MapleStory is an MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) that first went live in 2003 and famously maintains an active user base to this day. MIRAE member LEE JUNHYUK, a certified Mapler (as players are called), has always been very vocal about his love of the game. He not only talks with the group’s fans, NOW, about the game on Weverse and on his vlog but even famously yelled out the names of some MapleStory moves while wearing a Harry Potter costume. Here, LEE JUNHYUK speaks directly to all the NOW Maplers-to-be out there to let them know what makes the game so fun and alluring.

A MapleStory primer from LEE JUNHYUK

LEE JUNHYUK: I used to sit with my sister and watch her play, then I started playing in 2008 or 2009 when they introduced characters with the Pirate role. I couldn’t really level up back then and I was too young so I gave up quickly. (laughs) Back then the popular place for users to hang out was these two trees in the Henesys area. I remember seeing people there with really high levels and thinking how cool that was. There was also a map called Sleepywood that was so tough that once you got in you seriously felt like you’d have to delete your character, but looking back now it was pretty fun. You couldn’t move around well in the old MapleStory but it felt like an adventure just like the name suggests. Then around sixth grade the Legends update came out and I started playing with friends, but only a little bit. Later on in second or third year of high school my friends said they all wanted to play so I started all over again but my friends made it to a really high level. I was gritting my teeth and saying, I gotta get stronger too, and fast. (laughs) It was school vacation so I had a lot of free time. I watched a lot of tutorials on YouTube and slowly got better without anyone knowing.

LEE JUNHYUK’s daily MapleStory routine

LEE JUNHYUK: I’ve been playing a lot lately but I can never play for very long. There’s a Hyper Burning event in MapleStory during vacation where it’s easier to level up and I have to play at least a bit since I’ll feel like I’m putting myself at a disadvantage if I’m the only one who isn’t playing. [Note: This interview took place at the end of February.] I do the daily quests with my Hyper Burning character these days since it’s during the event. Then I go back and play my main [character] to do the daily quests, go around the Underground Waterway and Monster Park … and that takes up well over an hour every day. (laughs) There’s some days I’m exhausted, which I’m sure all users feel sometimes. Instead of saying, “MapleStory time!,” it’s more like, “Oh right, I gotta play MapleStory …” Then it’s homework. (laughs) But if you’re going to be powerful, you have to do it. You can hunt in MapleStory and once I did it a lot and got used to it I started watching YouTube on the side.

Advice for those just starting out with MapleStory

LEE JUNHYUK: It can be pretty hard at first, actually. But if you just push through that part, you can have more fun with it later. MapleStory has lots of different events so I think there’s plenty of small things for people to have fun with. But it might be a little hard to get started when there’s not that many people playing so if you’re really going to get into it you should probably start during school vacation. I like the bosses the best. There’s an order to how powerful they are and you could enjoy beating them one by one that way. If you just try them by yourself first and feel like you can’t beat them, there’s tutorials you can look up. If you search on YouTube there’s all kinds of strategies. I looked up a lot of tutorials for levelling up your Union [a mode where several characters form one monster-fighting team], too. I heard before that it’s easier to start with a character that collects experience faster. Then I started choosing characters who are easy to control and good for training. And when you play MapleStory, make sure to keep your back straight when you’re training and wear glasses because it’s bad on your eyes. I do the same thing, but I recommend people not watch videos too much and instead listen to some music while concentrating on training. (laughs)

Tips for NOW when they choose a character

LEE JUNHYUK: It’s good to decide on a main first and play with them. Some people start out with a Union but there’s a lot of events you can only benefit from using your main. I recommend people find a character they’re interested in and work on that one first and move onto a Union later. My main used to be the Blaze Wizard but after seeing the Cygnus Knights Revamp and getting my Blaze Wizard all leveled up I decided to switch up my main. So now I main Hoyoung. I think he’s perfect when it comes to movement and training.

