RPG Maker Workshop Guide

This is a guide on how to upload and what to upload in the the RPG Maker Treasury.

Introduction

Hey, guys! Here's a streamlined guide on how to upload your projects to the Steam Workshop.

Before you begin, please make sure that you agree to the Workshop Terms of Service.

If you have any questions, be sure to check out our FAQ, submission guidelines, and the Steam Workshop Discussion boards.

Uploading your project

Step One

It is recommended that you close as many programs are possible to ensure that VX Ace does not crash. Open RPG Maker VX Ace on Steam and wait for the program to load.

Step Two

Select “Manage Projects” from the “File” drop-down menu. Once you click "Manage Projects", it will likely take a few seconds to load.

Step Three

IMPORTANT: to avoid errors and crashes, make sure all of your projects that will be uploaded to Steam Cloud and Workshop are in the "RPGVXAce" sub-folder of your Documents folder.

Step Four

If your files are not located here, then you should move them to this file path before doing anything in Manage Projects.

Step Five

Once your projects/files are in the RPGVXAce sub-folder as mentioned above, you’ll need to upload the project to the Steam Cloud. Select your project and click “Load”. This will load up your project in the maker.

Step Six

Before you can upload to the Steam Cloud, you also need to write a description and select a thumbnail. This will essentially be the featured image for your project. It must be a square 24-bit .bmp image; otherwise, you’ll encounter errors. Please see the image below:

Step Seven

Next, you’ll want to select “Save on Cloud” in the bottom-left corner. Please note that anything over 200 MB - as well as encrypted games - will not upload to Steam Cloud. You can delete projects by selecting them on the list and hitting “Delete from Cloud.”

Step Eight

Saving the project on Steam Cloud will take some time - anywhere from a few seconds to half a minute, depending on the file size. Once the upload is complete, your project is now on the Cloud and you can upload to Workshop! You will see some new options in the interface.

Step Nine

Next, you’ll want to select the type of project (Edit/Play, Play Only, or Resources), as well as the Genre and Flavor from the drop-down menus. Please note that the Play Only option will prevent users from editing your project in the Steam version of VX Ace, but the resource folders will still be accessible.

Step Ten

Once these are set, you can tick the box regarding the Terms of Service (after reading them of course!).

Step Eleven

You are then ready to upload to the Workshop! Press the “Share on Workshop” button as shown below:

Step Twelve

As with the Steam Cloud, it will take a few moments for the project to upload (typically between 10 seconds and 1 minute). If the upload times out, an error message will appear: you may want to connect to a wired connection to ensure that the upload does not time out on Steam’s end. The larger the project and the more unstable your connection, the more likely you’ll get a timeout. Currently, there is a 200 MB limit to all Steam Projects.

Step Thirteen

Once the upload is complete, congratulations! You’ll have a project on Steam Workshop, as well as a shiny new project webpage on Steam! You can access it from the Beta Workshop page on Steam, or from your profile.

Setting up your Workshop Page

Step One

After you upload your project to Steam Workshop, it may take some time for the project to appear on the master list. The list of all Workshop entries is available on the Workshop Tab from the Community Hub of VX Ace. Here is a screenshot of the home page:



As you can see above, the content will be on the left side of the screen. On the right, there are various options for sorting the content, as well as a link to your own Workshop content. You'll need to press that button if you want to edit your Workshop pages.

Step Two

When you click on one of your own projects, there will be a green box on the right-hand side of the screen with owner controls. From here, you can edit your project, add images, etc:



Everything here is fairly self-explanatory. You'll want to have an awesome description for your project, as well as plenty of eye-popping screenshots that will attract people to your game!

In the near future, we'll be posting a guide on how to make your Workshop page awesome. So stay tuned!

Downloading Projects and Resources

Want to check out some of the content made by other users? It's a simple process but there are still some things to avoid! Here's a quick guide for you.

Step One

Navigate to the Workshop page for the content you wish to download. Once you get to the page, you'll need to subscribe to begin the download. Click the green "+ Subscribe" button here:

Step Two

Once you press "Subscribe", the content will begin downloading automatically to your Steam Cloud. A progress bar will appear on the bottom of the Steam Client, and you can also view the download progress from the Manage Projects screen in VX Ace:

Step Three

Once the download is complete, you can click on the game from Manage Projects and play it! (If the game is Edit and Play, you can also load up the project and take a look under the hood, as it were.)

