Interview: RPG Maker U2U Lets You Build HD-2D Worlds Without Learning 3D

RPG Maker has spent decades lowering the barrier to game development, allowing solo creators and small teams to build complete projects without first becoming experienced programmers, technical artists, or engine specialists. RPG Maker U2U wants to preserve that accessibility while substantially expanding what its familiar tile-based workflow can produce.

Gotcha Gotcha Games has now released a free P2D Map Editor Demo on Steam, allowing users to experiment with the system before the complete development toolkit arrives. Maps created with the demo can be saved and transferred into the full release, although the current version is limited to map editing and does not include game-creation functionality. The demo is scheduled to remain available through November 16, 2026.

We spoke with RPG Maker U2U Producer Hiroyuki Ichinose about balancing visual freedom with approachability, reusing assets made for RPG Maker MV and MZ, adopting Luau for the new plugin system, and deliberately limiting camera movement to keep production manageable. Ichinose also discussed the difficult decision to discard and rebuild much of the original implementation so U2U could become a standalone Steam application, as well as the company’s response to criticism surrounding the closure and migration of the RPG Maker forums.

RPG Maker has always been known for making game development approachable. With RPG Maker U2U, how did the team think about preserving that ease of use while expanding what creators can make visually and structurally?

Hiroyuki Ichinose, Producer at Gotcha Gotcha Games: With every version of RPG Maker, we want everyone to be able to get started with game development easily. For U2U in particular, our highest priority is to keep the learning curve low and provide an environment that longtime users can feel right at home in.

That’s why we kept event creation, database editing, and other basic game-making workflows strongly based on their RPG Maker MZ versions. But we wanted to take a major step forward with what our maps can express.
So for U2U, we worked to make it so that, even without specialized knowledge of 3D, users can create maps with depth using a process that feels familiar to traditional tile placement.

U2U is based on the game-making experience of RPG Maker MZ, so returning RPG Maker users should recognize some of the interface and controls. How did the team decide what to preserve from previous RPG Maker tools and what needed to be redesigned?    

Hiroyuki Ichinose: We made these decisions based on a simple principle: preserve the areas where users can build on their existing knowledge and experience, and only touch the parts needed to bring P2D (Perspective 2D) to life.

Event creation, database editing, and the basic UI and controls are basically the same, and build on the familiar game-making experience of RPG Maker MZ. Users can also reuse map tiles made for RPG Maker MV and MZ.
And since it’s a new system, we’ve designed the map editing system specifically for P2D. It will allow users to work intuitively with the newly added depth and height.

The new P2D map system seems like one of the biggest visual changes for U2U. Can you explain how it works and what kinds of depth, atmosphere, lighting, and presentation it allows creators to achieve?    

Hiroyuki Ichinose: P2D (Perspective 2D) is a system for creating maps by turning traditional 2D map tiles into blocks placed in a 3D space. Even without specialized knowledge of 3D modeling, you can create maps with depth and height. It should be a process much like putting together building blocks.

With a 3D environment, we understand that some users may want to rotate the camera freely. However, allowing this would greatly increase the overall development workload, from learning the controls to building the assets and areas that remain unseen with a fixed camera.

That’s why we made the deliberate decision to leave out free camera rotation in U2U and have users build their maps around a specific camera angle. This allows us to introduce 3D visuals while preserving the ease of game creation that users expect from RPG Maker.

We’ve also included effects such as depth of field, cloud shadows, dust, heat haze, water surfaces, fog, light particles, and wind. By combining these effects, you can create scenes with depth and atmosphere while preserving the charm of pixel art.

How does U2U help users blend familiar 2D RPG Maker-style assets with a more modern 3D presentation? What should creators understand about building maps, scenes, and environments with this new approach?

Hiroyuki Ichinose: U2U uses the same map tile specifications as RPG Maker MV and MZ. By converting your existing MV and MZ 2D assets into P2D (Perspective 2D) blocks, you can reuse them in the P2D maps without having to redraw them, without depth or height restrictions.

When creating maps, you only need to focus on the areas visible from your chosen camera angle. This means you don’t need to model every part of an object, including the back, as you would in a typical 3D workflow.

