Hello!

I’m PEAKER Doronagi.

May is Family Month, after all.

And coming up soon is Children’s Day on May 5.

If adults obviously have to work ㅠㅠ

then kids obviously have to play, right? Go play... play as much as you want...

According to a survey of children in Korea,

42.9% of children want to play

but only 18.6% of children actually get to... Isn’t that way too low?

The average daily playtime for children in OECD countries is 2 hours and 30 minutes

but the average daily playtime for children in Korea? Just 1 hour and 32 minutes.

That’s apparently among the very lowest in the OECD.

With OECD stats, Korea always seems to end up at the bottom only for the bad stuff, right...ㅠ

So!

Nexon MapleStory

at Children’s Grand Park

to help promote children’s right to play, opened a playground created together with children

— the MapleStory public playground.

It’s called the super cute and instantly lovable Maple Leaf Playground No. 3.

I was like, why No. 3? Turns out there were already a No. 1 and No. 2.

No. 1 is in Seongnam, and No. 2 is in Uijeongbu.

They’ve been remodeling existing public playgrounds and reopening them as part of a social contribution project.

Maple Leaf Playground No. 3 opened on April 18, so it’s already been over two weeks since opening.

So I went to check it out for myself and see just how good it really is for kids. (Together with Peroro-sama)

If you live in Seoul, you’ve probably been to Children’s Grand Park at least once, right?

It’s a little fuzzy, but I think I went once when I was a kid too.

Maple Leaf Playground No. 3 is located pretty much near the center.

The red circle on the map—spot No. 39.

I made my way there from the back gate.

The weather was nice, so there were lots of people.

Maple Leaf Playground No. 3 Photo Zone

If you come to Maple Leaf Playground No. 3 from the back gate side, the first thing that greets you is the photo zone.

Pink Bean, Orange Mushroom, and Stone Spirit—some of Maple’s signature characters—are there to welcome you.

I grabbed a photo with Peroro-sama, the most popular character from Nexon’s sibling game Blue Archive.

Closer to the main gate side, there’s a Maple Leaf Playground symbol.

This was a great spot for a commemorative photo too.

Playground Guide Map

It shows the playground guide and safety instructions.

And most importantly, the installation inspection certificate.

The equipment shouldn’t be putting children at risk, right?

Safety is always the number one rule.

Safety first!

Orange Mushroom World

Please make sure to read the safety instructions before playing so no one gets hurt.

There’s a mushroom stepping bridge and a trampoline.

I gave it a bounce too once there weren’t any kids around.

A trampoline that can handle an adult’s weight—approved.

How many years has it been since I got on a trampoline... it was fun..

Stone Spirit World

It’s set up with things like a wobble bridge, climbing, and arch crossings, so there’s a little bit of thrill built in.

And the ground—was it urethane? It had a nice springy feel, so it was soft and pleasant underfoot.

Since it’s a space for children, this area was a bit too small for adults, so I skipped trying it myself,

but seeing the kids having such a good time made me happy too.

Pink Bean World

And here it is—the grand Pink Bean World.

See the music notes on the equipment? Maybe that’s why BGM was playing around the playground.

When you think playground, you think slides, right? There are 4 slides in total, so fun is basically guaranteed.

Pink Bean World is roomy too, so it looked like a great place for lots of kids to run around and play.

It also looked perfect for playing tag.

If you do play tag, always be careful—extra careful.

Next to Pink Bean World, there was also a game called Heart Collecting, kind of like a little territory-claiming game.

The playground itself is a decent size, but there are little hidden game elements here and there, so overall it felt really packed with things to do.

Maple Leaf Rest Area

Since Children’s Grand Park isn’t exactly the little neighborhood playground right in front of your home, it’s naturally not easy for kids to come by themselves, right?

So there’s a rest area for the adults—for the guardians.

It’s located right in the middle of Maple Leaf Playground, so you can watch kids playing on both sides, which felt reassuring.

There’s also a convenience store right nearby, so it seemed like a nice spot for kids to take a break, grab a drink, or have a simple snack while playing.

These days, I saw on the news that a lot of playgrounds are switching from sand to rubber,

and that it can actually lead to more bumps and scrapes, while also making it harder to build up immunity.

Maple Leaf Playground No. 3 has both sand and a urethane floor, so it feels like it really managed to cover both health and fun.

When I visited on April 30,

they were still hard at work setting things up because

the Seoul Children’s Garden Festival was also going to be held at Children’s Grand Park on May 5, Children’s Day.

So if you visit Children’s Grand Park, enjoy the festival too, check out the different children’s park areas,

and maybe stop by Maple Leaf Playground No. 3 as well.

It really felt like I got to go back to childhood for a little while.

Thank you.