RPG Maker Alternatives for 2D RPGs With Little or No Code

RPG Maker is still alive. RPG Maker MZ came out on August 27, 2020, runs on Windows and macOS, and lists at $79.99 on Steam. The official store shows no newer numbered version. Its latest news is an MZ DLC from May 21, 2026, plus RPG Maker Unite, a Unity-based edition sold since 2023.

People leave for three reasons. They want a different look than the classic tile grid, they want export targets RPG Maker does not cover, or they want to own more of the code. The picks below are ordered for someone who builds 2D RPGs and wants to write as little code as possible. Pure no-code tools come first, then engines that ask for some scripting in exchange for more freedom.

Prices below are as of November 6, 2026. Our method is on How we review tools.

Quick comparison

RPG Developer Bakin

SmileBoom built Bakin for people who like RPG Maker's database-and-events workflow but want a richer look. The Steam page describes a no-code event editor made of "event panels", with templates for common jobs like handing out items, and a map editor with post-effects, a toon shader and decals. Bakin left Early Access on August 28, 2025, after nearly three years.

The tool is moving fast. Version 2.5, released on June 18, 2026, added Live2D Cubism import for animated dialogue portraits and a beginner course in the online manual. Advanced users can extend it with C# plug-ins, and the store page says games can be sold royalty-free. Expect a 3D world with 2D characters, the HD-2D style, rather than a flat tile map.

Best for: RPG Maker users who want the same no-code event logic with modern lighting and 3D maps.

Pricing:

• $84.99 one-time on Steam, with a free demo whose project data carries over
• Bakin and SMILE GAME BUILDER bundle listed at $139.48
• More than 120 paid and free DLC packs for art and music

Watch out for:

• The system requirements list Windows 10 64-bit only, 8 GB RAM minimum and 12 GB of storage. There is no Mac or Linux editor.
• The same page warns that Bakin will not launch while the Nahimic audio utility is running, which ships on many gaming laptops.

Official site: RPG Developer Bakin.

GameMaker

Undertale was made in GameMaker, and the engine's pricing is far simpler than it was a few years ago. The pricing page now has three tiers. Free covers non-commercial work with desktop, web and mobile exports. Professional is a one-time $99.99 purchase that adds the commercial licence. Enterprise is a monthly or yearly subscription that adds console exports and source code access.

Expect more work than in RPG Maker. GameMaker has no battle system, no item database and no message window out of the box. You assemble those from objects and rooms, either in GML Visual blocks or in GML code. In return you get full control over movement, combat and UI, and the page says there is no watermark or splash screen on free exports.

Best for: Solo developers making a 2D pixel-art RPG they intend to sell on PC or mobile.

Pricing:

• Free: non-commercial licence, desktop, web and mobile export
• Professional: $99.99 one-time, adds the commercial licence
• Enterprise: monthly or yearly subscription for console export; no figure shown on the page

Watch out for:

• Selling a game on the free tier is not allowed. The pricing FAQ says a $99.99 commercial licence is required, and console export sits behind Enterprise only.
• Old Creator and Indie subscriptions will not renew, according to the same page, so older tutorials that mention them describe plans you can no longer buy.

Official site: GameMaker.

Godot

Godot costs nothing and asks for nothing back. The engine is MIT licensed, so there are no royalties, no revenue caps and no seat fees. The current stable release on the download page is 4.7.2, dated August 18, 2026, with editors for Windows, macOS, Linux and Android.

Its 2D tools are a real strength for RPGs. TileMap layers, an AnimationPlayer and a scene system that treats every NPC or menu as a reusable piece cover most of what an RPG needs. The catch is code. Dialogue, inventory, turn order and save files are yours to write in GDScript or C#, or to pull in from community add-ons. Gotcha Gotcha Games, RPG Maker's own publisher, picked Godot as the base of its ACTION GAME MAKER, which says something about how far the engine has come.

Best for: RPG Maker users ready to learn GDScript in exchange for an engine they will never have to pay for.

Pricing:

• Free and open source under the MIT licence
• No royalties or revenue limits

Watch out for:

• Console builds are not part of the free engine. The console docs explain that console SDKs are under NDA, so you need a third-party porting company or your own port.

Official site: Godot. Our listing: Godot.

Construct 3

Construct runs in a browser tab and replaces code with event sheets: a list of conditions on the left and actions on the right. Anyone who has written RPG Maker conditional branches will read them quickly. Paid plans export to desktop, Android and iOS, and the buy page confirms they are royalty-free.

It is a general 2D engine, not an RPG kit. Maps come from the tilemap object, and stats or inventories usually live in arrays or JSON files you set up yourself. For a short, top-down adventure that should also run in a browser, few tools get you there with less typing.

Best for: Beginners who want no-code logic and a game that plays in the browser as well as on desktop and mobile.

