can i make battles first person like old school dragon quest?

[76561198043918600]

not a fan of side views

[prpl_mage]

Yes, make the hero battle sprites blank and add monster sprites that are front facing. Then rearrange the hero sprites to where their "status HUD" will be during battle.

I would also suggest activating the "Type C" layout that shows the hero portrait and the stats side by side instead of from top to bottom in the default.

Also, RPGM XPs default system is a front facing system so maybe check that out

[Alice and Astreus Grimaude]

That's the default mode in RPG Maker 2000.

[JoSeraph]

I echo prpl_mage's comment; the default mode in RPG Maker 2000 is not comparable because all the upgrades and patches RM2k3 got makes it immensely more powerful than 2000, as well the fact that 2k3's battle and database have several features that are lacking in 2000, and the battle system is ATB-based instead.