LÖVE

I am wondering if there are any detailed tutorials on Tiled? I'm hard pressed to find a good write up on how the program works. Also, if I'm not mistaken it's purpose IS for creating maps for games, not just artwork, right?

Yes, it's specifically for games.

There's probably a few tutorials out on the interwebs, but it's a fairly simple program; I learned by just fiddling with it.

You'll need a lib to help you load the maps, though, unless you're experienced enough to write one yourself.

Basic gist of the program:

Make a new map file, selecting what type it's going to be and what size the tiles will be. From there you can load in tilesets and draw tiles to the map, in multiple layers if you want to.

Personally I find that simply spending some time with the software is one of the best ways to learn about it.