The Korean Federal Trade Commission (KFTC) has announced they are fining publisher Nexon for selling in-game items that had virtually zero drop rate in the MMORPG MapleStory.

The fine, set at 11.64 billion won (roughly $8,858,040.00 USD), also comes with a corrective order and is the largest fine imposed for a case regarding the violation of the Electronic Commerce Act.

According to the KFTC, Nexon is guilty of manipulating the drop rate of a “cube”, which is an in-game item for MapleStory that enhances equipment for players. Stats or benefits they provide are random upon obtaining them.

Nexon introduced this item in 2010 where all stats were equally likely to occur. However from 2011 through 2021, the developer adjusted the drop rates where favorable drops were made virtually unobtainable by decreasing the rates in which they happened.

The dropping of rates is naturally something they did not inform their player base about.

Nexon has protested this decision and is expected to file an objection. They claim that the sanction is excessive and that this occurred before 2016, which was before there was any legal obligation to disclose information on drop rates.

While this news pertains to MapleStory, which launched back in 2004, Nexon has also since launched a sequel to the game in the form of MapleStory 2.