arose as a result of translating the
program and were not present in the Japanese version:
- Support for characters with diacritical marks is lacking.
You will be able to view and enter such characters in only
some fields in the editor. These characters do not work at all
in in-game messages due to a byte parsing issue with RPG_RT.exe. If
you know how to fix this without changing fonts, contact me.
- Enter Hero Name does not work properly due to the same byte-persing
issue mentioned above. If you know how to fix it (NOT the way the
Italian RPG Maker 2000 patch works, I mean actually making each
letter show up on its own rather than in groups of two), then please
contact me.
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| About the Fantasy Picture Book |
+--------------------------------+
The Fantasy Picture Book is part of the Japanese release of RPG Maker 2003.
It gives information about the mythological background of the RTP monsters.
It was originally presented as a HTML Help (.chm) file, but here it is
presented as a collection of HTML files and PNG images. They need to
be kept in the same directory for the links and images to work correctly.
If you're not interested in it, you can simply delete the folder
without problems. It is not required for RPG Maker 2003's operation.
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| Regarding "Hacks" |
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If you have used another RPG Maker 2003 translation, you may have
noticed that there were "hacks" present, such as a claim of being
able to use 9999 frames in a battle animation, or being able to edit
your game while test-playing it.
This translation contains no such hacks, and for good reason.
As for "maximum value" hacks, it may sound impressive to boast that
you can make a 9999-frame battle animation, but most people haven't
actually tried this. It will crash the editor without exception,
because simply changing the MaxValue property to 9999 in the Delphi
form associated with battle animations is not sufficient to make it
so. This requires changes that would take an amazing feat of skill
to pull off without access to the source code.
Regarding the 'edit while you test play" hack, Enterbrain made it so
you cannot alter game data while test-playing it for a good reason.
Ensuring the game data doesn't change while it's being accessed removes
the possibility that the data will be accessed during a write operation to
your project, which could cause nasty assertion errors.
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| Support |
+---------+
I will not provide extensive support for this translation. Most problems
users experience are a result of PC environment issues or improper installations
.
However, I do read many RPG Maker boards. If a bug crops up repeatedly, I will
investigate it.
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| Special Thanks |
+----------------+
The following people have contributed something meaningful to this project,
and deserve recognition for their contributions:
Trihan: Beta tester and help file author.
CodeMason: For help in resolving the unicode parsing issue.
Ryethe: For help on formatting issues with regard to making
RPG Maker 2003 presentable for an English-speaking audience.
MagnusRM2K: For offering to promote this translation on his site.
Koji-Kabuto: For hosting this archive on his site.