Yes, fangames are allowed! Just in case anyone else is also asking, I am confirming that you must create all your own assets as well.
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NaNoRenO 2025 community » Dev Chat · Replied to MutantVision in Is it okay to include NSFW/Darker theme?? (Given it has early warning)
You'd have to get clarity from itch to be sure, but in the case of a murder mystery, a warning at the front of the game and on the game's landing page that the story contains depictions of death should work. Some devs opt to include extra details (usually behind a spoiler tag), of the nature of the violence as well.
Thank you for sharing your experience. The ban exists for a myriad of reasons that I'm sure you already know, but I appreciate you taking the time to share your perspective.
I would like to offer encouragement regarding your concerns. NaNoRenO is, at its heart, "amateur." It was born from a hobby community, and it predates the days of (English) visual novels being about polish, scale, or money. It's not a competition. There are no prizes, and nothing is ranked. There is a wealth of creative commons content made specifically for jams like NaNo to help people with art, music, even code. But it's been my experience that even my own extremely okay scribbles have been warmly welcomed every time I've taken part, and I suspect anything you make will surpass my own attempts back in the day. I am looking forward to seeing what you make.
NaNoRenO 2025 community » Dev Chat · Posted in Is it okay to include NSFW/Darker theme?? (Given it has early warning)
NaNoRenO 2025 community » Dev Chat · Posted in Is it okay to use a script that's not finalized prior to the jam?
Music and SFX:
https://freemusicarchive.org/genre/Soundtrack/
https://cross-couloir.itch.io/beats-by-cross-couloir
https://lemmasoft.renai.us/forums/viewtopic.php?t=48443
https://lemmasoft.renai.us/forums/viewtopic.php?t=54072
https://lunalucid.itch.io/free-creative-commons-bgm-collection
https://mayragandra.itch.io/freeemotionalpianomusic
NaNoRenO 2025 community » Resources · Created a new topic Art (Sprites, BGs, GUI, and other graphics)
Sprites:
https://ifthenelse-interactive.itch.io/
https://itch.io/c/2006928/my-free-visual-novel-characters-for-your-use
https://itch.io/c/1115123/new-style-free-to-use-assets
https://banya.itch.io/free-sprites-vn
https://itch.io/c/698965/yume-series-free-to-use-assets
https://cucurbitapepo.itch.io/girl-sprites-for-visual-novel
http://tokudaya.net/index.html
https://itch.io/c/2006931/fairytale-and-fantasy-character-packs
Backgrounds:
https://itch.io/c/4211158/background-and-item-asset-packs
https://katy133.itch.io/vn-asset-pack
https://tidalblossoms.itch.io/free-outdoor-visual-novel-backgrounds
https://noranekogames.itch.io/yumebackground
https://chibi785.itch.io/cafe-background
https://vision-renders.itch.io/
https://lemmasoft.renai.us/forums/viewtopic.php?f=52&t=17302
https://www7b.biglobe.ne.jp/~osumashi/free_bg.html
Other images:
GUI:
https://thaumaturge-art.itch.io/assets-fantasy-ui
https://tofurocks.itch.io/renpy-gui-template
https://loudeyes.itch.io/dating-sim-ui-pack
https://lunalucid.itch.io/free-character-creation-template-for-renpy
NaNoRenO 2025 community » Team Building » Member Looking for Team · Created a new topic Template - Portfolio/Samples
This is a suggested template! You don't have to follow it, but doing so will make you much easier to find! Please only make one thread per person, even if you are offering multiple skills.
Thread Title
A brief description of what you do, and what you're looking for.
Examples:
- Kawaii Sprite/CG artist looking for a team to join!
- Unity Programmer, Writer interested in a small project
- Voice Actor (Adult M) Available!
Thread Content
A brief introduction with anything you'd like to share about yourself including interests, previous projects you've worked on, and what you're looking for in a project. Please note that like most game jams, NaNoRenO is largely non-commercial. If you would like to charge for your work, please be up front about that in your post.
Examples:
- I like to draw cute things and I love sweet romances. Was previously the sprite/CG artist for "Magical Catgirls in Love" and "Kissing my Girlfriend in a Cafe in a Another World." Looking to do sprites and/or CGs for a romance game if possible, but open to other genres as long as they're cute! No nudity or gore, please!