We’ve also included over 100 ready-to-use P2D maps. You can use them as they are, or customize them while exploring how they’re put together. This lets you start with simple maps and add more detail as you become familiar with the tools. We hope they will also serve as good samples to learn from when getting started with creating wholly original maps.

RPG Maker is often associated with traditional story-driven RPGs, but creators have pushed the series in many different directions over the years. What kinds of games do you hope users will be able to create with U2U?

Hiroyuki Ichinose: We want creators to explore their ideas freely and make games without being limited to a particular genre.

With P2D (Perspective 2D), users can work with height differences and falling settings. These may open up possibilities for puzzles that make use of 3D space, or even action elements. However, we can’t promise at this stage that any particular genre or style of gameplay will be possible.

U2U also uses a new plugin system. In addition to plugins that expand game functionality, we plan to introduce “Editor Plugins” that expand the game-making environment itself. (※More details are provided below.) We hope that, as users create new plugins, they’ll find new ways to express their ideas in their games and customize their development environment to suit the games they want to make.

Just as with previous RPG Maker titles, we look forward to seeing games that go beyond anything we imagined during development.

From a visual-quality standpoint, what are the biggest improvements creators should notice when comparing U2U projects to games made in earlier RPG Maker tools?    

Hiroyuki Ichinose: As you can imagine, the biggest difference is the addition of depth to maps.

With previous RPG Maker titles, maps were created on a flat 2D plane. With U2U, you can continue to use your existing pixel art while creating spaces with height differences, overpasses, underpasses, and so much more.
One example of the new features is a configurable heightmap, which lets you set ground height using shades of black and white. Lighter areas are higher, darker areas are lower, and gray represents the base height. We’ve included many features like this to help users create terrain with depth and height without having to learn specialized controls.

When combined with the new effects such as lighting, shadows, depth of field, fog, and water surfaces, you can create maps with much more atmosphere while still preserving the pixel art.

What kinds of built-in assets, visual tools, effects, or presentation features were most important for helping non-specialist creators make games that look polished?

Hiroyuki Ichinose: Our main priority was to make it easy to achieve a high quality look by providing assets and features right from the start, even without specialized knowledge.

Between character and monster illustrations, background music, sound effects, and over 100 ready-to-use P2D maps, there’s enough included assets to get any creator started.

Effects such as depth of field, fog, water surfaces, cloud shadows, and wind can be set up simply by choosing a preset and editing it. Fine adjustments to settings are easy to make, allowing users to create great-looking scenes just by creatively arranging the provided assets and combining effects, even without experience in 3D development or strong technical knowledge.

How is U2U approaching asset compatibility, and what should returning creators know about reusing or adapting their existing tiles, characters, animations, plugins, or project materials in this new engine?

Hiroyuki Ichinose: Compatibility varies depending on the type of asset.
With U2U, you can import map tiles from RPG Maker MV and MZ without any preparation or conversion and use them in P2D (Perspective 2D) maps. User-created map tiles can also be used, as long as they follow the same specifications.

Character images, face graphics, bust portraits, and background images can also be used just as in previous RPG Maker titles. We believe that being able to build on the assets users have collected over the years is an important part of making it easier to get started with game development.

However, existing projects cannot be transferred to U2U in their entirety due to project structure differences. Additionally, JavaScript plugins made for RPG Maker MV and MZ will not work as is. U2U uses Luau for its new plugin system; plugins will need to be created specifically for U2U.

For more details about our adoption of Luau, please see these Producer Letters.

Can you share a light behind-the-scenes look at the development of U2U? What was one feature, design problem, or technical challenge that took more iteration than expected?

Hiroyuki Ichinose: One behind-the-scenes story we can share is our decision to make U2U a standalone product.

When we first announced U2U, we were developing it as a tool that ran within Unity, and many of its features were already working. However, the feedback we received from users reminded us that an important part of RPG Maker is being able to launch it and get started with game development with a minimum of fuss.

Moving to a standalone product meant discarding and rebuilding much of what we had already developed. Letting go of something that had already taken shape was not an easy decision, and we spent a lot of time discussing it internally. Ultimately, we decided that this change was necessary for U2U’s future.

