What are plugins?

[Arcuran]

Hello,


I picked up RPG maker about a month ago, and I finally feel I have a handle on the basics, I have practiced using a lot of the basic systems, and have some cool ideas about how to use them in my own ways, but I have a question that I feel is really stupid.


What is a plugin?


How do I use them?


What sort of things are plugins used for?

I am struggling to find the answer to this on youtube and I'm not really sure where to look on this website, sorry if I have posted this in the wrong place.

Thanks,


Arcuran

 

[Kes]

I've moved this thread to RPGMaker MV Support. Please be sure to post your threads in the correct forum next time. Thank you.



At it's simplest, a plugin is an organized piece of code which controls how a specific aspect of MV works.  MV comes with a wide range of default plugins, some of which you can customize as you want.  This page from the Help file gives various examples.  However, people often want those aspects to behave differently from the default, or they want more things than the default plugins provide.  To cater for this, members of the community have already written a large number of additional plugins which you can add to your project.  The process for doing that is explained on this page of the Help file.


However, before you begin experimenting with additional plugins, it is good to get to know what the engine can already do.  An important aspect is the range of things you can do using events.  Andar has compiled a lot of information for new users which you can find here.  One of the things he links to is a playable tutorial on the Event Command Menu.  Another is the playable tutorial on Switches and Variables.  Spending time on these first will give you a much better understanding of how MV works and will help you decide whether you actually need a plugin to achieve what you want.  It will also save you a lot of time and frustration in the long term, as eventing and switches form the basis of any game you create.