Q&A with NxProse

Masteria or Ossyria?

Good pizza or good burgers? Both leave you satisfied. With all the effort put into that fantastic place, it'd be rather arrogant to say Masteria
at this point. Maybe in a few years, the players can decide that for themselves. =)

What level range is the new Masteria expansion for?

Lowest monster is 45, highest is 120.

So, 45-120. This area is a fair bit tougher than Magatia (30-90). I think we can all agree that the level 120 monster is most likely a boss of some sort. Still, that doesn't mean there aren't monsters from 100-120 as well. I mean, Duku are 115. Then there's a big gap up to Krexel at 140. We could have our boss be 120 and have a level 119 trainable monster right beside it. Doesn't discount anything. I'd like for our boss to be more on line with Pap or Zak than Pianus, though.

Did the Bronze Sack you guys release do any good for the economy like you guys planned? Will you continue to sell them in the future?

We're still evaluating it, so we'll see.

Does the recent iTCG code items have anything to do with the new content?

Story-wise, yes.

Any Party Quests involved?

Maybe. =)

When is the next Content Test Server sign up going to be?

For Masteria, there isn't going to be one. Everyone is going to experience the update at the same time. =)

ITCG items are so tied in with Crimsonwood Keep. Antellion relic, LeFay Jewel, Bosshunter Gear... most of it is from there. I hope we can involve these items in the quests some way. It's good to see they also think of this. Party Quests: Maybe = yes. It may not be in this patch but it'll be there. Sucks that there will be no test server for this, I was hoping it would be really thoroughly tested.

why was Maple Island altered?

To make it easier for beginners to start out and get into the game.

Has anyone thought of porting maplestory to linux? There is a fairly large base of maplers that use linux and are interested in playing but
face extreme difficulty doing so.

No, this isn't something we're pursuing at the moment, but in the future, you never know.

Has anyone toyed with the idea of a new major boss? Something a little superior to krexel while at the same time being in the same league as horntail, zakum, pianus, and papulatus.

I will say this, my ideal boss fight is more similar to the Amorian Challenge. Not exact, but the same ideals of strategy, attacking, and dodging.
Thinking under pressure is always an excellents way to gauge how good you are. =)

I'm glad to see that you solved the problem with windowed mode (i've seen dxwnd running around since 06') so that leads me to are you going to create original software like that in the future?

We're always looking into different ways to play the game, so just stay tuned. =)

Will there be new content for higher lvl players (lvl 120+) to enjoy in this next patch?

Yes.

How long has it taken for the development of the Masterian Expansion?

A long, long time. It'll be worth it! =)

Will we expect to see future locations in Masteria in a faster pace? (Not once every year =X).

Well, the key is not once per year, it's how many areas you actually get. That said, good stuff takes a while =).
I'd love to do one a month, but that isn't really feasible. Once you see the new area and the scope, you'll understand a bit better.
We wanted a lot more than just a new background. =)

I don't think anyone should be surprised by the APQ/Boss comment either. Geist Balrog, while he can be annoying, is a very fun fight. It requires intelligent moving and a good mix of magic and weapons to fight it efficiently. Movement and planning to pin him as he swoops near. This is what Nexon thinks bosses should be like, and I can't agree more.

as for the 120+ players, it seems to lead us to believe that the Masteria Expansion will house those monsters that are close to the boss's level (120), similar to end Leafre or Ulu.

The last comment implies there's more than one area being released. If it's another section besides Crimsonwood, the next most likely would seemingly be Krakia... but that seems to big to package together. Perhaps Affluent Tower or the Yetinx. The Dragon Door is another possibility... Affluent Tower's hints appear lower.

Will the new area be any good for mages in general?

See the Logo in the other post. =)

Have 2hour 2x Cards been discussed? I can find a 2 hour playing window but I can’t usually find the time for 4 hours. I think 2 hour cards would be far more practical and flexible and suit casual gamers like me much better.

We discuss a lot of things, but nothing concrete yet.

You've mentioned before that high level content is hard to design. Making me feel like you guys are cooking up something unique and challenging, not just higher level monsters with more hp. Are you satisfied with the progress your team is making on future high level content? I hope we're not waiting in vain.

It's trickier, but you are not waiting in vain =). We're pretty confident that it will be a true test of your skills.

Do you like Pirates or Ninjas more?

Ninjas.

About the masteria map (image) it seems that the map show a part of the continent, we are going to get the other parts of the continent?

It would be nice to visit those areas, wouldn't it?

will there be new weapons? for all classes

That logo really does say everything.

what lvl is your masteria favorite unreleased monster?

The *Yeti Smash!*.

The logo, in case you haven't seen it, sports an Axe, a Staff, and a hand holding an arrow. The hand looks vaguely like it is wearing a claw or knuckles. We know that Crimsonwood Keep was ruled by a grandmaster of each job, so you'd expect there to be training areas where everyone could benefit. We know that there are two groups, the Stormcasters and Windreavers, so perhaps there will be a magician training area and a ranged training area? Who knows. I never was able to read the text about Stormcaster gloves, so if someone has it, please post it!