- I'm mostly a Unity programmer, but I also know a little about Ren'py. I've never worked on a visual novel before, but I'm eager to learn. Would also be interested in joining a writing team and writing scenes based on the outline provided by the lead writer. Am fine with any genre, but historical fiction is my favorite, so if you're doing that, I'd be VERY interested.
- Textured, resonant voice type. Voice range goes from 20-40 for male characters. You can hear me as Graeme in "Lost in Circles" and I did a bunch of extra voices for "Magical Catgirls in Love." I'm interested in any genre, and adult content is fine.
Your portfolio/demo reel/work samples if you have one.
Examples:
- I've attached the sprite art from the last game I did, and here's a link to my full porfolio.
- I don't have any programming samples available, but here's a link to my Wattpad with my writing.
- Here's a link to my demo reel, and here's a link to the last project I was in.
How to contact you. Seriously.
Examples:
- I don't check this forum very often. Please DM on Discord at [username] to talk!
- Email me at [email address].
- Reply to this thread with details about your project, and I'll get back to you!
NaNoRenO 2025 community » Team Building » Team Looking for Members · Created a new topic Template - Searching for Members
Here's a suggested template for a recruitment post. You don't have to follow everything here, but providing more information will make it easier for everyone involved.
Thread Title
Include the kind of work you're looking for, and a brief description of the genre. Please keep it to one thread per project.
Examples:
- Seeking Sprite Artist for Harem-style BxG Romance
- Need composer for Horror Game
- Looking for Programmer, Environment Artist, and Voice Actors for Cyberpunk Film Noir
Thread Content
A slightly more in-depth description of the VN. Include any notes on content here.
Examples:
- A story about a guy who accidentally gets accepted to magic school, even though he has no magic. He develops two friendships and maybe some romance. Will include comedic light fanservice and one onsen scene. No sex.
- A horror game where the main character is trapped in a castle with a vampire and has to escape. Lots of blood.
- A cyberpunk film noir about a world where one can upload their consciousness to the internet. A PI has to solve the murder of someone who was killed while their consciousness was online. Multiple deaths including a bad end where the player dies.
Description of the work that would need to be done, including an estimate of how much, and references for the style if possible.
Examples:
- Two full body sprites of teenage girls with multiple expressions and two poses each. Will also need an alternate outfit in bath towels for the onsen scene. Looking for bright colorful art in the same vein as Rumiko Takahashi, but anything anime is fine.
- Six atmospheric tracks of varying intensity all with dark gothic vibes. At least one of these should have some serious pipe organs going on.
- Need programmer to create an in-game email system to communicate with other characters. Options should include sending, receiving, faving, re-reading old emails, and the option to select a reply to any emails that have been received.
- Need four-ish environment pieces with a cyberpunk feel - lots of rain and neon lights!
- VA: Rill - Adult female, mid 30s. Any accent. Wears sarcasm like armor. Incredibly smart and with a strong sense of self-preservation. Supporting character, will have about twenty lines. Looking for a voice type similar to Erica Lindbeck as Black Cat in Spider-man (2018).
- VA: D-Part - Any gender, any age. Standard American accent, or BBC English. The AI who talks to the PI. Unfailingly polite, but able to inject a sinister tone into innocuous phrases. Think HAL or GLaDOS. Line count unknown, but it'll be a lot.
How to submit one's portfolio.
Examples:
- Reply to this thread with samples of your art and the best way to contact you.
- Email me at [email address] with a link to your portfolio. If you prefer, you can also message me on Discord at [Discord Name].
- If you are interested in the role of D-Part, reply to this thread with your demo reel and the best way to contact you.
- If you are interested in the role of Rill, please record the following audition lines (filename: YourName_Rill.mp3) and email them as an attachment to [email address].
- [Seething, offended] You think I don't know that? You walk in here acting like you're the only person in this room who has a clue because you have a fancy business card that says you figure things out for a living. Embarrassing. Everyone here was well aware of things long before you got here.
- [Pensive, softening up] Listen, they weren't exactly the most popular person around, but they didn't deserve to go out like this. I hope you find whoever did this.
Any extra info about plans for the VN. Please note that like most game jams, NaNoRenO is largely a non-commercial event, and if you intend to make money off of the final product, you must be up front about this in your post.
Examples:
- This is the whole game! No pay. It will be released for free on itchio at the end of NaNoRenO.
