Alright! Finished the game I set out to do. Pretty happy about it! Here's where I'll try to formulate a way to tackle the next game I decide to make in RPG Maker based on how this one did.
The Positives: What I like about RPG Maker as an engine is that it's permissive of very text-heavy games, without expecting the text to carry the game. Like, I like writing, but I find myself at a loss working with engines like Ren'py or Twine, where writing is all there is. I like games that offer movement!
My biggest accomplishment in this game was easily coding the grass you ran into that allowed for long complicated move routes. This way, I could move DEATH GIRL in a way that suggested quick slashing of grass without demanding a lot of custom sprites on my end.
The Just Theres: I used the built-in assets to make this game, and as much time it saved me in development, I wonder if maybe leaning on those assets meant that I didn't put in a strong enough effort in making the game look distinctive. I had plenty of time to make at least a custom tileset...I don't know. It's not really a negative. It's just that there's this looming thought in my head that in order for a game to 'count', you have to build it from scratch, aesthetically.
One thing I love about the RPG Maker graphics engine is how extensive your options are for altering the graphics you have to work with. Being able to change the hue and saturation of the tiles in real-time, as opposed to having to do it from a paint program, took a huge load off.
The Negatives: Y'know...I REALLY didn't think I'd run into the issue of people not having the RTP to run the game. I had that happen multiple times when the game was released. That really sneaked up on me, and I'm sure my failure to include the run-time files in the game led to a lot of people not giving it a chance.
But, anyway! Lessons learned, and I'll certainly be using this engine again in the future! Thanks to everyone for giving my work a shot, and esp. for giving me the opportunity to take a second chance at this thing. I'm glad to have finally completed a game, for real this time! And congratuations to everyone who participated, you've all done great!