CinderKitten

The only nostalgia I have is missing the sense of exploration that old maplestory had. You could be walking in a map and fall down and die in one hit from the way more powerful golems. Or take a wrong portal and end up in a map with mobs several levels higher than you (which was deadly back then before stats were inflated to heaven). Trying to find my way around, and trying to find/remember all the hidden portals in maps, even the ones that did nothing but teleport you from one side of the map to the other (especially those in fact).

MS is missing that sense of exploration now because it was dumbed down to be more noob friendly. But even if it hadn't been dumbed down, that sense of exploration wouldn't have lasted this long anyway. I've gotten older, and I would have already discovered all of that by now, so it would no longer be a surprise.

I miss it a lot, but bringing back old maplestory won't bring that same sense of exploration back with it. Best to let it stay as fond memories instead of trying to bring it back and having those memories of it ruined

Yeah, I really missed those hidden portals. They were fun to find and even if other people might know about it, it's still like your little secret. There's a thrill to finding a Hidden Street on your own, which is why I hate how they practically highlight all the hidden spots. It's like Maple doesn't trust people to be able to find them, goodness knows why. This is also the reason why I hated when they changed Victoria Island. It used to feel a lot bigger (and taxis were actually useful), full of secrets and adventure.

I think if they left it alone, it wouldn't have lost that sense of exploration though, even if you do grow older because it still gives a nostalgia factor and even if not, new players would be given that same thrill and it'd be one of the reasons to stick around. I remember the areas around Lith Harbor used to have a lot of Hidden Streets for newbs to stumble into and it's exciting, because it tells them that this is what they could expect for the rest of the game: adventure.

I played this game growing up from as early as 2007+ IIRC, I think it's why I keep coming back to it every six months or so now when I've got spare time to play around with it. There are days when I forget that certain areas are completely different or just don't exist anymore. Hahah

Try as I might, I can't log into it without constantly being reminded of how much the game has grown and changed. I was never good at MS, but there were so many factors in it that I found amazing and fun: notably the exploration! I remember pitching the game to my friends and saying things like, "No, really, there's TONS of worlds! You will never get to see everything because there's SO MUCH in it! You need an air bubble to breathe underwater, and a hot bun so you won't freeze in the snow!" and honestly in retrospect I realize I never did discover everything -- sure, I explored Sea World, but I was too low level to attack anything so I ran around and did nothing. But who cares? It was fun.

Just yesterday one of my online friends that I've known for almost a decade messaged me and brought up that she'd gotten a new PC and asked what games I play. Maple is my casual relaxing game, so naturally I brought it up. She got really excited since we used to stay up late and sneak on the computer to play it.

I remember being petrified of not getting inside the boat fast enough or the balrogs would kill me. I remember staying up late or waking up early on a weekday just to get the boat ride out of the way. I remember playing excessively for a month and barely being level 30. I remember almost being one-shot by dinosaurs in the cavern but my friends and I would still explore despite dying if we did anything wrong. NX was a rare treasure that only highschoolers with part-time jobs got. I couldn't even afford potions, man. (like I said before, I am and always have been a total noob)

I'm not bitter that time went on, I actually really like the game nowadays because it isn't taxing to play and anyone can get into it. It's confusing when you go to farm an item you used to have is now unavailable or when you realize a zone isn't in the game anymore, but aside from that it's alright. I don't miss the old adventurer's tutorial with the weird Maple garb, having only 4 classes (I still have an old Cleric...), having an ugly character because events or free NX was unheard of, worrying if my Mesos got hacked if I didn't log in often, and maybe it was just me but it was impossible to find friends because any time I ran into anyone I'd get "CC plz or im reporting u" for being in the same zone as them.

And omg... Hidden Street..... lol

I've grown with the game and I'm proud of how far it's come. I remember being unable to get my friends into the game for more than a week because it had potential to be great, but if you didn't fork over cash or play every day for months you'd get nowhere. It was a grind before with payoffs that never felt rewarding to us, and that's changed drastically.

So idk, I like it. I feel like I'm the minority with that being said, but I do.