- This is the whole game. No pay. It will be released for free on itchio, Steam, and the Android app store at the end of NaNoRenO. All team organization will be done on our Discord channel.
- This is a vertical slice demo for a much bigger game I have planned. Everyone involved will be invited to return to work on the full version, which I hope to sell on all platforms. Am willing to discuss compensation. Organization will be done via email.
Fangames are allowed, as long as you create the assets yourself (like redraw sprites) or use creative commons assets (there's a big list here including music). Using any assets from the original game is not allowed.
That's a bit of a grey area. If you want to be entirely strict about the rules, premade assets are out unless they're CC. However, you are absolutely allowed to update your game afterwards with your GUI (which is gorgeous, BTW!), so nothing's stopping you from using a placeholder of the same size for the duration of the month.
Premade things you can use for your games!
LemmaSoft CC Forum (lots of things in here)
https://itch.io/c/484684/visual-novel-assets-tutorials-and-tools
http://www.vita-chi.net/sec/voi/hora/english.htm
Sprites:
https://itch.io/c/2006928/my-free-visual-novel-characters-for-your-use
https://itch.io/c/228580/assets-i-created
https://itch.io/c/1115123/new-style-free-to-use-assets
https://banya.itch.io/free-sprites-vn
https://itch.io/c/698965/yume-series-free-to-use-assets
https://cucurbitapepo.itch.io/girl-sprites-for-visual-novel
http://tokudaya.net/index.html
Backgrounds:
https://itch.io/c/2006931/my-free-visual-novel-backgrounds-and-items-for-your-us...
https://katy133.itch.io/vn-asset-pack
https://tidalblossoms.itch.io/free-outdoor-visual-novel-backgrounds
https://noranekogames.itch.io/yumebackground
https://chibi785.itch.io/cafe-background
https://vision-renders.itch.io/
https://konett.itch.io/misc-visual-novel-background
https://lemmasoft.renai.us/forums/viewtopic.php?f=52&t=17302
https://www7b.biglobe.ne.jp/~osumashi/free_bg.html
Other images:
GUI:
https://thaumaturge-art.itch.io/assets-fantasy-ui
https://tofurocks.itch.io/renpy-gui-template
https://loudeyes.itch.io/dating-sim-ui-pack
https://lunalucid.itch.io/free-character-creation-template-for-renpy
Music and SFX:
https://freemusicarchive.org/genre/Soundtrack/
https://cross-couloir.itch.io/beats-by-cross-couloir
https://lemmasoft.renai.us/forums/viewtopic.php?t=48443
https://lemmasoft.renai.us/forums/viewtopic.php?t=54072
https://lunalucid.itch.io/free-creative-commons-bgm-collection
https://mayragandra.itch.io/freeemotionalpianomusic
NaNoRenO 2024 community » Team Looking for Members · Created a new topic Searching for Members Template
Here's a suggested template for a recruitment post. You don't have to follow everything here, but providing more information will make it easier for everyone involved.
Thread Title
Include the kind of work you're looking for, and a brief description of the genre. Please keep it to one thread per project.
Examples:
- Seeking Sprite Artist for Harem-style BxG Romance
- Need composer for Horror Game
- Looking for Programmer, Environment Artist, and Voice Actors for Cyberpunk Film Noir
Thread Content
A slightly more in-depth description of the VN. Include any notes on content here.
Examples:
- A story about a guy who accidentally gets accepted to magic school, even though he has no magic. He develops two friendships and maybe some romance. Will include comedic light fanservice and one onsen scene. No sex.
- A horror game where the main character is trapped in a castle with a vampire and has to escape. Lots of blood.
- A cyberpunk film noir about a world where one can upload their consciousness to the internet. A PI has to solve the murder of someone who was killed while their consciousness was online. Multiple deaths including a bad end where the player dies.
Description of the work that would need to be done, including an estimate of how much, and references for the style if possible.
Examples:
- Two full body sprites of teenage girls with multiple expressions and two poses each. Will also need an alternate outfit in bath towels for the onsen scene. Looking for bright colorful art in the same vein as Rumiko Takahashi, but anything anime is fine.
- Six atmospheric tracks of varying intensity all with dark gothic vibes. At least one of these should have some serious pipe organs going on.
- Need programmer to create an in-game email system to communicate with other characters. Options should include sending, receiving, faving, re-reading old emails, and the option to select a reply to any emails that have been received.