If the content is resources, just click on the content from Manage Projects and select the "Import Resources" button. This will take you to the Resource Manager and you can import the appropriate category of resource files into the game that you currently have loaded in VX Ace.

Step Four

IMPORTANT: Do not change the file destination of Steam Workshop projects. The file path here should always be the "RPGVXAce" folder; otherwise, the Workshop client will create copies of the games you've downloaded to the cloud.

Step Five

That's all there is to it! You now know how to add games to workshop, edit your pages, and check out other projects!

F.A.Q: General

So, what is this?

RPG Maker VX Ace's Steam Workshop, also known as the RPG Maker Treasury, is the game development hub for RPG Maker here on Steam! You can upload projects, check out games and resources, share feedback, and network with others. In short, it will help you capitalize on what RPG Maker is all about: having fun and learning how to make awesome games!

Are there plans for an RPG Maker XP Workshop?

Unfortunately, there are no plans for an RPG Maker XP Workshop at this point in time. The RPG Maker Treasury/Steam Workshop functionality is for VX Ace only. Future RPG Makers may utilize this feature, but we have no concrete information at this time.

What are the standards for inclusion?

We will be posting a more comprehensive guideline as soon as possible, but in general, the Treasury is quite inclusive. Games should be at least 15 minutes before they are posted to Workshop, and clear effort should be made. Inappropriate games/resources and copyright violations are not allowed in any way, shape, or form. All games should be PG-13 or as close as possible; this means no pornographic content, and extreme violence should be treated with discretion.

Encryption is not compatible with Workshop?

Yes, at this time the encryption function is not compatible with Workshop due to technical reasons. We are working to resolve this. Although the Play Only function is a solid alternative, if you want full security over your resources you may wish to wait to upload your project until we add encryption functionality.

Can I use DLC in projects I upload to workshop?

Yes, but please select "Play Only." You must own all DLC that you are using, as shown on your Steam account (unless you purchased through the RPG Maker store).

The DLL and EXE add-on files for my customized project are missing!

As an anti-virus measure, at this time additional DLL and EXE files are automatically deleted. We are looking for ways to resolve this.

F.A.Q: Uploading

Manage Projects won't load for me!

There are a few possible reasons for this. First and foremost, you may have too many processes running (in other words, too many other programs). Try shutting down some programs or turning the RPG Maker VX Ace process priority to "high" via ctrl+alt+delete.

If you are downloading too many Workshop projects at once, Manage Projects will take a while to load and may even crash VX Ace. You will also be more likely to experience timeouts with the downloads. It is recommended that you only download one or two projects at a time to prevent this issue.

I uploaded my thumbnail/description/etc. but Manage Projects hasn't updated!

Sometimes it takes a few seconds for Manage Projects to update. Additionally, you may have to exit out (after saving and waiting a few seconds) and then go back in before you'll see some changes.

You can also update Manage Projects by clicking on another project on the list and then clicking back again.

Manage Projects is crashing or I am continuing to have issues uploading my thumbnail or projects to Steam Cloud/Workshop.

This is most likely because your projects are not in the proper file location. Make sure all projects are in the same folder: Libraries > Documents > RPGVXAce. This file path was automatically created when you downloaded RPG Maker VX Ace, and all projects utilizing Steam Workshop must be in this location for the process to be stable.

Uploading the project to Steam Cloud/Workshop is freezing RPG Maker, or is timing out completely!

If your upload is timing out or freezing the program, it's most likely for one of the reasons listed in the answers above, or:

1. You file size is near or above the 200 MB threshold.
2. Your internet connection is poor. Additionally, wireless connections have been slightly unstable and have caused timeouts on Valve's end. This should be smoothed out soon.
3. You are also downloading projects at the same time.

What is the difference between Edit and Play, Play Only, and Resources?

Edit and Play: anyone who downloads the project can play it from the Manage Projects screen or load the project in the editor.

Play Only: anyone who downloads the project can only play it from the Manage Projects screen. They can still access files from the downloaded folders, just not through RPG Maker VX Ace. Please keep this in mind if you have sensitive graphics or scripts that you don't want to share; you may want to wait for a Workshop update that supports encryption.

