One of the hip things to do these days is to fill out this list of 100 questions about one's RPG and add it to one's site. So I did it, and here it is. This exercise was actually pretty educational. It is my opinion that the bulk of the RPG Making community lacks direction and focus, and sitting down with what looks to be a pointless questionnaire and filling it out can really cause someone to take a second look at what their goals are for their game and where their strengths lay.

If you've got a question about KC's gameplay, feel free to e-mail me about it.

About KC's Creator
Q1	What is your username?	Brickroad.
Q2	What is your birthday, gender, and blood type?	July 16, 1982. Male. Red.
Q3	What do you like?	Video games, roleplaying, cartoons, Survivor, George Foreman Grill.
Q4	What do you hate?	Pain, sadness, grief, humiliation, confusion, football.
Q5	Where do you work?	The pee clinic.
Q6	What kind of PC do you use?	My home computer is a custom PC built specifically to run Final Fantasy XI, now used primarily for World of Warcraft. My laptop (the computer I use to do most of my RM2k3 work) is an Acer TravelMate 2200.
Q7	If you could describe yourself in one word, what would it be?	Lazy.
Q8	Other than RPG Making, what are your hobbies?	Reading, writing (well, blogging), gaming (video games and/or tabletop RPGs), biking.
Q9	Do you have a special talent?	Writing.
Q10	What is the subject matter of your website?	Anime Anonymous - I watch anime so you don't have to.
About KC's Characters
Q11	Are there lots of playable characters in your RPGs?	There are nine player characters in Kinetic Cipher.
Q12	What is the male/female party member ratio in your RPGs?	Four males, four females, one lion.
Q13	How do you decide your characters' names?	I like to make references to the sources that have inspired me by naming characters after them, either in whole or in part. Or, I like to take the setting into consideration and derive my names from that. I prefer normal, mundane names to weird made-up ones.
Q14	When creating characters, to what do you pay attention?	Dialogue, mainly. In an RPG (especially a sprite-based one) dialogue is the only real way to give a character's personality any detail.
Q15	Do you use original character sets?	Heck no. RTP is love.
Q16	Do you use original face sets?	Ditto.
Q17	Do you pay attention to your characters' style of speech?	As I've said, dialogue is the most important aspect of a character in an RPG. In many cases their speech is literally all they have.
Q18	What type of personality do you prefer in your characters?	That depends largely on what the purpose of the character is. The hero needs to be selfless and dutiful, but still flawed (that is, they must have some obstacle within themselves to overcome). Supporting cast members should be given extremes, and fleshed out from there; for example, take the cliche "mysterious swordsman" character as a starting point, and add on to it as the character is fleshed out. There is a reason the cliches are cliches. Minor characters generally don't register enough to merit a lot of time spent working on their personalities, and it can be a disservice to the game if one manages to upstage the major characters.
Q19	Do you make characters similar to yourself?	A lazy RPG hero wouldn't be very much fun, now would it?
Q20	What is your favorite quote from a character in your RPG?	"Hey... wait! What!? I think you've been seriously misinformed about ciphers!" -- Karen, in response to Robin's assertion that ciphers can regrow lost limbs.
Q21	When you want a certain character set and you can't find it, what do you do?	Complain.
Q22	What kind of character sets do you want, but can't find?	Pretty much every character from every game idea I've had dating back to fifth grade.
Q23	How do you decide what type of equipment and skills you character can use?	Personality first. Backstory second. Once those two are in place (or at least sketched out) the equipment and skillsets are easy. This is the same exact principle I apply to my PnP characters.
Q24	Do you give your NPCs distinct personalities?	I try not to think of characters in terms of "PC" and "NPC" but rather "main", "supporting" and "minor". Main and supporting characters (PC or no) always get distinct personalities. I go out of my way to ensure minor characters do not. They're supposed to be background scenery, not the main show.
Q25	Do you have characters in your towns that say "This is the town of XX"?	Nah. I use a quick location display window. I assume the player is smart enough to know what town they're in.
