MapleStory Europe gets loved up for winter

Thursday 22nd November/... World-leading developer of online games, NEXON, continues the rapid expansion of its popular and free to play 2D MMORPG MapleStory Europe with several unique new items to purchase in its innovative Cash Shop and a whole new Japanese-themed area to explore and quest in.

Chief of the new items to appear in the Cash Shop - MapleStory Europe's in-game market where real cash can be spent on cool upgrades and accessories for your character - are the 'My Boyfriend' and 'My Girlfriend' Effect items. Designed with MapleStory Europe's blossoming in-game relationships in mind, when bought and activated a 'My Boyfriend' or 'My Girlfriend' pointer will float cheerily above your character's head, showing off to anybody nearby that the person next to you is your other half. It's the perfect chance to chase away those winter blues by expressing your undying affection for that special someone!

Other major new additions to the Cash Shop include the Mushroom House Elf, a helpful little chap who'll mind a player's store in MapleStory's Free Market area, even if they're offline, and the Water of Life, which will bring any pets who have expired back to life for a further 90 days. Together with a range of new costume accessories for male and female players alike, MapleStory Europe's Cash Shop continues to offer a superb range of new and exciting goods.

Expanding the MapleStory Europe world itself is the new and totally free Mushroom Shrine Map, which brings a touch of Asian spice to MapleStory's already rich and varied range of environments. Set against a backdrop of beautiful cherry blossom trees and misty mountains, the Mushroom Shrine offers a wealth of new quests to complete and fearsome new monsters to overcome, making it the perfect place for experienced Maplers in need of a serious challenge to meet and form parties together.

"Players of MapleStory Europe already get one of the best free-to-play MMORPGs available, but we're constantly striving to make things even better for them with regular new content," explained Calvin Yoo, Director of International Business Development at NEXON Europe Ltd. "Innovative new items to the Cash Shop such as the My Boyfriend and My Girlfriend accessories help to capture players' imagination and build in-game communities while new areas like The Mushroom Shrine add exciting new challenges that really keep people's interest. Rest assured, we've got lots more great updates like these on the way!"

MapleStory originally launched in South Korea in April 2003 and quickly went on to become one of the most successful online games of all time, with over 76million registered accounts across the world. MapleStory Europe, which launched in May 2007, is the latest iteration of the completely free to play franchise, and offers gamers in Europe the chance to play MapleStory in five different languages - English, French, German, Spanish and Dutch.

For further information on MapleStory Europe, and to sign-up to the game, please visit www.mapleeurope.com.