Crimsonwood Keep, according to John Barricade, is in Phantom Forest. That's where the mansion is, and as you can see there's not a whole lot of room on the map. We may see a new map added here. A map added to cover the new area at the same time would be really great instead of waiting months for it to be added.

Ninjas: Dragon and Raven Ninja clans, anyone?

Last question: NDA'd

I was wondering if you guys would ever consider cutting Axe and BW users some slack by giving them a weapon up to par with swords that they can use in higher levels, maybe one with a fast attack speed like the Ribgol sword, or any other bonus to give Axe and BW users a pat on the back. It doesn't have to be remarkable, just something to keep the motivation alive.

This is fair point, and you guys are important, and we do have some stuff that balances it out in-game, so we'll defeinately keep you guys in mind for the future.

In comparison to the first part of Masteria, how would you rate this upcoming release of Masteria? Better, worse...

Bigger is always better. =)

Do you plan to add more areas in Masteria that we still don't know about?

Heheh...there's always stuff to add!

What are your goals for the remainder of 2008 like?

Basically, make this year the best that Maple has seen. We've added a lot, and it's only going to get better.

How do you put up with people's insults towards your job,and towards the company as a whole,and still find some sort of enjoyment out of your occupation?

That's easy. If you make a couple million players smile and a couple thousand frown, you enjoy the smiles and see what needs to be done to get the others to join them.
We aren't always perfect, and we do make mistakes. Even so, people enjoying something I created is what gets me out of bed in the morning.

Bigger is Better: our expansion is significantly larger than what's in place. Great news. Crimsonwood Keep has been the tantalizing carrot that keeps our fascination with Masteria on track, it seems like it will surpass our dreams.

Some are ranting one how pirates are gonna be censored due to the "guns not fitting into the E rating", would it be "edited" to fit the rating?

I'll say this: My Yeti laughs well everytime he sees a thread like that.

What are some of your favorite obscure shows?

Firefly, NY Undercover...the Mysterious Cities of Gold.

Is the annoying return scroll disablement in Masteria there for something, or is it just for laughs?

Nope, it's there for a reason. Eagle-eyed sleuths can probably deduce this once they finish the new quests.

did you readded aqua seraphim to cash shop because u were fixing the bug of the pole arms/spears having wrong animation?

Yep.

Finally people can shut up about Pirates being nerfed? God, I hate all these ridiculous rumors. Since when have any of these insane fears panned out? We did get Showa, 4th job was in Leafre, and we will get pirates... untouched.

I wonder what the reason for Return Scrolls being unusable in Masteria is. It must be related to the Antellion/Mystic Astrolabe, as those two items seem to indicate that they are capable of returning you/warping you to places on Masteria. Perhaps we'll get an equivalent item, or maybe a replacement (like Omega Sector/ludi warp capsules) which will be from a repeatable quest or something. I always hated how there's a limited number of Omega/Ludi capsules.

Just one question. What is "X"?

"Anything specific". We don't give dates. =)

what's your opinion on the new KMST area, the Time Temple? It looks awesome and it'd be neat to see what the team at Nexon America thinks of it.

Heh, everything they make is awesome, so there you go.

What goes through your minds when making a map?

Out of order, navigation, new wrinkles, intent, mobs, playability, overall scope are a few.

Why did this company recieve an F from the BBB?

We basically had to contact them and show them we responded to the inquiries. It's a BB now.

Are Masteria's graphics done in-house or do you guys send the concept art to Nexon Korea for processing?

Concept Art here, sent for in-game design.

So, will Nexon America add special Nexon America features? For example, something not tested/made in Nexon Korea?

The Masteria/Amoria updates are an example of this. There is stuff there that doesn't currently exist anywhere else.

My Skunk, he wants to go there so bad! Maybe open the doors for him

Who said its a door? =)

That person... looks a lot like John Barricade. Might this be his brother Jack?

They do look alike don't they? In due time, this one will be answered.

And, lastly, pepsi or coke?

Neither. Tropical Punch FTW.

Which side (of NLC) will the expansion be on?

As Beyonce would say...to the left.

are there any plans to fix the disconection problem that marksmen have when doing over 100k with pierce?

We're looking into it.

Affluent tower doesn't have a door, huh? Maybe it'll be packaged in this round of expansion. He seems to refer to it like it's been made already.

I believe one of the later Masteria hints will be about Jack Barricade, so we must wait until then for some answers on that.

The coke question got destroyed, haha.

Phantom Forest is left of NLC, so this is no shocker. Does put a damper on Affluent Tower though.


Well yeah, that's all I see at the moment. I bet most of you figured this stuff out, he didn't veil things as heavily as before. Perhaps they've decided to give him some more freedom in answering questions.