I don't understand why people say Old maple was so much better

What is there to do gameplay-wise besides get better gear? Maple's storyline is almost nonexistent, the grind is ridiculous, hunting for rare items is worse because you at least with grinding you have a progress bar, and a new area or boss comes out like once a year at best. Nexon relies extremely heavily on people wanting to get better gear and people who can be entertained by the release of new classes to keep this game going. I played one character at a time and I didn't care that much about gear, and I was always bored out of my mind.

I like making friends and killing bosses together. And PQs. ┐（￣ー￣）┌

Maple's a fun past-time for me now. Grinding while I can in the summer, probably gach or cube stuff come school time.