- Need four-ish environment pieces with a cyberpunk feel - lots of rain and neon lights!
- VA: Rill - Adult female, mid 30s. Any accent. Wears sarcasm like armor. Incredibly smart and with a strong sense of self-preservation. Supporting character, will have about twenty lines. Looking for a voice type similar to Erica Lindbeck as Black Cat in Spider-man (2018).
- VA: D-Part - Any gender, any age. Standard American accent, or BBC English. The AI who talks to the PI. Unfailingly polite, but able to inject a sinister tone into innocuous phrases. Think HAL or GLaDOS. Line count unknown, but it'll be a lot.
How to submit one's portfolio.
Examples:
- Reply to this thread with samples of your art and the best way to contact you.
- Email me at [email address] with a link to your portfolio. If you prefer, you can also message me on Discord at [Discord Name].
- If you are interested in the role of D-Part, reply to this thread with your demo reel and the best way to contact you.
- If you are interested in the role of Rill, please record the following audition lines (filename: YourName_Rill.mp3) and email them as an attachment to [email address].
- [Seething, offended] You think I don't know that? You walk in here acting like you're the only person in this room who has a clue because you have a fancy business card that says you figure things out for a living. Embarrassing. Everyone here was well aware of things long before you got here.
- [Pensive, softening up] Listen, they weren't exactly the most popular person around, but they didn't deserve to go out like this. I hope you find whoever did this.
Any extra info about plans for the VN. Please note that like most game jams, NaNoRenO is largely a non-commercial event, and if you intend to make money off of the final product, you must be up front about this in your post.
Examples:
- This is the whole game! No pay. It will be released for free on itchio at the end of NaNoRenO.
- This is the whole game. No pay. It will be released for free on itchio, Steam, and the Android app store at the end of NaNoRenO. All team organization will be done on our Discord channel.
- This is a vertical slice demo for a much bigger game I have planned. Everyone involved will be invited to return to work on the full version, which I hope to sell on all platforms. Am willing to discuss compensation. Organization will be done via email.
This is a suggested template! You don't have to follow it, but doing so will make you much easier to find! Please only make one thread per person, even if you are offering multiple skills.
Thread Title
A brief description of what you do, and what you're looking for.
Examples:
- Kawaii Sprite/CG artist looking for a team to join!
- Unity Programmer, Writer interested in a small project
- Voice Actor (Adult M) Available!
Thread Content
A brief introduction with anything you'd like to share about yourself including interests, previous projects you've worked on, and what you're looking for in a project. Please note that like most game jams, NaNoRenO is largely non-commercial. If you would like to charge for your work, please be up front about that in your post.
Examples:
- I like to draw cute things and I love sweet romances. Was previously the sprite/CG artist for "Magical Catgirls in Love" and "Kissing my Girlfriend in a Cafe in a Another World." Looking to do sprites and/or CGs for a romance game if possible, but open to other genres as long as they're cute! No nudity or gore, please!
- I'm mostly a Unity programmer, but I also know a little about Ren'py. I've never worked on a visual novel before, but I'm eager to learn. Would also be interested in joining a writing team and writing scenes based on the outline provided by the lead writer. Am fine with any genre, but historical fiction is my favorite, so if you're doing that, I'd be VERY interested.
- Textured, resonant voice type. Voice range goes from 20-40 for male characters. You can hear me as Graeme in "Lost in Circles" and I did a bunch of extra voices for "Magical Catgirls in Love." I'm interested in any genre, and adult content is fine.
Your portfolio/demo reel/work samples if you have one.
Examples:
- I've attached the sprite art from the last game I did, and here's a link to my full porfolio.
- I don't have any programming samples available, but here's a link to my Wattpad with my writing.
- Here's a link to my demo reel, and here's a link to the last project I was in.
How to contact you. Seriously.
Examples:
- I don't check this forum very often. Please send a DM on my twitter account [link here] to talk!
- Email me at [email address].
- Reply to this thread with details about your project, and I'll get back to you!
Thank you for playing! I'm glad that people are still enjoying it even now.
The bonus only unlocks after you get all the endings, including the two alternate "alone" endings. This is also built on an older version of the engine. I'll be upgrading it eventually, so that might help. But if you haven't gotten the alone endings, try those first.