As a result, a separate installation of the Unity engine is no longer needed, and neither is Unity Hub nor a Unity ID. Users launch U2U directly from Steam. The work turned out to be much greater than we had expected, but we believe it was a necessary decision to preserve the ease of use that users expect from RPG Maker.

Are there any other new major features you could talk about?

Hiroyuki Ichinose: RPG Maker U2U also introduces new features that were not available in previous titles in the series, and we’d like to emphasize some of them, as we think they’re important in realizing the ideal that U2U is aiming for.    

Editor Plugins
With RPG Maker MV and RPG Maker MZ, plugins allowed users to add and expand their games with amazing new features we hadn’t even thought of.
RPG Maker U2U is calling that type of plugin “Runtime Plugins”.

However, we want to also make it possible for our users to be able to modify the development process itself. So U2U is introducing support for “Editor Plugins.” As you can tell from the name, Editor Plugins are designed to expand the editor used to create games with U2U.

For example, we plan to allow users to add features that make development more efficient, such as bulk replacing map data, placing multiple templates at once, checking that a project follows certain rules, and importing more data types.

We also plan to support extensions that combine Runtime Plugins and Editor Plugins. For example, users will be able to edit settings in the editor for custom features added through Runtime Plugins.

Live Play
We’re introducing “Live Play” as a new playtesting feature. With Live Play, you can keep the game window open while editing maps and other elements in the editor, then see those changes reflected in the game.

If you notice something you want to adjust while playing, you can make the change directly in the editor and refresh to see the results right away. Our goal is to reduce the need to repeatedly switch between editing and playtesting, making it easier to fine-tune your game.

Time of Day 
We’re also introducing a feature that lets you switch between times of day: morning, daytime, evening, and night. These will be available through Event commands.

Objects can be set to appear only at a specific time of day, such as only at night, allowing the map’s appearance to change with the time of day.

By combining point lights, spotlights, and self-illuminating elements such as windows, you can really change the atmosphere of one map over the course of a day!

Flat View
We’re also introducing “Flat View,” which lets you change how P2D maps are displayed. You can switch between the standard Perspective View and Flat View for P2D maps. This lets you choose a look that suits your game without changing how you create your maps.

Just keep in mind that Flat View displays your existing U2U P2D map with a flatter appearance. It does not convert the map into a top-view 2D tile map like those in RPG Maker MZ.

Some longtime users were upset about the closure and migration of the forums earlier this year. Can you elaborate on that decision at all or share updates about that process?

Hiroyuki Ichinose: We are aware of the criticism and concerns raised on Reddit and elsewhere about the forum’s closure and migration.

Over the years, the forum built up a wealth of posts and community discussions. We fully understand why its closure and migration have left some users feeling concerned or dissatisfied.

We are currently reviewing how this decision was reached, how past posts will be handled, and how the community will be managed going forward. Once we have confirmed all details, an official announcement will be made that should avoid further misunderstandings.

We take your feedback seriously and are using it to help guide how we manage the community going forward.

For 80 Level’s audience of developers and artists, what do you think U2U says about the future of accessible game engines, especially tools that let smaller teams and solo creators make visually ambitious games without building every system from scratch?

Hiroyuki Ichinose: We believe that the balance between creative freedom and ease of use will be important for game-making tools going forward.

Greater freedom opens up more possibilities for creative expression. At the same time, it can mean more to learn and more steps in the development process, making it harder and more time-consuming to finish a game.

That’s why we are working to expand creative freedom while striving to keep development complexity and workload manageable. Alongside providing a wide range of features, we place a great importance on providing a tool that helps creators actually finish their games.

With U2U, P2D (Perspective 2D) expands what users can create while at the same time we’ve placed certain limits on aspects such as the camera. Our goal is to provide an environment where small teams and individual creators can comfortably take their games through to completion. And given the interest U2U has gathered so far, we think there’s still a strong need for such a tool amongst developers.

After release, we’ll continue to listen to your feedback and provide frequent updates while preserving what makes RPG Maker what it is.

Hiroyuki Ichinose, Producer at Gotcha Gotcha Games