SINGAPORE — For those who grew up as the internet entered the mainstream, their memories of that era are intertwined with a handful of iconic video games.

For Wesley Teo, 24, those games were MapleStory and Club Penguin, two massively multiplayer online games (MMOs) launched in the early 2000s.

"I remember pretending to be sick in primary school and requesting to leave school early, just so I could play a Club Penguin seasonal event," he says.

"When I finally got home, I realised that the event's start date was in US time and it would be out only the next day. I was so heartbroken."

These moments are among the fondest memories of his primary school days. Teo says: "I found my close friends in school through these games. We would always gather to share what we did with our characters."

MapleStory (2003) is a South Korean side-scrolling fantasy adventure game known for its colourful 2D graphics, while Club Penguin (2005) let users play as cartoon penguin avatars in an Antarctic-themed virtual world.

However, Club Penguin was discontinued in 2017 and lives on only through fans' unofficial private servers.

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