Recommended Free Assets for Visual Novels

Making a visual novel can feel overwhelming. There are many parts to create and manage, including backgrounds, character art, music, sound effects, and interface assets.

The good news is that you do not need to make everything from scratch. Existing assets can reduce the workload and help you start building your visual novel.

Pre-made assets can help when:

• You need placeholders to establish the look and feel of your visual novel, get feedback quickly, and replace the assets later.
• You can write the story but cannot create the artwork or find an artist to work with.
• You plan to create most of the art yourself but need pre-made backgrounds for locations that are not critical to the story.
• You cannot make music or sound effects, so you want to browse pre-made audio that suits your story.

This list introduces places where you can find free and paid assets for your project. It is a starting point, not a replacement for reading each asset's license.

Check the license for every asset before adding it to your project. Assets on the same platform can have different rules.

Check the license for:

• Credit requirements for the original artist
• Permission for commercial use
• Permission to modify the asset
• Any other restrictions imposed by the creator

Many platforms allow AI-generated content but cannot reliably enforce disclosure. Some creators are more transparent than others, so do your own research to determine whether an asset was AI-generated.

Record each asset’s name, creator, and source link so you can verify usage rights and refer to this information later when preparing your credits page.

itch.io

itch.io is known for indie games, but it also has a large game asset marketplace. Its filters can help you find assets made for visual novels, including backgrounds, sprites, music, sound effects, fonts, and user interface elements.

Useful searches:

• Free visual novel assets
• Free visual novel backgrounds

Both free and paid assets are available. The creator of each asset sets its license, so read the asset page and any included license files before using it.

BOOTH is an online marketplace connected to pixiv. Creators use it to distribute physical and digital work, including backgrounds, character sprites, interface assets, music, and other game materials.

Browse these categories as a starting point:

• Background images
• Background music
• Sound effects
• Character sprites

My main difficulty with BOOTH is the amount of material available. Quality varies, so filtering the results to find the resources I need can take significant time. Add specific keywords for the location, mood, genre, or art style you need to narrow the results.

BOOTH has an English interface, but many product descriptions and licenses are written in Japanese. Use a translator if needed.

効果音ラボ is my favourite place to find sound effects. It has almost everything I need for a visual novel, including button and system sounds, dramatic effects, environmental ambience, everyday sounds, combat, machines, vehicles, nature, and animals.

The website is only available in Japanese, so use a translator to browse its categories and read the terms. Its standard terms allow free commercial use without mandatory credit, but redistribution is not allowed. Read the usage rules before downloading.

DOVA-SYNDROME provides a large searchable collection of background music, jingles, and sound effects from multiple creators. The website is available in several languages.

Each track has its own page, so you need to open and preview tracks one at a time. This can make it less convenient to compare many tracks quickly.

The resources can be used without a usage fee or mandatory credit under the site's standard terms. Read the sound license and any notes attached to an individual track before using it.

音楽の卵 is a music resource site by the musician takai. It includes a good collection of piano pieces and other background music for games and creative work.

We have used several of its piano pieces in RouteVN demos and tutorials and enjoyed them a lot.

Its original music can be used for free in personal and commercial projects under the published terms. The site is in Japanese, so translate and read the full license before downloading a track.

みんちりえ provides illustrated backgrounds for a wide variety of settings, most with a Japanese theme. Its collection includes homes, schools, shops, streets, and seasonal locations.

Paid background materials are also available through the creator's pixivFANBOX.

The site allows free personal and commercial use under its terms, including modifications. Each asset page includes usage rules that you should read before downloading the image.

We have attempted to compile a list of good-quality free assets to make it easier to start creating a visual novel.

Free assets can help you begin quickly and save significant production time, whether you use them as placeholders or include them in the final version of your project.

This is not a complete list. Many more resources are available, and we plan to continue researching useful options and update this post with new additions.