Hello.

This time, the keyword is sports day. With sports day season upon us, the idea is to explore content that fits the theme.

Sports days usually involve dividing into teams and competing against one another. With that in mind, this post looks back at some memorable content and events from MapleStory’s history that featured this kind of competition.

[Battle Square]

Battle Square arrived back in early 2011 and remained playable until the end of that year, returning for only about 2 months in 2012. It was MapleStory’s very first official PVP content.

As shown here, players could choose between Survival and Team Match, then enter a match to fight one another directly.

As the first content of its kind, it generated considerable anticipation, and many players reportedly enjoyed it at first. However, issues with balance and fairness, along with subsequent revamps, led to declining participation, and it eventually closed after a relatively short run.

Alongside the regular player-versus-player modes, there was reportedly a mode in which one player became the Ice Knight and faced off against everyone else.

Rewards included EXP and Gallant Emblems that could be spent in a coin shop. Toward the end, most participants were reportedly playing reluctantly, just to earn these rewards.

Looking at the update previews and comments from the time, this seems to have been quite an ambitious project for the team. Yet balancing the classes even outside of PVP is already difficult, and making separate balance adjustments for Battle Square would, in simple terms, double the workload. I wonder whether the outcome was unavoidable given those practical limits.

[Maple One Card]

Maple One Card is, as its name suggests, a game of One Card. It has appeared regularly since its official release in 2014, generally earning a positive reception and serving as a dependable minigame event for earning coins.

It was also the first game available through a minigame booth in the furniture system introduced with the Home update. Players could buy the booth from the meso shop for 5 billion mesos and place it in their Home to play One Card at any time. According to a post I found while searching, though, the homeowner has to start the game.

[Fight! Return of the Legends]

Fight! Return of the Legends, commonly abbreviated in Korean as 싸전귀, is a minigame modeled on the MOBA format. It has returned regularly since its debut in 2014, with its most recent release in June 2025.

Players choose a character before starting, then defeat monsters, level up, and strengthen their skills to take down their opponents.

With the exception of Gunner, who was introduced as part of a collaboration, the roster above has always consisted of established characters. Ranking rewards like these are distributed at the end of every season.

Of course, every minigame has its fans and detractors, but opinions are especially divided on Fight! Return of the Legends. Acknowledging this, the team mentioned in a previous Maple Now broadcast that it was considering whether the minigame could return in a different form. I hope future releases will take an approach that satisfies both sides.

[Supernatural Yut]

Supernatural Yut debuted in 2015 and has continued to make regular appearances ever since. Alongside the standard rules of Yut, it gives players 2 randomly selected special powers each round.

These powers play an important role, as using them well can turn the game around. Their random assignment adds another layer of unpredictability to Yut, which already has an element of luck.

Like Maple One Card, Supernatural Yut has also been made available through a Home minigame booth. In the event beginning on May 14, it is set to stay open and remain playable even while players are hunting. This will be the first matchmaking event with this functionality, making it a noteworthy addition.

The Sports Day-Themed 22nd Anniversary Event [Victoria Cup]

Finally, the Victoria Cup, the 21st anniversary event held in 2024, featured a sports day theme that fits this keyword perfectly.

Timed to coincide with Nexon’s 30th anniversary celebrations, Maple Soccer, Fight! Return of the Legends, Maple Racing, and 다람쥐소탕임무 became available alongside a variety of sports day-themed events.

Among these offerings, the emblems and cheer outfits created for each class left a particular impression on me. They captured each class’s distinctive traits, and the attractive outfits, paired with the bright event backdrop, made the occasion especially memorable.

Thank you for reading.