Do You Like Stories?

 MapleStory - Review

 

Would you like to enrich your child's English skills for communicating with people around the world?

MapleStory (GMS – Global MapleStory), a free, two-dimensional, Multiplayer Online Role-Playing, Adventure Game provides a solution! 

 

MapleStory— This adventure game developed by Wizet, first launched in 2003, has gathered 260 Million players so far (according to Nexon, the leading publishers.) Unlike popular games today, which contain violence, guns, and sexual abuse, MapleStory represents the innocence that has become rare with the younger generation.

 

First, you have to sign up (for free) with GMS to play the game. Right after, you will be able to automatically download the game, which consumes fewer gigabits compared to other massive online games. The minimum system requirements are pretty low, and every computer with a 2 or more-core processor can easily run it smoothly. 

 

Maplers (addicted fans) claim that the most enjoyable moment in the game is the login page. The audio theme creates a relaxed atmosphere, which for most is the sign – we are in!

 

New players need to choose one of five jobs (Archer, Magician, Warrior, Thief, or Pirate – generally titled as 'Explorers') which will follow them on the whole journey to explore the Maple world – accomplish quests, meet friends and win the race to be the first highest level- 200.

 

Right after youv'e chosen your job, you arrive at Maple Island. You do some solo quests until you reach levels 8-10 and advance to the “job quests,” which allows you access to new features and skills. When you get to a high level (which can take from days to months), you start PQs (Party Quests) with other people.

Old 'Maplers' claim that the game is fun and the features are enjoyable. However, for most of them, the game isn't the reason for playing. What attracts them to the game is rather the community and the friends they have met. Party quests and Guilds force players to play together for long hours, and they usually have to communicate by other social media like Skype or the new gamers' chatline called 'Discord.'

 

As mentioned before, people worldwide are playing the "Maple World" which exposes them to English, Spanish, Chinese, and Japanese. The average playing time of 'Maplers' moves between 3-6 hours a day, 3-6 hours of gaming, creating relationships, learning new languages and cultures. The players tend to "hang out" in the FreeMarket and chat. It is very common for them to try to teach and learn each other's languages. I found it very easy to meet plenty of those people and strike up a conversation with them. However, this is not a game feature, but a habit that a lot of old players have developed.

 

 

Which brings me to the cons of MapleStory – to progress in the game and become a "Pro," you have to take part in PQs and Guild events that take at least an hour each.

In some cases, the fictional life replaces the reality for Maplers, and they tend to play for hours on end in order to progress in what they consider as real life. At this point, I have to mention that Maple Story creators have added an alarm feature announcing whenever the player has played for more than 3 hours. But the gesture didn't really work and became another competition between 'Maplers' for who's capable of playing longer.

 

Maple Story has been around for almost 20 years; the gameplay isn't very sophisticated, and there's not much movement as with three-dimensional games. Yet, the game still attracts old and new people to join and rejoin it. The Maple community and the innocence it projects while playing make people (not only children) join and take part. I would recommend trying it to those who like adventures, friends and "old-school" games. My recommendation also applies to people who wish to improve their English (or any other) skills.

Enjoy!