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First Launch

RPGMTranslate is an open and simple translation tool for RPG Maker games. Its main strength lies in maintaining a simple file structure and using plain text translation files.

For advanced usage, refer to:

Also, help us improve the docs!

Installation

Download the latest release from GitHub. The program is available as:

  • Windows: .msi installer
  • Linux: .deb package or .AppImage
  • Other platforms: Build from source

On first launch, the program creates:

  • Settings file: ROOT_DIR/res/settings.json
  • Themes file: ROOT_DIR/res/themes.json

Note: If the interface doesn't load, press F12 to open the console for error messages.

Interface Layout

Interface layout

The interface includes:

  1. Menu bar buttons
  2. Menu button (Tab)
  3. Save button (Ctrl + S)
  4. Compile button (Alt + C) [RMB to open compilation settings]
  5. Open directory button
  6. Settings button
  7. Themes button
  8. Bookmarks button
  9. Search button (Ctrl + S)
  10. Tools button
  11. Read button
  12. Project info panel
  13. Search panel (R)
  14. Main work area
  15. Machine translation languages inputs

Important terms:

  • "Read" refers to reparsing the translation, either in append mode, to append new text to the translation after game's update, or to force rewrite the translation and start from scratch
  • "Compile" refers to writing translations back to initial files
  • "Project" is a directory containing an RPG Maker game
  • "Tab" is an entry from the left menu that opens a specific file

Hotkeys:

  • Ctrl and +: Zoom in
  • Ctrl and -: Zoom out

Opening a Project

  1. Click the Open directory button
  2. Select your RPG Maker game folder (the program handles encrypted .rgss archives)
  3. The program creates an .rpgmtranslate directory containing:
    • Translation files in plain text format at .rpgmtranslate/translation
    • Backup directory at .rpgmtranslate/backups
    • Output files when compiling at .rpgmtranslate/output
  4. Optional, but recommended: Initialize git repository and periodically commit changes.

If the game folder already has translation folder, its contents will be copied to .rpgmtranslate/translation, but not vice versa. To bring the translation back to GAME_FOLDER/translation you'll have to manually copy it.

The game's title, engine, current opened tab and translation progress will be displayed in the top-right corner of the UI.

Title is editable, it will be saved and compiled correctly.

Note: The program, by default, creates backups every 60 seconds and stores up to 99 backups.