What reaction did you get when you first announced you were adding Chaos to MapleStory?

The response was exceedingly positive. Features like PvP and the Profession system are content that our players have been looking forward to for a long time and when we announced we would be adding them (as well as many others) all this summer, players were extremely excited.

How does a game like MapleStory handle PvP? Did the team make some heavy changes?

A lot of preparation went into adding PvP. A huge amount of work went into upgrading the backend of the game which was not originally designed to support player to player, real-time combat. We also had to adjust the balance for many classes. Ultimately, we feel that the changes we made to accommodate PvP were all positive and will also make it possible for us to add even more features in the future.

Chaos includes some other updates. Can you give us some insight into the changes you have planned?

Over the course of four updates, we added a totally revamped Profession system with five professions and hundreds of recipes, a personality trait system that allows players to see what their MapleStory play style says about them, a new high level zone which includes the most powerful boss in the game; the Empress Cygnus, and revamped several classes. Coming later this month we will also be adding an epic quest line that spans over 100 levels and a stamp book style collection system that allows players to catalog the hundreds of enemies they will encounter in Maple World.

MapleStory has a long history do you find it harder to make changes to the game now?

Some additions can be quite challenging to implement, because the game has expanded and changed in ways that could not be foreseen when it was first created over eight years ago. Over the past year we have made a lot of fundamental upgrades to the engine that are allowing us to add content that would have been impossible in the past. We are totally dedicated to continuing to expand this game, so nothing is off limits.

Tell us about some of your favorite parts of the PvP system?

The best part of PvP is finally having the chance to finally test your character’s strengths against other players. The MapleStory community has had many debates over the years about which classes are most powerful, or how your character’s Skill and Ability Points should be allocated. With PvP, these previously theoretical debates can finally be put to the test!

How can players get involved in PvP battles? What types of rewards will they get?

Any character above level 30 can travel to Battle Square where they can sign up to take part in one of four modes: Free-for-All, Team Battle, Ice Knight and Capture the Flag. Participating in these modes will earn you both EXP and Gallant Emblems, which can be traded in for powerful PvP specific gear and items.

Can you give us some idea of when Chaos will be launched?

Chaos is live now!