The game features many elements present in the original MapleStory, such as needing to fight monsters and complete quests in order to make the player character more powerful.

Each playable character comes to acquire a piece of it and each sets out to unite with one another in order to recreate the jewel and expose and destroy the ultimate evil.

[2] Nexon and the newly established Nintendo of Korea showcased MapleStory DS for the first time in January 2007, releasing a trailer for the game.

[3] The game was first projected to be released in September 2007, but was subject to numerous delays before its eventual Korean premiere on April 15, 2010.

[4] In 2010, Daniel Kim, the CEO of Nexon America, said that "MapleStory DS is for the Korean market only" when asked if there would ever be an English language version of the game.