On December 2 and 3, 2023, I attended the 20th anniversary concert and offline event of MapleStory Online Japan server.

Unknowingly, MapleStory has been running in Japan for 20 years, and in China for 19 years.

As a game I've played since childhood, it's been 19 years since the first day of closed beta. When I heard that the Japan server was holding a series of events, I immediately signed up.

The offline event in Japan was mainly divided into two parts: the concert on the 2nd and the offline gathering on the 3rd. Here I'll record the activities of both days.

Concert:

To be honest, when Korea held a concert a few years ago, I had a feeling that the Japan server, also directly operated by Nexon, would have one too.

During the livestream a few months earlier, I joked with my guildmates that there would definitely be a concert for the 20th anniversary. Unexpectedly, the concert was indeed announced later (laughs).

The concert's title was "The Adventure That Never Ends," and netizens joked it was "The Spending That Never Ends" (laughs).

Arriving at the station near the concert hall at noon, posters for the concert were already pasted up.

The concert venue was Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall.

It's a large concert hall that can accommodate over 1,700 people. Since the concert was held in two sessions, the organizers expected about 3,400 attendees.

At first, I joked with my guildmates, "Does this game really have that many players?" But I was wrong—there were long lines for entry and merchandise!

After finally getting through the ticket check, I quickly took a photo of the promotional poster!

Signboards of the mascots.

Then I hurried to line up for the merchandise area.

I really didn't expect so many people queuing for merchandise.

Samples of the merchandise.

After waiting in line for over an hour, I finally reached the front. I originally wanted to buy three acrylic stands and a music box, but the music box sold out just as it was my turn!!!

I could only buy the acrylic stands—unexpected popularity.

And that hour of queuing was quite thrilling because the concert was about to start, but I had already waited an hour... At that moment, I was thinking whether to continue queuing and miss some pieces?

But it turned out fine. Although the concert had started by the time I paid, there were still some opening procedures, so I didn't miss a single piece! Great!

The concert was very moving! Truly moving! Especially the first piece, the old MapleStory login theme—when it played, 19 years of memories came flooding back.

At that moment, I felt so lucky to have encountered MapleStory 19 years ago!

Compared to the Korean concert, I preferred the arrangement of pieces at this Japanese concert. Besides the login theme, there were nostalgic pieces like "Ellinia" and "Ludibrium" that only veteran players would appreciate.

The final three pieces were from the new area "Shangri-La," and it seemed they invited a famous musician to play the flute, which really livened up the atmosphere!

At the end, there was a thank-you list where some ticket buyers were randomly selected to have their character images and nicknames displayed on the big screen. Luckily,my "Soft Cotton" appeared on it!!So touching!!!!

I have to say, after listening to these tunes for 19 years, hearing them live was truly a blessing.

Offline Gathering:

The next day was the offline gathering, located 10 minutes from Shibuya Station.

It was my first time knowing that Shibuya has such a long, long slope... Those ten minutes really tested my endurance (laughs).

After experiencing the long lines on the first day, I was somewhat mentally prepared for the queues at the offline gathering.

Sure enough, there was a long line upon arrival, but luckily I had made a reservation, hehe.

I was lucky enough to be selected in the lottery for the 1,000 reserved spots!

Although I still had to queue, it was the priority line for reservation holders, while the regular line was closed. It felt like having a fast pass at an amusement park!

After passing the reception, I received a gift bag and entered the venue.

The first thing I saw was a wall displaying past versions. I immediately went up to take a photo with Lara.

Another display board.

There were indeed a lot of people on site, and the official livestream was also running. I ended up on camera again...

Let me share some on-site photos.

Nostalgic weapons.

It felt like attending the Tokyo Game Show a few months ago, and despite the cold winter, the venue was very warm due to everyone's enthusiasm!

Players were also very proactive. The color of the gift bag distributed on site represented different servers. Soon, players from the same server started talking to me and exchanging business cards... Business cards? Oh, at Japanese offline events, people print their character info on cards to exchange! I wasn't prepared, so I awkwardly introduced my class/character/guild info via screenshots on my phone (laughs). And because my character name is special, "Soft Cotton" (read as nanmenmen), every player was confused when they heard it, haha.

After a lot of chatting, it was time to leave. Although I didn't win anything in the final prize draw, the offline gathering was really fun. If there's a next time, I'll definitely print my own business cards in advance!

Final Loot:

Concert gift bag and purchased acrylic stands.

The three large acrylic stands bought at the concert. The Japan server rarely releases such merchandise, so I decided to buy them as soon as they were announced! Although the music box was sold out, at least I secured the stands!

Setting them up will remind me to play MapleStory every day (laughs).

Loot from the offline gathering. It seems they collaborated with a snack company, giving everyone a pack of snacks and a snack clip—very clever.

Because I attended the concert, I also received an additional folder.

The stickers I got were Mercedes and Bishop; unfortunately, I didn't get Lara.

I also received business cards from other players. The designs were so exquisite! I must make my own set next time!