It's no secret that any RPG Maker's base list of music tracks is very limited. In my case, my brother gave me a resource file with significantly more tracks, but those still only go so far. So, I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of users, especially those making fan games, turned to the taboo:

Using music from existing games.

I'm not exactly above this practice myself. Though I dropped the project, I once downloaded a ton of Persona songs to use in a Persona/EQG fan game (not a total loss; they're all in my iTunes now). And while my current project has no ripped music thus far, I've been thinking of using two specific songs for the final level theme and a character theme...

I'm pretty much asking two things: 1. Would it be okay to use these songs and bring them up in the credits? 2. What are your thoughts on this practice in general?

For reference, here are the songs I was thinking of using:

Final level theme.

Theme of Swift Sapphire (and Crystal Empire)

5786430 While I'm not an expert on the subject, I'm pretty confident that using existing game music is socially unacceptable. It's why there's such a stigma surrounding 'fair use' content (whether art or audio assets), and why many people consider it a taboo, like you said. I personally don't mind if a project has such songs, but using them probably won't go over well in public.

I try to find good alternatives for my project. When I want music and I can't make it in FL Studio, I usually turn to Newgrounds. Many of my current loops came from there over the years. Of course, there are other sites that offer royalty-free tracks for use, and even music packs sold by Degica's crew that can be placed in any RPG Maker project. It's always a hit-or-miss search, I know, but sometimes it's better than risking the pitchforks of a miffed mob.

5786564 FL Studio? Is that free?

If not, could you please direct me to some of the royalty-free tracks?

5786661 FL Studio is a paid software. You can use it to select and arrange music samples to create your own tunes. I'm not very skilled at it, but I believe the DJ deadmau5 uses it prominently.

As before, Newgrounds is my first stop for music tracks. Many of them are shared under Creative Commons rights (if you make any changes, you must submit it under a similar license; otherwise it's royalty-free), but be sure to check with the owners and the music page first. The benefit of music from there is that the download function and copyright info is displayed on each music page.

I've also looked for tunes on Pond5, though it sometimes takes a while to find a good tune that's still free. Before them, I would frequently visit Freeplaymusic for their libraries, but they've changed things up: you can select which license to purchase on their music, and they're quite specific on their right. Use caution with their free licenses.

5786763 I might...consider looking at those free songs (kinda not comfortable buying FL Studio now), but I'll save that as a last resort.

If you're interested, though, you could make songs for my game. Sadly, I can only pay you with a credit, but I'm also not gonna press you to make anything. Less of a work request, more "if you want to make something, go ahead".

5787745 Making music isn't my best skill. I dabble around in FL Studio every now and then for my own project, and while I do have some tunes available for use, I'm not confident enough to actually make something for other people. Plus I've just got too many other projects and promises to fill.

Having said that, I have no problem whatsoever if you choose to use one of the tracks I've already made. Many of my older ones are on my own newgrounds page - http://leoshi.newgrounds.com/audio/ - so if something sticks out, just let me know. (For the record, this also includes anyone who happens to read this post. If I have what you need, hit me up.)

The video below has the five tunes I consider the best I've made. It's worth noting that there were all made for my own project, but again, I have no issues if you use them. Just dont make money off of them.

Since the video shows the remastered versions of the tunes, they're not available on my newgrounds page. If you want one from here, let me know and I'll send it in private.

5787745 I forgot to mention: one thing I am good at doing is making looped versions of existing music tracks. It's become a staple in my RPG Maker projects, and is especially useful because I can keep an introductory phrase in the tune. So if that's something you'd like to do, I can very easily help out.

5787789 Surorise: Almost definitely gonna be my superboss theme.
Fallen On Mist: Might be the theme for either the Unexplored West (route to the final level) or the Tower of Heavens (actual final level).
Time Never Allows: This was somehow too somber to be Swift Sapphire's theme. Sorry.

5786430
Generally, using game music from other games sets a certain image to your game. If your game is a "silly fun project not to be taken too serious at all", then using music from other games has been accepted (almost expected some might argue). This is very true for fan games of a an already existing game series using music from that game series. If you like to your game to be taken slightly serious at all, like a "real RPG game", then using music from other games will be looked down upon and hurt your game (fan games of a existing series that want to be taken slightly serious, like a fan made Final Fantasy game or Chrono Trigger, typically use custom remix versions of existing songs from that series).

No matter which choice you do, always credit where you got your stuff.