RPG Maker MZ requires image assets to be PNG files, but it does not use one universal image size. Faces, battlebacks, title screens, character sheets, tilesets and freely sized images each follow different rules. Character sheets are divided into a fixed grid, filename prefixes can change character positioning and bush behavior, and the project’s selected tile size determines how tiles should be built.
The short answer: use PNG, then follow the asset category’s rule
RPG Maker MZ’s official help states: “All images must be in the PNG format.” That requirement applies across the image folders used for faces, characters, pictures, parallaxes, battlebacks, tilesets, title screens and enemy graphics. A correctly sized JPEG or WebP is still the wrong input for an MZ image slot; export a PNG instead.
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There is no single “RPG Maker image size.” Some categories have prescribed dimensions, while others accept any width and height. Before resizing an image, identify what the engine will do with it: display it as one picture, crop or loop it as a parallax, divide it into a character grid, or place it into a tile grid. The following values are the documented MZ standards.
| Asset category | Documented size or rule | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Battlebacks | 1000 × 740 pixels | Use the prescribed canvas for the battleback category. |
| Face graphics | 144 × 144 pixels per face | Faces are arranged in 2 rows by 4 columns; a complete eight-face sheet is 576 × 288 pixels. |
| Title-screen images | 816 × 624 pixels | Use this canvas for the title-screen image category. |
| Character sheets | Grid-based | The engine calculates each cell as one-twelfth of the sheet width and one-eighth of its height. |
| Front-view enemy images | Any size | Keep the horizontal dimension even where the manual gives the anti-blur warning. |
| Pictures | Any size | The displayed result depends on how the picture is positioned or scaled in the event. |
| Parallaxes | Any size | How the image repeats or moves is more important than a universal canvas size. |
| Side-view enemy images | Any size | Use an even width where the manual’s blur caveat applies. |
“Any size” does not mean “immune to rendering problems.” An image can be valid but look soft after scaling, repeat incorrectly as a parallax, or be interpreted as a sprite grid when placed in the wrong folder. Treat the category and the project settings as part of the specification.
PNG format, alpha channels and what transparency means
PNG is the required container
PNG is the format MZ expects for its image assets. PNG can store RGB color plus an alpha channel, so it supports both opaque artwork and pixels with partial or complete transparency. Exporting from an editor as PNG preserves the transparent background that a sprite, face, picture or title element may need.
Do not confuse a transparent-looking result with a transparent PNG. A file may have a fully opaque background painted in a color that resembles the map, while another file may contain genuine alpha values. Check the layer or canvas transparency in your graphics editor and, when necessary, inspect the exported file against a contrasting background.
Alpha transparency is separate from MZ’s bush effect
MZ can make part of a map character appear semi-transparent when the character is standing in a bush element. That visual change is an engine effect; it does not prove that the PNG has translucent pixels. Diagnose the two systems separately:
- To test the artwork, open the PNG over a checkerboard or vivid background and inspect the alpha channel.
- To test the map behavior, place the same character on an ordinary tile and then on a bush tile.
- If the character is translucent only in the bush, the bush effect is responsible rather than the file’s alpha data.
The ! filename marker disables the normal character offset and prevents bush elements from making the character appear half-transparent. It changes engine behavior; it is not a replacement for removing or adding alpha pixels in the artwork.
Prescribed dimensions: faces, battlebacks and title screens
Face graphics: 144-pixel cells in an eight-face sheet
Each face graphic occupies a 144 × 144-pixel cell. MZ arranges the face sheet as four columns and two rows, giving a complete sheet a 576 × 288 canvas. Keep every face aligned to that grid. If a portrait is larger or smaller inside its cell, the issue is artwork placement rather than a new supported face size.
When a face looks shifted in dialogue, check the cell boundary first. A portrait that straddles two cells can be read as two different faces, while an incorrectly sized sheet can make the selected index point at the wrong artwork.