Pricing:

• Free edition with limits (see below)
• Personal: $129.99 per year or $18.99 per month in the US, per Construct's pricing notice
• Startup and Business plans priced per seat for registered companies

Watch out for:

• The free edition stops at 50 events, 2 layers and 2 effects, exports to the web only and forbids commercial use. A real RPG passes 50 events quickly.
• Personal is a subscription, not a one-time licence like RPG Maker's, so the cost repeats every year you keep making games.

Official site: Construct 3.

RPG in a Box

Quercus Quag Software makes this small, cheap tool on top of Godot. Instead of sprites you build voxel models, and it imports MagicaVoxel (.vox), Qubicle, Blockbench and OBJ files. The Steam page lists a map editor, combat system, item editor, UI editor and a sound effect generator in one package.

Scripting comes in two forms. A visual node-based editor covers most logic, and Bauxite, a Lua-like language, handles quick scripts. Dialogue gets its own flowchart editor with branches on player choices and condition checks. Exported games run without the player owning the tool, and the editor runs on Windows, macOS and Linux.

Best for: Hobbyists who want a chunky voxel look and a full RPG toolset at $19.99 one-time.

Pricing:

• $19.99 one-time on Steam
• Free demo available

Watch out for:

• Everything is voxel 3D. If your game is meant to be flat pixel art in the RPG Maker style, the feature list shows nothing for classic 2D tile maps.

Official site: RPG in a Box.

SMILE GAME BUILDER

Bakin's older sibling from SmileBoom dates to September 7, 2016, and it still sells. The store page puts it plainly: "Programming is NOT a required skill." You build a 3D world from blocks, drop in 2D monster art and portraits, and wire up events from templates. Advanced users can convert a template into a fully editable event.

It makes sense on an older Windows PC that cannot run Bakin, or when it is on sale. Steam has discounted it by as much as 80%. The page also allows selling the finished game.

Best for: First-time makers on lower-end Windows PCs who want templates for every event.

Pricing:

• $69.99 list price on Steam, often discounted
• Exporter for Unity DLC: $79.99 list price

Watch out for:

• Windows only, and the tool is ten years old. SmileBoom's newer work goes into Bakin, so expect fewer updates here.
• Getting a game onto anything other than Windows means buying the separate Exporter for Unity DLC and then working in Unity.

Official site: SMILE GAME BUILDER.

EasyRPG

EasyRPG is for people attached to RPG Maker 2000 and 2003. EasyRPG Player is an open source engine that runs those games on Windows, Linux, macOS, mobile, consoles and in the browser, per the project site. Its latest release is 0.8.1.1, a patch from June 2025.

The other half is EasyRPG Editor, a GPLv3 editor built on Qt 6 that imports RPG Maker 2000 and 2003 projects, according to its README. Together they offer a path off Enterbrain's old Windows-only tools without changing your project format.

Best for: Owners of RPG Maker 2000/2003 projects who want an open source runtime on more platforms.

Pricing:

• Free and open source; the Editor is GPLv3
• Free OpenRTP asset pack under Creative Commons

Watch out for:

• The Editor has no tagged releases on GitHub, only daily CI builds, so treat it as unfinished. The Player is the mature half.

Official site: EasyRPG.

Unity with RPG kits

Unity is the route for an RPG that may grow into something RPG Maker could never hold, such as real-time combat, 3D exploration or console releases. Out of the box it has no RPG features. People add them with Asset Store kits for battles, quests and inventories, and RPG Maker Unite itself is sold as a Unity add-on. The Runtime Fee that angered developers in 2023 has been cancelled, per Unity's pricing updates page.

Unity Personal is free up to $200,000 in revenue and funding, and the splash screen is optional from Unity 6. Above that, Unity Pro is required.

Best for: Teams planning a larger RPG with 3D, real-time combat or console ports, and comfortable in C#.

Pricing:

• Personal: free up to $200,000 annual revenue and funding
• Pro: $2,310 per seat per year prepaid, or $210 per seat per month, after a 5% rise on January 12, 2026
• Enterprise: custom pricing
• RPG kits from the Asset Store are priced separately

Watch out for:

• Unity raised Pro and Enterprise prices by 5% from January 12, 2026, per the pricing updates page. Budget for more rises.
• Kits from different Asset Store sellers rarely talk to each other, and you write the glue code in C#. It is the most code-heavy option on this list.

Official site: Unity with RPG kits. Our listing: Unity with RPG kits.

How to choose

When to stay with RPG Maker

Stay with RPG Maker MZ if your game is a classic turn-based, top-down RPG and you are happy with the default look. Nothing else on this list gives you a working battle system, database and message windows on day one for a one-time price. The JavaScript plug-in community fills most gaps, and the May 2026 DLC shows Gotcha Gotcha Games still supports MZ.

Frequently asked questions