About KC's Systems
Q26	Have you tried to make any original systems (custom battles, etc.)	I did a functional custom menu system once for a game that never went anywhere. I'd say Kinetic Cipher has very little in the way of customization, though I do try to pay a lot of attention to little custom details (inn sequences, encounters, boss fights, minigames, etc).
Q27	When making custom systems, are there times when you make mistakes?	A more pertinent question might be, when I make a mistake to I bother fixing it? (The answer: meh, sometimes.)
Q28	Talk about an especially tough challenge you had when making a system.	I try not to get into a situation where a system becomes "challenging". If something is too difficult to code or too tedious, I will usually simplify the idea until my workload becomes manageable.
Q29	Is there a system you would like to create? If so, what is it?	I'd like to find a quick, easy way to make moving platforms in RM2k3 dungeons. So far all my best efforts have been thwarted.
Q30	What is your favorite type of battle system?	Battle systems without wait bars or "you go then I go" turns, that give me something to play with other than just navigating menus. Examples: Shadow Hearts 2, Paper Mario.
Q31	Is there a system in a commercial game that you would like to put in your game?	Many popular commercial game systems exist in Kinetic Cipher (usually in a simplified form). I can't think of any systems I'd like to rip off directly though.
About KC's Maps
Q32	To what do you pay attention when mapping?	Functionality. The player needs to be able to tell that things are what they're supposed to be. Also, the player needs to be able to determine what they can interact with and what they can't. Visual appeal is a secondary consideration, and for me, usually an unattainable one.
Q33	Do you use original tileset graphics?	I use whatever's lyin' around... rips mostly. Oftentimes I'll splice a bunch of tilesets together in order to get what I want. While building maps I usually have to do lots of editing to the tiles as well (especially with border tiles).
Q34	What type of maps do you have the most difficulty making?	Ships and towns.
Q35	What is the largest map (width x height) that you have made?	I think the world map in the original Kinetic Cipher was 200x200.
Q36	What type of map would you like to try making?	I can't think of a single reason I would "try" to make a map. Either I make a map or I don't. I make the maps my game needs; if it's a type of map I'm not good at, I get it as close as I can and call it gravy.
Q37	What sort of dungeons do you prefer? Huge? Puzzle-filled? Multi-floor?	Puzzles. Multi-path. Nonlinear. Secret passages. Things to find. Things to do. Rewards for exploration.
Q38	Is there a map that's currently beyond your ability to make, but you want to make?	Any map that is needed for Kinetic Cipher, but is beyond my ability, would be simplified until it is no longer beyond my ability. Such are the sacrifices one makes to keep one's game within one's means.
About KC's Setting & Story
Q39	What setting do you like in your RPGs? Fantasy, science fiction, other?	A blend of everything. The best settings can't be placed definitively in any one specific genre.
Q40	To what do you pay attention when you create your story?	Logic, first and foremost. A series of plot points that don't logically follow one another causes a story to be disjointed and full of holes. If you've got a logical progression, you've got a solid story.
Q41	When you're creating your RPG, do you depart from the plans you made when designing the story at the outset?	I avoid this by not planning the story at the outset. I had a general idea for a story and it just evolved on its own as time went on. "The story grows in the telling," says Tolkien.
Q42	What is your favorite kind of cutscene?	Shocking ones. The best cutscene is one that does something that no other cutscene in that game has dared to do before.
Q43	Do you create your stories prior to beginning to create your game, or write the story as you go along?	Both.
Q44	If in the midst of creation, you get a really cool idea that isn't immediately usable. How do you deal with it?	Determine if it's going to be usable down the line. If not, discard it. There are more cool ideas where that came from.
Q45	What types of scripted cutscenes do you use to advance the scenario?	I'm most proficient with dialogue marathons.
Q46	Do you prefer bright or dark atmosphere?	The best RPG stories have both.
Q47	Do you prefer light-hearted or serious stories?	The best RPG stories are both (but at different times).
Q48	Will your game's ending be happy or sad?	Both.
