A great game, just don't get too addicted to it!!!
The graphics in this game are alright. They aren't that great because of the fact that the game is a side scrolling game. Also, the game is a 2D/3D blend, where the front of the game is 2d (for characters, monsters, etc) while the background is 3d.
The music is really, really good, because almost every area has its own music. If a special boss monster comes out, the music changes. As well, there are tons of sound effects that are placed in the game. Everything from picking up an item to killing a monster makes a noise.
The game is really immerse itself, because it lets the users take the game where they want it. An example would be the Free Market, a place where users buy and sell items from anywhere in the game. Over here, people can use marketing skills to get good deals on quality items, or sell poor items for a high price, etc. The prices depend completely on the market, meaning that the game only controls the prices of items from an NPC.
The difficulty of the game is insane. The higher your level, the more time it takes to level up. This being said, it is not easy to level at all. There are 200 levels in total and it takes usually around a day (minimum, depending on your class) to level up once you get over 70+.
There is something called NX cash, where you can buy points cards at local retailers, such as Shoppers Drug Mart, to buy in game items only available through NX. I believe this to be very cheap, because many people would end up spending hundreds of dollars on Maple Story and get much better items than you, while you work hard without using NX cash and get almost no good items.
Items in this game are taken to the next level! There are equips, weapons, etc items (such as monster drops) and much more. Equips and weapons are really detailed and many are only obtained through killing monsters. They all have a random stat, so people are always looking for the same item with the best stats. One of the most unique things about Maple Story is that there is a scrolling feature. There are 10% scrolls, 30% scrolls, 60% scrolls, 70% scrolls, and 100% scrolls.
An equip has a certain amount of Slots (Number of upgrade available.) For each scroll you use on one item, the number decreases, whether the scroll is successful or not. When that number hits 0, you cannot use scrolls on it anymore. If an item is poorly scrolled, the value of the item will be lower. If it is nicely scrolled, the value rises. The price of a scroll depends on what it is and what it will give. The scrolling feature really adds a luck concept to the game.
I have spent more than 3 years playing Maple Story, and one thing I can tell you right away is that you should never get addicted to it! If you play moderately, it is fine, but if you play too much when you start out, you will be completely sucked into the game and will probably spend most of your time on the game for a long period of time. There are many kind and generous people around and they are really the reason that I come back on to play sometimes.
Thanks for reading my review! ~ I hope my review was helpful and OK to read (this is my seventh review)
-Nev