As there has been a lot of discussion about GMS development recently, I wanted to make a post about an issue in GMS that has existed for a while and is slowly growing overtime: legacy items/content.
To preface this topic, I want to point out that in almost every MMO game, it is normal and expected for progression to be made easier over time. Maplestory also does this - more arcane symbols from dailies, reduced EXP curve, hyper burning, making better equips more accessible (weapon/armor boxes), etc. This makes sense, as new players are needed to keep a game in a healthy state, and faster progression incentivizes them to play and access newer content in a reasonable amount of time.
However, the way that Nexon has been handling legacy items/content in GMS contradicts this fundamental part of MMO game design. In Maplestory, "progression" is a very wide term and includes: stats, equips, levels, symbols, legion, nodestones, familiars. In a sense, when legacy content that made progression easier is removed, progression is made harder for new players compared to existing players - which should never really happen and doesn't happen in other games, outside of bugs/exploits.
Now I will list all the relevant legacy content in GMS.
Permanent Best in Slot (BIS) Equipment:
- Pottable badges (sengoku, ghost ship)
- Lab server legion blocks (not really an equip)
- Dark doom totems
- Misty island totem
- Sweetwater pendant
All these legacy equips provide bonus stats that are unavailable to newer players without them, and there are no alternative ways to obtain these legacy stats. Several players have 1 or more of these legacy items.
Wild Totem/ Frenzy Totem / Kishin
Spawn enhancing items made it easier for players who played when they existed to progress in terms of levels, nodes, legion, familiars, meso acquisition. All these parts of progression are still obtainable with enough time, but it is still not ideal in the perspective of a new player that progression was easier before. Almost everyone who played while they were available used these spawn enhancers.
Legacy Famliars (Jr.boogie, double line legacy unique)
There seems to not be that much info on legacy familiars, as legacy familiars were a bug that lasted a couple days before a hotfix I think. Pretty much when familars were revamped in 2020, you could farm hundreds of epic Jr.Boogies and when you revealed them, they could have unique tier lines (40 IED, 40 Boss). Also, it was very easy to see 2 lines of good stats (Boss, IED, Atk%) on unique familiars. From what I know, they did not remove people's familiars even though it was a bug. Although there are probably not that many people who have insane legacy fams (120 boss + atk% or ied), those who do have a substantial advantage over newer players, who struggle to even get 2 or 3 30% boss familiars.
In reboot, 120% boss fams are technically still obtainable but as everyone knows, it's super time consuming, feels bad to do (training in limina vs cernium), and is RNG based.
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The side effects of introducing, and then later removing legacy content:
- Permanent, BIS legacy equips creates a glass ceiling effect for newer players and players without them. No matter how much time or money that they spend, there will always be a glass ceiling to their progression in terms of stats that they can't break, on the basis that they did not play the game when these legacy equips were obtainable. In fact, the gap between a character with all legacy equips and a completely new player has gotten bigger recently (Misty island totem, sweetwater pendant). Below are the final damage % that each legacy item gives compared to their current alternatives.
Sengoku badge - Gene badge (4 or 9 set bonus) ~3% FD
Sengoku badge - Crystal ventus badge 4-6% FD
Lab legion blocks 1.5-2% FD
2x Dark doom + Misty totem - 3 x Yu totem 1% FD
2x Dark doom + Misty totem - 3 x Afterlands totems 1.5-2% FD
Sweetwater pendant - Gollux pendant 0.5-1.5% FD
Legacy fams 120% Boss - 600 hours fams (90% boss) 2.5-5% FD
On their own, each of the FD% bonuses that these items provide aren't huge, but since damage in Maplestory scales mutiplicatively, a player with all legacy items can be 9-15% stronger than a player without any legacy items. Is this acceptable? At what point does it become unacceptable? 20%? 30%?
- Nexon KR and KMS players view and treat GMS as not a real server and GMS players as literal rats who complain while playing an easier version of their game with systems and equips that don't exist in KMS. In reality, GMS players have no control over what systems or equips are in the game - we are just playing the game how it was given to us - if there's spawn enhancing totems, we'll use them - if there's a BIS equip that's obtainable, we will obtain and use it. We are not exploiting the game or abusing bugs.
