Time Elements: Character Core Set
A downloadable asset pack
Build your own characters! TheTIME ELEMENTS series is all about modular pieces, so you can customize your own RPG sprites. Swap outfits, hairstyles, armor, weapons, and more. The characters are fully animated: take your gameplay to the next level with four-directional action combat! And all with a high-quality pixel art style like the your favorite RPG classics.
With theTime Elements Character Core Set, you can create more characters than you will need to fill an entire game world!
Content:
- Over 64 unique pieces that can create hundreds of characters
- Includes 5 premade heroes and 16 premade NPC sprites
- Build your own sprites with the included Character Generator!
- Animations in all four directions: walk, crouch, jump, attack, and others
- Export for general engine use as well as RPG Maker (VX, MV, MZ)
- 27-page PDF guide
- Bonus: Emotion Popup Animations
- Bonus: Now includes special format for use in Top Down Sprite Maker
More of the Time Elements asset series:
Need some monsters for your characters to fight?
FAQ:
- Video Tutorial for using the included Character Generator (thanks Baz!)
- What is the size of these character sprites?
The characters are designed to work with a 16x16 tile grid. The actual character sprites are slightly taller than a single tile-- they generally fit into a 16x32 space (two tiles high). This is the style of characters that were popular in SNES RPG games. They should work nicely with most tilesets designed around 16x16 tiles.
- Are these characters compatible with yourTime Fantasy assets?
Yes and no. Both styles use the same 16x16 tilebase, soElementssprites will generally work fine withTime Fantasy tilesets. The sizes are compatible.However, Time Fantasy uses a unique desaturated color palette with a muted feel that will clash with characters in theElementsstyle. If you want to use both styles together, then it’s recommended to re-color theTime Fantasy tilesets to have a greater range of colors. That way theElementscharacters will not look out of place.
- Can I sell a game that I make with these?
Yes! You are welcome to use these assets in any commercial project. As long as you aren't redistributing the sprites or assets, there are no restrictions on how you use them within your game. I hope that your project is successful!
- The Generator doesn't work on Mac!
Here's a solution from a patron:
I've been able to use the character generator on an Apple Silicon with Rosetta - you just have to specify x86_64 with the arch command and then it'll open nicely. Once you set up Rosetta, it will launch without issue from that point on. Hope that helps!
Thanks to Britty Kilgannon for helping solve the Mac issue.
- The characters are aligned wrong in RPG Maker?
The character sprites have extra space around them to allow for weapon animations; which can cause problems with collision in RPGMaker. This is easily solved with a plugin, which is included in the pack and also as a free download below.
Once the plugin is activated, add ")" to the beginning of a sprite's filename to signify that it should be re-aligned, and ensure that it's not in any subfolders, and then RPGMaker will display the character centered on the correct tile.
- How can I make characters in a generator?
This asset pack comes with a free character generator. This generator will help you quickly turn these assets into characters and export them into consistent sprite sheets. (It was created as a bonus by my friend who is making RPG-Architect).There's detailed information in the included documentation.
Additionally, theTime Elements character style now comes with full compatibility for Top Down Sprite Maker, which will be appealing for designers who want more advanced control. You can access the TDSM package from the downloads, and start with thevideo tutorial on Youtube.
You're also welcome to use any other generator that supports the PNG files-- or use them directly with image-editing software or by building the character-generator into your own game project!
- Will there be future updates or expansions with more pieces?
Yes! In fact, I’ve already designed nearly twice as many pieces as the ones you can find in this set. But it takes a long time to animate them, so if we included them all, this release would have been delayed for another half a year and cost twice as much. You can be sure that I am looking forward to releasing moreElementscontent that you can use to create new characters.
Update: So far, one additionalexpansion pack has been released. There are more planned!
- Will there be new tilesets to match these character sprites?
Yes! I plan to build up this style with a series of future asset packs and expansions, including tilesets for a variety of settings.
Stay tuned for more content!
This release wouldn't be possible withoutthe support from Patrons. Sign up for more assets like this, including requests and access hundreds of releases in the archive!
- Website: http://finalbossblues.com
- Subscribe: https://www.patreon.com/finalbossblues
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/finalbossblues/
Note: I've attached some sample files below (in thedownload demo section).
The purpose of these samples are so you can test the character in context, to check that the size and style are right for your project. It is a single character with only the basic walking animations.