Q49	What is the source of your inspiration, in RPG Maker as well as other creative outlets.	Everywhere. There are good ideas all over the place. Some have to be drastically altered before they work in an RM2k3 game, though.
About KC's Music
Q50	What do you think of the RTP music?	It sounds really generic. There are a few really good ones though. I think Kinetic Cipher only has one RTP song in it.
Q51	Do you want to emulate a particular person's musical style? If so, whose?	Not being the composer of my own music, the question isn't relevant.
Q52	Do you frequently change the BGM in your game?	Yes, constantly.
Q53	Do you want to create a game with voice acting?	Absolutely not.
Q54	What kind of sound effects do you want, but can't find?	I've never had a problem finding decent sound effects.
Q55	Do you make your own sound effects?	No.
Other Stuff About KC
Q56	When setting up items, monsters, etc., to what do you pay attention?	For items, skills and equipment I try to use names the player will remember, and descriptions that leave no confusion as to that item's or skill's effect. For monsters, I like to use silly names, but give the monsters abilities other than just damage dealing (there are more game overs in Kinetic Cipher as a result of untreated status effects than just plain HP depletion). For character stats, I try to keep in mind what the averages are for each leg of the game and balance from there. I actually balance all the characters by hand on a level-for-level basis (which is why each Kinetic Cipher demo will have a level cap).
Q57	Do you use original battle animations?	No.
Q58	What do you think is an ideal encounter rate?	On-touch encounters or some variant thereof. Basically any system that gives the player a chance to see and evade monsters on the dungeon map. I am not a fan of random encounter systems, and in games that use them I prefer ones with low rates to high ones (and my threshhold for "low" and "high" in this context is probably much lower than that of most other players).
Q59	While creating your game, have you found any cool shortcuts or ways to make creation easier?	It's really just a matter of making as many common events as you can, and re-using as much code as possible.
Q60	Do you use control codes (like \c[2]) in messages?	Absolutely.
Q61	What kind of battle view do you use? DQ-style, side-view, isometric?	I use the RM2k3 default, which is side-view.
Q62	What is your goal when balancing battles?	Each battle (especially boss fights) should present the player a problem other than "kill the monsters before they kill me". Either by using status ailments, enemy weaknesses, or unconventional means of dispatching monsters, each encounter should be a small puzzle in itself.
Q63	Do you get a lot of bugs when creating your game?	Far, far more than I'd like.
Q64	Do you use a lot of RTP resources in your game?	Yes. RTP is love.
Q65	What is your development pacing? Are you fast, slow, somewhere in between?	Dialogue tends to go fast. Cutscenes and mapping tend to be slower. Dungeon creation is absolutely glacial.
Q66	How many hours a day do you develop your RPG?	When I'm "in the zone" I work on it all day long at work, which is about eight hours a day, five days a week. I inevitably get burned out and then take a month or two off though. I can keep up that pace for several weeks at a time, if I think I'm making decent progress.
Q67	What do you do when you hit a wall (writer's block, can't solve a scripting problem, etc.)?	Complain. Then I try to force myself through it. Then I complain some more. Then I usually scrap the idea that's giving me so much trouble and do something else (either a simplified version of my original idea, or something similar to it) while complaining the whole time.
Q68	How did you come up with your game's title?	I could probably whip up a big steaming pile about the symbolism of the title and how it pertains to the story, but really I just like the words "kinetic" and "cipher".
Q69	How many hours does it take to clear your game?	The original Kinetic Cipher took about 7 hours to clear, but wasn't complete. The current demo of the new version takes about 2 hours. These are rough estimates.
Q70	What is the size of your game?	The current demo is 4.6 megs.
About RPG Maker
Q71	Which RPG Maker products do you have?	"Have" or "own"? I've pirated RM95, RM2k, RM2k3 and RMXP, because Japan won't translate them for me. Oh well.
Q72	Have you completed any games? On which Maker?	I have two completed RM2kfics, which are just 20-minute cutscenes that tell a story. Each took about a month to complete.
Q73	Which RPG Maker product did you use first?	RM95.
Q74	Which RPG Maker product do you want?	I'm fine with RM2k3, thanks.
