Nexon Wrote:
Greetings Maplers, and welcome to the first MapleStory dev blog entry! My name is Eurydice and I will be your regular host. You can expect to hear from me (or occasionally another dev) every couple of weeks on a wide range of topics concerning Global MapleStory. We hope that this blog provides you with insight into the world of making and maintaining MapleStory. To begin with, I’d like to talk about Global MapleStory and how we bring content from other versions into gMS.

Even if you’re new to the game, you are probably aware that MapleStory started out in South Korea. In the beginning, there was only one version of MapleStory, and you had to understand Korean to play. Pretty soon however, the developers realized that with a few changes the game could be popular around the world. Now there are 10 versions of MapleStory, but much more than just language separates them. Each version of MapleStory is a unique game, with its own code base, programmers, and designers. While all MapleStory developers work for Nexon in the same office, each version has a dedicated team that works on their game specifically for their players. This situation offers us a lot of flexibility so that gMS can run its own events, set its own game update dates, make changes to game balance, and on occasion, even create our own content.

With all these versions of MapleStory out there, a lot of content gets created. On the gMS team, we are always reviewing other versions’ content to find the coolest stuff to bring over to our players, as well as evaluating internal ideas for new content. A lot of new content comes from kMS (Korean MapleStory, the original), especially new classes, but we try to evaluate all content equally and bring over things we think you will enjoy the most. Once we choose which content to bring into gMS we must localize it. This process takes several months and includes translation of text, game balance changes, and code integration. Since each version of MapleStory is independent from the others, code integration is often the trickiest part. Sometimes content from other versions fits with gMS smoothly, but more often it’s like trying to push a square peg through a round hole. Modifications need to be made and a lot of testing has to be done to get the content working. Players often make guesses on the forums about how long it will take one piece of content to come to gMS based on its size, but the truth is, size is rarely a good indication of how complex content will be to localize.

Of course, localization isn’t all technical. We work hard to ensure that content retains its original personality while still being easy for our players to understand. Sometimes a story or character just doesn’t translate, and we have to rewrite from scratch, but our goal is always to retain the original intent. Regardless of where content comes from, we want as many Maplers as possible to enjoy it.

Thanks for reading our very first dev blog. We hope to use this blog to highlight even more insights on the work that goes into bring MapleStory to life. So keep your eyes peeled for more blog updates!

Eurydice
The MapleStory Team

Kabanaw Wrote:Read as "Big Bang will come, but it'll take a while, ktntx" to me.

Tikey Wrote:It's always nice to hear something from the actual devs themselves than from GMs and the like. I wouldn't mind a weekly/monthly blog from the devs.

NEXON Wrote:every couple of weeks

Quote:While all MapleStory developers work for Nexon in the same office, each version has a dedicated team that works on their game specifically for their players.

Combattente Wrote:I really like this idea. It's like the backstage of the development of gMS. I've always been curious about how things like those worked.
So wait, does it mean that some content from kMS will never come because they think we might not enjoy it? I mean, until now, we got almost EVERYTHING from kMS, but I've been wondering about why they still haven't released some things such as Ghost Ship Race or El Nath PQ yet.. I hope they will, sooner or later..
But yeah, I assumed that this 'localization' process wouldn't have been easier most of the times. I guess I was right.

PirateIzzy Wrote:"we are always reviewing other versions’ content to find the coolest stuff to bring over to our players"

Because Neo City is SO cool.

Combattente Wrote:Trust me, dying every 5 seconds as a non-HP washed ranged class on normal mobs at Neo Tokyo, having to hunt them for HOURS on 4x drop to find an item for a quest and not even having a chance on any of the last bosses without HB and a good amount of HP washing isn't cool either.

Erich Wrote:Nothing will ever get localized because the korean version is eliminating everything, god da'mn it. There's nothing "good" we can get because of the korean version. They've assimilated everything and ruined it in the process.

Erich Wrote:Nothing will ever get localized because the korean version is eliminating everything, god da'mn it. There's nothing "good" we can get because of the korean version. They've assimilated everything and ruined it in the process.


And at above, that wasn't a huge problem in JMS. People did it all the time. And if you couldn't kill something, people were nice enough to let you sit around and get the kill. We won't get the best boss in the game, now. Also, if it wasn't a problem in JMS, why would it be a problem in GMS? It's the most broken version in all the versions.

PirateIzzy Wrote:I'd rather have nothing, actually.

SwordStaker Wrote:As I said, as much as the "Leave us alone about content" message this seems to be, if played right this could be amazing.

Combattente Wrote:Having to rely on other people for many of the quests isn't really the best.

Takebacker Wrote:Then don't do the quests and level your ass up. You have no real argument for neo tokyo being hard now that potential is out.