Another Note: The original release was missing the "palettes" folder (and the palette files therein), which is mentioned in the guide. I've uploaded it here as a free separate download to make it easy to access if you need it.
| Updated | 29 days ago |
| Status | Released |
| Category | Assets |
| Rating | Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars (24 total ratings) |
| Author | finalbossblues |
| Genre | Role Playing |
| Tags | Asset Pack,JRPG,Pixel Art,RPG Maker,snes |
Purchase
In order to download this asset pack you must purchase it at or above the minimum price of $20 USD. You will get access to the following files:
Download demo
Development log
Comments
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I'm willing to buy this generator and the expansions but i have a huge concern, i tried the sample character for rpg maker MZ and i downloaded the plugin to fix the spacing issue, but it didnt work, i tried to put ) and it won't work, and then i tried to put $ and it worked but the sprite was too big for MZ.
However i tried the halloween free pack and tried the reaper_2 and it fit nicely, so my concern is that Time Element characters won't fit, is there any solution?
And BTW idk if this is related but i bought MZ from steam.
If you want the character to be directly behind the other one, that involves the alignment fix plugin. You can find it here:
https://finalbossblues.itch.io/time-elements-character-core-set/devlog/991387/al...
If your problem is with the pixel-scaling, that's a matter of style and taste so it's up to your choices. Thanks!
Hi Jason!
I sent you an email regarding a potential collaboration. I’d like to support this asset pack as a “sprite style” in my programTop Down Sprite Maker.
I know that your asset already comes with a character generator. However, it seems to me that that program and editing workflow is less user-friendly than a TDSM sprite style would be. It gives users less control over randomization, and sprite sheet layouts, spacing, and ordering and inclusions cannot be configured. I also know that it’s broken on macOS. That being said, please consider whether it wouldn’t be worth it to offer a TDSM sprite style as well.
Please have a look at the full proposal and get back to me if you’re interested :)
Loving this. Since I really just wanted my walking character sets in MZ, I had to crop to size, and have an MZ offset plugin. This works well. https://github.com/securitymagic/rpgmakermz/tree/main/sprites
The mac version of the generator is still broken and has been for over a year. Is there going to be a fix for this? There have been multiple reports. The posted "solution from a patron" only applies to apple silicone, and not to Intel Macs, which seem to be the majority of the people having issues from what I can tell.
Is there a script fix for the character alignments in the save screen? ) fixed it everywhere else, but save screens still align the character above the file's row. I've used your stuff for years, only style I like to use TBH. Thanks for ALL of it. Im sure ill be buying more soon! Hopefully more Time Elements! OR EVEN TF colorized for TE. :):):)
But yeah, this is the only conflict I'm dealing with. I'd like to resolve before I get into custom UI for my game so I don't compound stuff.
Thanks again for all you do for the community. GFX is what holds back my game making, you're really 70% of this team. Thank you!
You rock!! Gotta say never seen such an active, awesome content creator!
On a similar note, during battle with your sv_actors, know if there's a way to modify the location of damage numbers during enemy attacks in battle? I know C and C++ a bit, not much JS or anything about the MZ libraries etc. Someday!
For now here's a simple pack of additional assets for the generator. 5 variant heads:
https://mobreck.itch.io/alternate-female-heads-for-time-elements-character-gener...
EDIT: Fixed, it doesnt work if the file is inside a subfolder, it has to be the main img/characters folder.
I MIGHT be going insane but I believe the RED_ElementsFix plugin to fix positioning in MZ doesn't work.
I've tried using it alone in a project, the file starts with ), and it doesn't move the sprite around at all in any direction.
Maybe it's been affected by a MZ core patch? Or am I
missing something? (screenshot: green line where the actual bottom of the frame is. Supposed to be standing next to the glint bit).
I just tested it out with a new project in MZ, and with a fresh download the plugin from this page, and it's working for me. MZ says that my current corescript is 1.9.0 which appears to be the latest update that I have access to. If you have scripting conflicts it might be another plugin causing problems.
For reference,here's a screenshot of the character sheet imported into RPGMaker with the name that I gave it, which works with the alignment plugin as expected:movement and collision test.
Welp, from your screenshot and feedback and some futzing around I think found the issue, in case you want to add it as a note to the guide/plugin:
It does not work if the file is inside a subfolder(for example img/characters/actors) rather than just img/characters.
In any case with that fixed I can advance, cheers and thanks for the cool assets o/
I love this tool a lot!
For my specific project, I have had some trouble sourcing characters & matching portraits while maintaining the same theme.Nonetheless, combining this tool and additional software has allowed me to maintain a consistent look for my characters while saving time!
For example, I needed a blue skin tone for a portrait that I liked, so I simply modified the editor to include additional tones and added new variations of the provided heads to get a repeatable version of my characters.
