MapleStory is an online adventure game that centers around the “Maple World,” allowing players to combat monsters and develop their characters’ skills and abilities in an immense platform-inspired persistent world. Players, using charming characters, interact through chatting, trading, and playing mini-games while surrounded by vibrant backgrounds. Groups of players can unite in parties or guilds to socialize, hunt monsters, or embark on quests.

MapleStory’s innovative cash shop offers players the option to use real currency to pay for game enhancements, from cosmetic items such as haircuts and clothing, to virtual pets that can be trained to sit, stand, and breathe fire. This feature is purely optional and players can try out items prior to purchase in a virtual dressing room. Players create truly unique identities in MapleStory through avatar customizations.

Released this week to MapleStory is the Monster Carnival 2, a return of a very popular quest based event in which parties enter and hunt monsters the opposing team has summoned. The payoff of Monster Carnival is a trove of rewards including coins and medals. This event is currently underway and will continue indefinitely.

Also coming live this week is the Mu Lung Dojo challenge. A the Mu Lung Dojo, players can take on top fighters and earn a set of five belts and 32 metals.  Additionally, there is a series of back-to-school events that have gone live including:

• Alphabet Gathering: Defeat monsters and collect the letters they drop to spell words which bring great rewards
• Cassandra’s Special Alphabet Gift: Reporting to this NPC upon login will earn players letters. In some cases, very rare letters.
• The Great MapleStory book drive: Help a student retrieve her books from monsters who tore them from her and receive letters or other valuable items.
• Back-to-School Sale: There is a 30 percent off sale on necessary school items such as notebooks, pencils and prep-school uniforms.

Launched on May 11, 2005, MapleStory became a legend in online games with its amazing social features, rich art style and open world opportunities. Players have flocked to MapleStory with over 92 million worldwide users and over six million users in North America.

Maplers have traveled through the many lands of the game’s vast world, as well as unleashed the game’s traits of individuality and freedom beyond its game borders. Players have turned MapleStory into an online video mainstay through blogs, community fan sites and fan videos. Over 200,000 videos are available by searching MapleStory at YouTube.