Remember the game MapleStory? It's being kept alive by these millennials 20 years on

It’s not every day that a game can reach a 20th year anniversary, but MapleStory, a massive multiplayer online role-playing game from South Korea has achieved this.

Much like World Of Warcraft, which had its own 20th last year, MapleStory is one of those games that has stood the test of time. This massive multiplayer online role-playing game is set in a 2D world called Maple World and features cutesy characters with multiple classes and abilities to play with. Players roam a vast world filled with equally cute monsters to slay, while also clearing quests and taking down bosses.

While not as popular as it used to be in its heyday, MapleStory still has a sizeable number of players, with an estimated 200,000 monthly players on its global servers, and around 20,000 for MapleStorySEA, its Southeast Asian server, though this is not an official figure. PlayPark, which publishes the game for Southeast Asia, declined to comment when asked. 

It also doesn't hurt when it's got a Japanese anime spin-off as well as K-pop groups like BTS and Blackpink professing their love for the game and even doing collaborations.

For a PC game surviving at a time when most casual gamers are now mobile-first, MapleStory seems to have defied the odds. And if attendance numbers at its 20th anniversary event over the weekend at Suntec City in Singapore were anything to go by, the game still remains popular, especially among its millennial fanbase.

According to PlayPark, the event drew around 10,000 attendees, which peaked on Sunday (Aug 17) as queues snaked around the mall for a “secret ticket” event where people could get special in-game items.

Furthermore, while the event featured carnival games for players to win tickets to redeem in-game or physical merchandise, most of the attendees seemed to be more interested in queueing up to purchase MapleStory gear, reflective of the current millennial trend of collecting plushies. 

QUEUING FOR MERCH

While they didn’t meet in-game, playing MapleStory was one of the things that cabin crew couple Chin Yi-Hin and Veneser Chew commonly shared. The 29-year-olds play MapleStory for about two hours a day.

MapleStory has been a part of Chin’s gaming life since primary school, and while he used to spend quite a bit – about four figures a month – he’s since stopped doing so. This time, he and Chew were in line to spend money on the game’s real world products instead. 

“I used to spend, but not anymore, but if it’s a physical version, I’ll get it,” said Chin.

Also in the queue was digital marketing executive Lynette Than, who was with a bunch of friends patiently waiting to get their hands on MapleStory plushies. Having played since primary school, the 33 year-old has spent over 18 years inside the game, though it’s not the only game she’s been playing.

“I like the cute graphics, the gameplay, and that there’s constant updates every week so there’s new stuff,” said Than.

“But I also play other games as well, such as Overcooked.”

FIRST IN LINE

Superfan Ho Wei Keong had been looking forward to the event. Together with his wife, Ho was the first in line at the MapleStory 20th anniversary pop-up and had been queueing since 11.30pm the night before it opened – he had to wait outside the mall when it was closed for the night.

“I started playing in 2016, then I quit, then came back in 2018, but during COVID-19, I decided to just stay all the way,” said Ho. “I like making friends in game, and being in a guild and meeting up for gatherings at chalets.” 

Besides being first in line, Ho also attended a similar event in Kuala Lumpur in July, where he helped a fellow MapleStory player purchase merchandise to bring back to Singapore. He’s a big fan of the Pink Bean character, and came down to pick up a Pink Bean bolster. 

Despite having originally started out determined to be a F2P (free-to-play) player, Ho said he now spends around S$2,000 every three months to retain his top MVP status, and plans to continue playing the game for as long as it’s possible, though with breaks. 

“I still do play for a long time, but I need to take a break for a short while to work on real life stuff as I have a daughter.”

PLAYING SINCE HE WAS FIVE

Lim Wei Zhen, a 26-year-old HR executive, has been playing MapleStory since he was five after watching his brother play the game. He started playing at an early age because he comes from a family of gamers.

“I started playing because the game was cute, catchy, and fun,” said Lim. “I could play with a lot of friends, and the music was very calming, which attracted me to play.”

Lim also added that while he hasn’t continuously played the game, he would still come back to it. He’s tried all versions, including the mobile one, and has also been spending for in-game items to the tune of about S$500 a month after COVID-19 happened.

“I stop playing, I go do something else, but I keep thinking about the game,” he added, as he showed off the huge bag of loot he had gotten from the pop-up event. He spent around S$600 on merchandise for himself.

Powered by millennial spending, MapleStory continues to have a fanbase that’s loyal, dedicated and willing to spend. It’s stood the test of time, but it will be interesting to see if the game will be able to have a 30th anniversary event in the future even as its core fans age.