Resources: anyone who downloads the project can import the resources into the loaded game via Manage Projects. They will not load the actual game file that is uploaded with the resources, though.

F.A.Q: Updating and Sharing

How do I access content/games/resources I have subscribed to?

Content you subscribe to from the workshop can be viewed or played from the "Manage Projects" section of the editor. First open up RPG Maker VX Ace from Steam and navigate to File > Manage projects. The project menu will open with a list of all your projects and workshop items you have subscribed to. Workshop items still downloading will display the completion rate here. From this menu you can open workshop items, play them, or even edit them.

Short Answer: Navigate to File > Manage projects to access your subscribed items.

I updated/uploaded my project but I don't see it!

It may take up to a couple of hours (or more) for the project to be uploaded or updated on the actual Workshop interface. This is especially true for updated descriptions, categories, and the like. We also have a moderation team that scans new entries for improper content.

My workshop items are not showing up in Newly Submitted or not showing up for other people.

Submitting items on the Steam Workshop requires that you accept the most recent version of Steam Subscriber Agreement. If content uploaded to the workshop is hidden from other people you will need to navigate to the agreement, review it, and accept it. Specifically we are worried about section 6.B, mostly the bullet points there.

Workshop Contributions are Subscriptions, and therefore you agree that any Subscriber receiving distribution of your Workshop Contribution will have the same rights to use your Workshop Contribution (and will be subject to the same restrictions) as are set out in this Agreement for any other Subscriptions.

This just means that you have the rights to upload whatever it is you're uploading, similar to if you were to sell the game on the marketplace. Steam Subscriber Agreement can be found here: http://steamcommunity.com/workshop/workshoplegalagreement

How do I update my project on Workshop?

First, you click the "Update" button on the Manage Project interface; this will update the project locally. Then you should click "Update on Workshop". Both steps must be done in this order.

You can also check out the [guide] mentioned above for a quick primer on where to go to edit your project pages on Workshop.

Should I let the program sync for a little while after closing VX Ace?

Absolutely! Any time you upload or download anything via Workshop and Manage Projects, make absolutely sure you let the program sync before restarting it or closing Steam.

How do I download another project from Workshop?

Click on the green "subscribe" button on that project's page; this will automatically start a download process, which is shown by the blue bar on the bottom of your Steam interface, as well as a progress indicator in Manage Projects. Once the download is complete, you can access the game from your Steam Cloud via Manage Projects!

It is highly recommended that you only download one or two projects at any given time so you don't freeze or crash the program.

[NAV]

For those using GIMP: In the exporting options hit "Compatibility Options" and then click "Do not write color space information". That should work... hopefully.

[Mijo de Zoboomafoo]

Hi can anyone help me?
I cant use the image I created to be my thumbnail and I already put it in BMP as the RPG Maker asked.
Please help me.

[Komujeese]

When I press the "Select Thumbnail" button, nothing happens. Is it supposed to open a window where I select the picture?

[Scrongus]

I cant use it on lite

[BenReviews]

There is no Share on workshop button for me... Why?

[Jon Hanes]

I think this is worth mentioning, but trying to edit the 544x544 file into .bmp using GIMP didn't work for me whether I set it to 24 or 32bit.
I got around that by using paint to export the picture to BMP-format as someone stated online.

[funky pants]

"Step Three
Once the download is complete, you can click on the game from Manage Projects and play it! (If the game is Edit and Play, you can also load up the project and take a look under the hood, as it were.)

If the content is resources, just click on the content from Manage Projects and select the "Import Resources" button. This will take you to the Resource Manager and you can import the appropriate category of resource files into the game that you currently have loaded in VX Ace."

You don't explain anything here. "you can click on the game from Manage Projects and play it!" What? Click on it? THAT DOESN'T EXPLAIN ANYTHING!!!

[windothia]

Is there anyway to make it so like only steam friends have access to games on the cloud?

[dandy_]

Can anyone help me? I tried uploading my project to Steam Workshop, but it won't work! The file size of my project is 150 MB, I tried closing programs, my internet is decent, I tried uploading without downloading anything, and I have my project in Documents>RPGVXAce. If anyone can help me, then thanks!

[Cryptic]

Neon Black, I have sent you an email regarding the use of one of your scripts. I pray you receive it and can reply at your earliest convenience.