joining in 2012, this changed me and a lot of others. the game felt inviting, popular but yet you could do fine by yourself. it didn't feel forced, it was there 24/7. the community was way different from now. my younger self always stayed up on my old laptop until 5am roleplaying, having fun F3ing people with friends, trolling, etc.
there was a sense that there was always an open roleplay for everyone. this was before discord and the only way to have a website was through forums.
spawning in lonely cave, you get options of where to go. ficho tunnel was usually where all the edgy gothy wolves were. one of the portals, bonfire island was where the adoption center, mate center, TLK roleplays, horse and human roleplays were usually happening. it was fun to sit in skype calls and F3 a bunch of the people that looked funny, and looking at chat and general chat to see what people were typing up. general was removed around 2014 or 2015 i believe
next was fluorite plains, the infamous stone bridge, cape portal, L island, this map is a lot to explain. all of the mapless roleplays happened in this very map. stone bridge and general chat were the home of the advertising in the game, warrior cats were everywhere, this was a grand time to roleplay. it had many varying levels of literacy, realism, and features. some were semi-literate (meaning they used *'s/x's/-'s to convey an action. ex: -carries a box-) and literate being like a book. there was something for everybody.
i would ramble on about the other maps, but playing the game during this time was great, and if the map change didn't happen, the game would be thriving. yes you can download the old maps, but some people don't have enough storage, don't have the time or skill, or just think it would not be the same as the old game.