The same is true for slightly modified faces, armors and more.
Wonderful work, thank you for sharing this with the masses!
It does get updates but much much slower because I don't control that account directly. I pass along updates to them but it goes out on their own schedule.
Also I don't directly respond to comments on those because I don't really see them, the steam version goes through the publisher while the itch page is mine directly.
Thanks!
The Time Fantasy series is complete as far as full releases go, though I continue to support it with add-ons and requests on patreon.
Going forward there will be more full expansion packs for the Elements series-- I have a big list of things for character expansions and new tileset biomes. This series also gets additional updates and add-ons on patreon.
You might think of the Elements style as a sequel to the Time Fantasy assets; the character proportions and color palettes are different; but there's overlap in the 16x16 tilebase: recent tile releases will often include variants compatible with Time Fantasy and Time Elements.
Thanks!
Hello! Do I get to access this pack along with the generator plus the rights to use in a commercial project if I join your patreon tier 2 for at least a month? Asking before I either buy or sign there. Also asking about the action RPG characters (I saw the monsters were included, but don't know about the core ones)
Right now this pack isn't available anymore for newer patrons. Big core packs like this only have temporary download keys for patrons that come down a few months after the release. The FAQ thread on my patreon explains in more detail, and has download links to the packs available for patrons.
As for the Action RPG Monsters set, that one does have a patron download because a lot of the content was released on Patreon first and then compiled for the release. These kinds of packs will always be available for patrons and the store page is more of a convenience for non-patrons; and there will be a note on the store page for any packs like this which are free for patrons, so people don't buy them by mistake. Hope that clarifies everything.
Thanks!
Hey, just bought these(amazing work by the way, I recently purchased your village set and it's great). It seems the generator doesn't work on mac. I'm using a 2014 mac with Big Sur, and the app continually crashes, and that's after I had to do some terminal fiddling to get it past mac's crap security options. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks. I can send a log if needed from the crash, if that helps.
Thanks! Running animation wasn't included because sometimes depending on the game engine, it can be made by speeding up the walk animation. I agree that it doesn't look anywhere near as good as full running animations, but it allowed me to prioritize other animations instead. It's not impossible that I make more animations in the future, but in all honesty-- any new animations are a low priority because there are so many existing pieces that'd need to be re-animated, and it'd require the whole generator and sheet to be restructured.
For the time being, future character expansions will be more pieces, accessories and weapons that will build on the existing animations.
Run animations for full custom characters would be more likely because it could be done without reworking the existing system.
Sorry if that's not the answer you want to hear from me, but I like to be open. If you have other suggestions for how to handle it, I'm open to hearing more. Thanks!
Entered a game jam using your (edited) character sprites, here's a link to the demo:
https://cid331.itch.io/trails-of-tranquility
Yes, the Time Fantasy style has a lot of Side view battlers, in an expansion pack and also as a lot of patreon standalone assets. For elements, side view battlers are possible to make by putting together some of the animations, though it was designed for four-directional action combat so not every animation lines up perfectly. thanks!
Hi there - looking for a good asset source and came across your Time Elements series! Really like the work and I'm excited to see what you make next.
I did have a question (and maybe it's a weird one..) but, if I was interested in also subscribing to your Patreon, what would be the best way to access this Core Pack and Expansion (and hopefully other assets) - Subscribing through Patreon alone, buying them separately, or both?
This is no longer available on patreon, only when it was first released, so it would need to be purchased separately from patreon. This should explain how it works:
Every regular pack gets a patron download when they are first released. Patrons at that time can then download them for free. This rewards those who are already patrons before new packs are released. As long as you are a patron -- you'll get access to the download key for any packs as they are released during that time.
These release keys are revoked after 2-3 months. That way, latecomers can still have access to the downloads, but they won't be up forever. New patrons are welcome to download these packs if the link is still available in the archive, but it isn't guaranteed to always be available.
The FAQ thread on my patreon page lists all the packs that are available to patrons, there's a bunch that are always available as patron bonuses, this timing is for the major releases like this one.
Thanks!
They're not designed to work with the default weapon system in rpgmaker because it causes all sorts of problems (with other styles too-- their weapon system is very poorly designed)-- so the best solution is to just export multiple versions of your character with different weapons and then switch which sheet you're using. Thanks
Hello, I have both this and the expansion sheet, and just wanted to let you know, there are some cases in which the 'holding up' sprites generated have the arms hidden behind the head, specifically for the left and right facing frames, seems to be a layering issue. I can post examples if you need but I just wanted to let you know.