- Even though these broken systems and legacy items are in the game due to Nexon KR's poor planning, the blame seems to fall on GMS players and community managers. Over the years, legacy items has created hate and a divide between players, even though it is completely Nexon's fault. Is it a new player's fault that they did not play when these legacy items were available? No. Is it wrong for new players to feel angry that they will always be 9-15% weaker than current players? No. Is it an existing players fault that they are using these legacy items or used totems in the past to progress faster? No. It is cowardly for Nexon to introduce problematic legacy content, remove them, ignore all feedback, use CMs as scapegoats for their mistakes, and then treat the players like ungrateful rats who know nothing.
TLDR:
1. BIS legacy items should not exist in the game. They should either be accessible to everyone whether it be all the time or during an event, or should be completely removed. The current difference between a player with and without legacy items is between 9-15%. This number could continue increase as they continue to remove legacy content while ignoring feedback.
2. Progression should be made easier for new players, not harder. Nexon you already know this, but you seem to ignore this concept for GMS.
3. Don't introduce exclusive content if you have no intention to support it's development. Especially if such content has legacy BIS items.
4. GMS players are not rats who are abusing an easier version of Maplestory. We are playing and enjoying the game that you, Nexon has designed for us. We are humans too who have real opinions and feedback that should be considered and responded to. It is sad to hear that Nexon KR dismissed Coppersan's video as "ragebaiting for views".
Comments
The second major issue I believe, is lack of understanding of GMS and its unique setup and content.
If Nexon talked to their players and had a more back and forth relationship with them, the second issue wouldn't be as big a problem.
A well established relationship with players with the right questions would lead Nexon to know how to handle things.
I think there was hope in the past where Nexon was starting to be more transparent with players.
But it feels like they fell off the wagon and are only slightly better about transparency than they previously were.
I believe we need more ways to input feedback en masse to Nexon. Server wide polls or player feedback forums that reward players for taking the time to answer.
A thread where I previously suggested such a thing here.
Memo/Patch Surveys
Our current CMs do not feel like they understand or know the game very well and can't properly represent players.
This doesn't actually mean you have to get a CM that understands the game by being a long time veteran player.
But the CMs should start an account ASPS, and interact with players constantly via forums/reddit/in-game etc.
I believe there is some effort to do this by the GMS team but it feels like rather than them learning how the game actually works, they learn how Nexon thinks it works.
This is why Ezrabell thought people bought out the meso flame store. Lack of understanding and communication.
On top of this it feels like our CMs are just a figure head to take the heat for Nexon. This is a failure of Nexon mostly, not the CMs.
Call it lack of training or just plain bad people chosen for CM, the point is Nexon is their employer and shouldn't get away with making them a scapegoat.
Perhaps community leaders or Bean Brigade members should be more involved in how Nexon handles player relations.
Coppersan said that Nexon didn't tell him what to say and I think that's a good thing. But Nexon should be asking Coppersan or other BB members about what Nexon should say.
We scream into a void that does not respond back. Even something as simple as monthly GM hosted events in-game can help relations a lot.
Core Content wise the game is getting better and Nexon is making good quality of life changes that should have been made years ago.
However it feels like this is a response to boycotts and outrage in Korea rather than listening to players and carefully considering options.
Nexon pulls their act together for a crisis and immediately goes back to bumbling around afterwards.
If Nexon expanded their roadmap in one direction and kept going in that direction I feel like players wouldn't care as much.
One patch it seems like we're on the path to 1:1 KMS, then suddenly we get something like Misty Island thrown in.
Does Korea want us to be KMS, or our own thing? You can only pick one and the faster you decide the faster you can calm our rage.
Sorry this post goes a bit off topic but I believe these are the root issues surrounding legacy content.
Since Nexon has a lack of understanding of legacy content, players should be highly involved for any decisions surrounding them.
I personally would prefer all legacy items removed (and players heavily compensated or turned into event items and it be called a day. Do it in a single patch and get it over with.
You mean you aren't running with a 9 pitched accessory to make your black mage badge better than sengoku!?
I guess you should have thought about that before you decided to play this game after a cutoff period that you were never told about!
sengoku is still far better than 9 set in reg server