Q75	What do you think is most useful feature in RPG Maker?	The handy map editor, followed by common events.
Q76	On the other hand, do you think there is a useless feature?	There are features and event commands I don't personally use, but I'm sure someone out there has found a use for them.
Q77	Is there a "Maker" product you want made?	Maybe an NES Mega Man Maker. Other than that, I'm good, thanks.
Q78	Would you like to enter your game in a contest?	Sure.
Q79	What do you think about the sample games?	I haven't played them.
Q80	Do you have the RM2000/2003 strategy guides [These were advanced technique guides sold on the Japanese market]?	I don't need strategy guides; I have #rm2k .
Q81	How often do you consult the strategy guides?	I turn to #rm2k whenever I have a problem. They either help me or laugh at me, or both.
Q82	How many projects have you released (demos included)?	Portulis Memories (RM95), Kinetic Cipher (eight released demos, RM2k), Maranda (RM2kfic, RM2k), With His Father's Sword (RM2kfic, RM2k), various Onehours (the best being Stickdude Goes to Hell and Biglongword Gobbledegook Dramatic Performance Parody Gyrouteris II: Triangulate of Utopia ), and Kinetic Cipher (Again) (RM2k3).
Q83	What do you think about others' work?	Some people make good stuff. Some people make bad stuff. Some people just make stuff.
Q84	Why do you use RPG Maker products?	Because it's fun, because it's a creative outlet, and because I have this masochistic need to be constantly frustrated.
Random Stuff
Q85	If you could hire a famous voice actor to do voices for your RPG, who would it be?	I'd hire Jodi Benson (voice of Ariel in The Little Mermaid) to do the voice of Karen (the protagonist of Kinetic Cipher). At least, that's what Karen's voice sounds like in my head.
Q86	Do you think your work is professional quality?	Not even close.
Q87	You suddenly find yourself in the RPG world you created. What would you do?	That depends. If I find myself in Tekiel (the northern continent) I'd find the closest Cipher Guild and join up. If I found myself in Gen-Ri (southern continent) I'd get on the closest dock and run away from the church, as far and as fast as possible. In either case I'd probably end up becoming a world-reknowned historian whose intimate knowledge of the world's social and political structure is unrivaled.
Q88	If you could change something about the RM series, what would it be?	I would be able to reference pictures with variables in RM2k3.
Q89	Suppose you could sell your game in a game store? What price would you set?	$5, if even that.
Q90	Suppose a character you created appeared in front of you in real life. What would be the first thing you say to him or her?	That largely depends on which character it is. If it were Nero I'd ask him to make me dinner.
Q91	What would you say/do afterward (in regards to Q90)?	Eat a spectacular meal.
Q92	If you could use one ability of a character you created, which would it be?	Karen's innate ability to use ABR. Perfect immunity to all wounds, disease and physical ambnormality, plus the ability to regulate emotion and function on logic and reason alone, plus it'd allow me to perform lots of neat tricks. I'd take Randi's million for sure.
Q93	What if you had a fatal bug in your game that you couldn't fix, no matter what you tried. How would you work around it?	Completely eradicate all the code related to the bug and re-code it in a simpler fashion. If it's a minigame or system, scrap the minigame or system entirely and try something different.
Q94	Suppose your hard drive crashes and you lose all your project data! What do you do about your project?	Get the most recent copy off my other computer and/or FTP. Anyone who loses their project due to lack of good backup habits is a fool.
Q95	Do you insert yourself into your RPG? How?	No. The characters I've created are far more interesting than I could ever be.
Conclusion
Q96	Which RPG Making communities do you visit?	#rm2k. Full stop.
Q97	How will you feel when you complete your project?	Unimaginable joy.
Q98	Would you like to create more projects in the future?	Of course.
Q99	When making your RPG, what do you consider most important?	My personal satisfaction with my work.
Q100	Any other comments?	Cut it out with the lighting effects. Half-transparent slices of white and orange criss-crossing your map isn't "lighting effects." Knock that garbage off. Fo shizzle.