Battlebacks: 1000 × 740 pixels
The documented battleback canvas is 1000 × 740 pixels. Build the background to that size before importing it into the battleback category. If the visible subject needs to be smaller, create more margin inside the 1000 × 740 canvas instead of changing the canvas and relying on automatic scaling.
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Title-screen images use an 816 × 624-pixel canvas in the MZ standards. Keep logos and other important details inside the area that will remain visible on the target display. A correctly sized image can still appear cropped if artwork is placed against the extreme edge or if a project applies a different display arrangement.
Character sheets: the grid that controls every frame
How MZ calculates a character cell
A map character uses four directions and three animation patterns. The engine therefore expects a 3-column by 4-row frame area for one character. In the normal setup, each cell is 48 × 48 pixels. MZ does not identify frames by reading the artwork; it calculates the cell width as one-twelfth of the sheet width and the cell height as one-eighth of the sheet height.
That calculation explains both standard and custom-sized sheets. A conventional multi-character sheet contains eight characters, arranged as four character blocks across and two blocks down. With 48-pixel cells, the resulting sheet is 576 × 384 pixels: twelve cells wide and eight cells high. A single-character sheet at the same cell size is 144 × 192 pixels: three cells wide and four cells high.
The important rule is divisibility. The sheet width must divide cleanly into 12 cells and the height into 8 cells. If either dimension leaves a remainder, frames can be cropped, shifted or combined with neighboring artwork. Custom cell sizes work when the entire sheet still follows the required grid.
Animation order and consistency
Keep the same character in its complete 3-by-4 block and place the directional poses in the expected order. Every frame in a block should have the same footprint and baseline. Mixing different cell widths, adding uneven padding to only one frame, or exporting a sheet with a one-pixel border can make a sprite appear to jump while walking even though the PNG opens normally in an image editor.
Use filename markers deliberately
MZ normally displays a map character six pixels above its tile. A leading ! prevents that shift and also prevents bush elements from applying the half-transparent effect. A leading $ tells MZ that the file contains one character rather than the standard eight-character sheet. The markers can be combined; !$ means one character without the normal offset.
| Filename form | Meaning | Typical reason to use it |
|---|---|---|
Actor.png |
Normal sheet interpretation and normal six-pixel offset | A standard multi-character sheet on a map. |
$Actor.png |
Single-character sheet | A file containing only one 3-by-4 character block. |
!Actor.png |
No six-pixel offset and no bush half-transparency | Objects that must sit directly on their tile or ignore bush behavior. |
!$Actor.png |
Single-character sheet with no offset | A lone object or character that needs both behaviors. |
These symbols are functional prefixes, not decorative naming conventions. Adding one changes how MZ parses the same pixels, so test the filename as well as the image dimensions.
Tile size is a project setting, not a universal constant
The 48 × 48 tile is the standard described in MZ’s asset documentation, but MZ projects can select other tile sizes. The MZ 1.5.0 announcement lists 16, 24, 32 and 48 pixels as selectable settings. That list is tied to the 1.5.0 release announcement and should not be treated as a promise that every later update exposes exactly the same options.
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Check the project’s selected tile size before drawing or resizing a tileset. A tileset built around 48-pixel squares will not align correctly in a project configured for 32-pixel squares. The same check matters when creating character art intended to match a tile: a 48-pixel cell is normal only when the project and the artwork are using that scale.
When sharing a tileset or template, state the tile size beside the file. “MZ tileset” alone is incomplete because the project setting determines the grid that the engine uses.
Flexible-size images and the blur warning
Front-view enemy graphics, pictures, parallaxes and side-view enemy graphics may use any size according to the manual. Flexible dimensions are useful for illustrations and backgrounds, but they transfer responsibility for scaling and alignment to the project.
The manual warns that an odd horizontal width can produce blur for the categories where that caveat is given and recommends an even width. An even canvas does not guarantee perfect sharpness, but it avoids a known source of uneven pixel sampling. If an image looks soft, check the original width before changing its artwork.
