[This post was created as part of Nexon PEAK activities.]

Hello.! This is Yeonbaek.

In this post, I want to look at why online RPGs are such a great genre for growing together with friends.

Let’s take a closer look.

The RPG genre is one where players choose a specific class or character

and grow stronger through all kinds of experiences, like hunting monsters and clearing quests,

but there are also times when you run into situations that are hard to handle alone, or parts that simply become inconvenient

,

and that got me thinking about a few reasons why playing with friends can be especially appealing and rewarding.

※ If you were going to pick an online RPG, then naturally MapleStory, one of the best-known examples of the genre, would be a great one to use,

but since classic derivative servers like MapleLand and Maple Planet share many of the same strengths, I’ll mainly use MapleLand as my example here.

🔥 Rivals and Teammates at the Same Time

As you play and build up your characters together, a light but strangely motivating sense of competition naturally starts to form,

and your friend’s character can become your benchmark, making you want to catch up or pull ahead.

Because of that, you might buy slightly better gear than your friend or push your level a little higher, and

rather than just getting stronger on your own, you can feel your progress more clearly by growing stronger together and comparing how far you’ve come,

which can also give you even more motivation to keep getting stronger.

At the same time, it’s not just about competition.

A sense of teamwork that helps you overcome difficult challenges starts to grow as well.

Taking down powerful boss monsters,

or clearing very high-difficulty quests..

Being able to work through content with friends that would feel overwhelming to tackle alone

is another big advantage.

Even in tedious and repetitive sections, you can put your heads together or lend each other a hand,

helping and being helped in return, which can save a lot of time,

so sometimes they’re your rival, and other times your teammate,

ultimately making the game feel more varied and a lot more fun.

🔥 More Experiences, Faster and More Smoothly

With Maple and other classic servers, you can absolutely have plenty of fun on your own,

but the downside is that you can’t access content that only works through cooperation with others.

Party Quests,

and even the recently added Party Quest exclusively for married players (marriage), etc..

When you want to try content that’s difficult to enjoy alone,

the most time-consuming and difficult part is finding players to join you.

Getting together with like-minded strangers and enjoying that process can be a good experience too,

but in most cases, you naturally end up wanting to play with people you trust more, like friends or guildmates.

Usually, certain rules end up being set either implicitly or through conversation,

and ideally, if you can play with friends who know each other and trust one another,

the chances of unnecessary disputes or uncomfortable situations can be reduced quite a bit.

On top of that, faster and smoother communication, the willingness to be forgiving about mistakes,

and the fact that you can quickly gather your group and get started without having to search for a party

all make growing and playing together with friends especially appealing.

🔥 Even in the Same Adventure, Different Experiences

Even when you clear the same quest, the rewards can be different,

and even when you hunt the same monster, the items you get can be different,

So even while playing the same game, each player ends up writing their own unique journey depending on the class they chose and growing in a different way,

which naturally leads to a kind of team growth where you gain more information and each person takes on their own role.

Even if you’re only raising one character yourself, going through that process with a friend lets you experience the traits of a variety of classes, so I think it can even feel like you’re raising multiple characters at once.

Personally, I also remember playing alongside classes I wasn’t raising myself,

and learning about their strengths, weaknesses, exclusive quests, and other details I never would have known without actually raising that class,

and those were the moments that really stayed with me.

🔥 Memories Built by Sharing the Same Experience

By hunting in the same space, exploring areas together, and working your way through quests,

a joyful sense of connection builds as you spend time together.

This is one of the most fundamental advantages of playing games with friends,

because through all the talking, laughing, and joking around in a fun game world,

even the same game turns into a memory that feels several times more fun.

I still can’t forget those old moments of partying up with friends I shared a room with, leveling together,

running dungeons, building our characters, and laughing and chatting the whole time.

It was well over 10 years ago now, but it’s still a happy memory for me.

So, those were a few reasons why RPGs are such a great genre to enjoy with friends.

They can definitely be fun solo, but they become even more enjoyable when you’re together, especially with friends,

so if you get the chance, I hope you’ll try experiencing the fun of growing together and overcoming difficult challenges side by side.

What do you all think are the advantages of playing with friends?