Hello

This time, the keyword is freeze-drying: looking back on old Nexon game elements that were so fun or so memorable they feel worth freeze-drying and preserving.

With that in mind, I picked out a few past MapleStory contents that fit that idea, purely by my own standards.

Mini-game: Crazy Splash

Crazy Splash was a mini-game featured in the Newtro-themed anniversary event, and as you can see above, it only ever appeared once, all the way back in 2019.

Just like the name suggests, it basically lifted the Crazy Arcade format as-is. The gameplay, items, and even the effects were recreated almost exactly.

Compared to the original, a lot of people did find it a bit disappointing because of the slightly awkward controls and the trademark lag that came with it. Personally, though, I had a great time with it, and I remember playing plenty even after I had already cleared the reward requirements. The reactions were really split—there were even quite a few players who would self-destruct the second they entered.

The rewards at the time were mascot items from Crazy Arcade. If there was ever a final window for this mini-game to come back, I feel like it would have been during Nexon’s 30th anniversary, when all sorts of official collaborations were happening. Since it still didn’t return then, I doubt we’ll be seeing it again.

Meanwhile, the faces used for Bazzi and Dao, who fronted the event at the time, were Aing and Sugar Face respectively. Back then, players often talked about those two faces as if they were rivals, and that got reflected here. It’s not often that a player-side meme gets imported back into official content, so even now I still find that pretty fascinating.

Judge of the Blue Sky

Judge of the Blue Sky is one of those mini-games that pops up from time to time, and most recently it was playable during last year’s 22nd anniversary event.

The basic format is simple: swing your toy hammer, drain the other player’s HP, or shove them off the cloud to score points.

That said, I think the really important part of this game is the two items you can pick up on the field. If you hold onto them well and wait for the right moment...

...you can use them around the Golden Toy Hammer, which gives a ton of points when destroyed—throw up a barrier and charge in to knock other players off, or toss a bomb to steal the last hit on the Golden Toy Hammer. Scoring that way is honestly pretty fun.

Another nice thing is that if your guild castle is above a certain level, you can currently play this anytime with other guild members. So if it sounds interesting, it’s not a bad little option for some casual guild bonding.

The One Punch Man version of Special World

Special World first launched as Pink Bean World, and since then it’s been one of those events that returns every so often. Over time, more and more benefits were added, which made leveling much easier. In that sense, the peak was the most recent One Punch Man collaboration Special World.

Most notably, the two benefits above were active at all times, and Saitama’s skills were also designed as satisfyingly huge AoE attacks, so the synergy was kind of absurd.

There was a real thrill in clearing out maps packed with monsters and watching your level shoot up so quickly. I also remember boss missions being easy to clear thanks to the level 5 special skill ring you received by default.

Way back in the older Pink Bean World days, there was that whole mess where dozens of Pink Beans would be lined up waiting for Dodo because they were trying to clear the Step Up mission and had to do the Temple of Time pre-quest. Seeing how much things have improved since then really does make the passage of time hit.

Considering that Special World came with the Demon Slayer collaboration in November 2024 and the One Punch Man collaboration in November 2025, I get the feeling we might see a collaboration Special World once a year right before the winter update. If so, I hope it keeps this format so we can get that fast-growth experience again.

Event benefits that are about to disappear

Meanwhile, unlike the contents above, if there’s one thing I’d want permanently preserved with basically no downside, it would be the event skills players often call “tonics.” The current event is about to end, and people are already mourning the loss.

The hunting-related benefits from the Haste event and the Ancient Power effect you could get by raising Elanos will both end on March 18 at 23:59.

The Illusion Magic you could get through the attendance check, thankfully, lasts one extra week and will end on March 25 at 23:59.

This kind of event left a particularly strong impression on players years ago through the Union Skills from the Black update, and considering there were benefits as dramatic as the ones above, I imagine the void they left behind must have felt even bigger than it does now.

Thanks for reading.