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- Avoid unnecessary fractional scaling; resize to an intentional integer dimension when possible.
- Check whether the event, battle layout or parallax settings are enlarging or shrinking the image.
- Compare the imported file with the in-game result so you can distinguish source blur from display scaling.
A reliable asset-preparation workflow
- Identify the category. Decide whether the file is a face, character, battleback, title image, tileset, picture, parallax or enemy graphic. Do not apply character-sheet rules to a picture or face-sheet rules to a battleback.
- Set the canvas. Use 1000 × 740 for a battleback, 816 × 624 for a title-screen image, and 144 × 144 for each face cell. For flexible categories, choose a deliberate size and use an even width where the manual’s blur warning applies.
- Export as PNG. Preserve alpha where the artwork needs transparency. Verify that the editor did not flatten the canvas onto an opaque background during export.
- Build character sheets on the grid. Make the width divisible by 12 and the height divisible by 8. Keep each character in a 3-by-4 block and keep frame baselines consistent.
- Name character files with intent. Add
$for one character,!to remove the offset and bush effect, or!$for both behaviors. - Confirm the tile setting. Match tileset artwork to the project’s selected 16-, 24-, 32- or 48-pixel tile size, where that option is available in the MZ version being used.
- Test in context. Preview a face in its dialogue slot, a character on a normal tile and a bush tile, and a flexible image at its intended display scale.
- Inspect the alpha channel if needed. MZ’s Bitmap API exposes width, height and alpha-pixel inspection functions, which can help a tool or plugin distinguish transparent pixels from opaque ones.
Troubleshooting the most common symptoms
“My character sprite is cut off or shows the wrong frames.”
Check the sheet dimensions first. MZ divides the width by 12 and the height by 8, so a remainder means the calculated cells do not match the artwork. Confirm that a single-character file has the $ prefix and that each character occupies a complete 3-by-4 block. Then verify that poses are in consistent directional and animation order.
“The character is floating six pixels above the tile.”
That is the normal map-character offset. Add a leading ! when the artwork represents an object or other image that must sit directly on the tile. Do this before redrawing the sprite; changing the canvas will not remove an offset caused by the filename.
“My character becomes translucent in a bush.”
First place the character on a non-bush tile. If the opacity returns, the PNG is probably behaving normally and the bush effect is the cause. Use the ! prefix when this character should not receive the bush effect. If the character remains translucent everywhere, inspect the PNG’s alpha channel and any image-editing layers used during export.
“The image is blurry even though the file is sharp.”
For a picture, parallax or enemy image, check whether its horizontal width is odd and whether the manual’s even-width recommendation applies. Next check in-game scaling and fractional positioning. A valid PNG can look blurred after the engine resamples it, so compare the source dimensions with the display dimensions.
“My tiles do not line up.”
Compare the tileset’s square size with the project’s tile-size setting. MZ supports 16-, 24-, 32- and 48-pixel choices in the documented 1.5.0 announcement, while the asset standards describe 48 pixels as the standard. Rebuild or resize the tileset to the project’s actual setting rather than assuming 48 pixels.
“A face or title image is cropped or misaligned.”
For faces, verify 144 × 144 cells and the four-column, two-row arrangement. For a title image, verify the 816 × 624 canvas and keep critical artwork away from its edges. Replacing a correctly structured PNG with a larger canvas can move the problem rather than solve it.
Quick Recap
What to verify before importing any MZ image
- The file is PNG and has the intended alpha channel.
- The asset category is correct.
- Any prescribed dimensions are met exactly.
- A character sheet divides into 12 columns by 8 rows.
- Character frames share a baseline and consistent cell size.
$,!or!$prefixes are present only when their engine behavior is wanted.- The project tile-size setting matches the tileset artwork.
- Flexible-size images use an intentional canvas, with an even width where the documented blur warning applies.
- The file has been previewed in the actual map, battle, dialogue or title context where it will be used.
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