How to choose a MapleStory world (server)

LEE JUNHYUK: I was on the Scania server at first, but the downside of servers with a lot of users is that the training areas are crowded. So I’ve been playing on the Aurora server since high school. There was a brief period where there was this influx of users to Aurora, but now it’s relatively quiet—sort of the rural equivalent of a server. The trade-off for not having many items being sold is the training area is pretty empty. There’s a Megaphone option on MapleStory that lets you send a message to the entire server and I feel a little hurt when I see people saying something like, “Aurora’s such a countryside server.” And then there’s Reboot worlds, where you have to rely on your own ability for everything. In a regular server you’re at an advantage because you can buy items from others, but in Reboot servers you can’t use real money and you have to play the game just with the things you can find in-game. I’m thinking about starting over on a Reboot server lately too. I think it’s good to try out a regular server first and then, if you’re enjoying it, you could try a Reboot server.

What makes someone an OG, according to LEE JUNHYUK

LEE JUNHYUK: I’m not really at that high a level. I’m at level 52 in Mu Lung Dojo and I’m almost over 9,000 in my Union. I think the benchmark for someone to be OG is having a Union. Everyone makes it to level 8,000 but once I hit 9,000, my friends said, “Wow, how did you level up this high?” That made me feel a bit OG. (laughs) My main is at level 264. My characters are actually all over level 200 so I have nothing left to grind. (laughs) My goal is to someday be able to do Hard Lotus and Hard Demian [the hard modes for two bosses] by myself. I think lots of people will say I’m good at the game once I make it that far. I really like the game but to be honest it’s basically love. (laughs) It’s too late to stop playing now. (laughs)

Games that you can make your own

LEE JUNHYUK: I guess you could say they’re places that you can make your own. Even if it’s not exactly a place, I still like making and training and decorating something that’s mine. I watched a lot of let’s play videos of Animal Crossing: New Horizons lately thanks to the YouTube algorithm and I thought it looked fun getting the residents you want to live there so I started playing. It’s cute how you can talk to the residents and give them gifts and it’s fun designing your island. When I decorated the entrance to the airport recently, it really made me realize why people like decorating so much. I feel accomplished in MapleStory when I reach my goal of beating a boss or reach the Union level I wanted to. I sometimes play [games that are played in single rounds like] League of Legends or PUBG but I always end up coming back to MapleStory. I’m not in a rush. (laughs) I just think about slowly making my own way, bit by bit. Who I am will have changed in five years along with who I am in the game. It feels like I’m growing up alongside the game.

Playing together is fun

LEE JUNHYUK: I don’t have a lot of time these days so I mostly play alone when I play MapleStory. I used to find a party of Maplers and fight bosses when I had free time. (laughs) Someone will say, “Anyone want to go together?” And I say, “Can I join? I’m a level 52 Hoyoung.” It’s fun beating enemies in a party that I can’t beat on my own. I also played MapleStory a bit with KHAEL and decided to do it with YOO DO HYUN for one of his videos but he stopped playing after just one day. (laughs) Now there’s a mobile version of the popular PlayStation soccer game PES [also known as eFootball and Winning Eleven]. I’m playing it with PARK SI YOUNG and JANG YU BIN, trying to figure out who’s best. I play it with PARK YU BIN to decide who showers first. I don’t know if it’s because he’s younger (laughs) but his fingers are fast. I lost two games to him just before this. I’m playing against myself when I play alone but I have an opponent when I play with one of the other members, so it’s more fun to play with someone else.

Playing games with NOW

LEE JUNHYUK: I guess you could say gaming is a way to reward myself. You’re always going to grow tired of your daily routine but I think it’s good for you to make time for yourself and do things you like. I said before that I wanted play KartRider with NOW and I’d like to try a Miles Ticket event with them in Animal Crossing like YouTubers always do. I want to go up to the top of the Forest of Endurance with NOW in MapleStory and take a screenshot there. Jin from BTS did an event before called Jin’s World Wide Handsome! and I want to make my own event, too, once I’m able to be a good influence on even more people.