Kim Jung-ju, Founder of Game Developer Nexon, Dies at 54

Kim Jung-ju, the billionaire founder of online game developer Nexon Co. who contributed to establishing one of the world’s hottest gaming hubs, has died. He was 54.

Kim had received treatment for depression and recently his condition seemed to worsen, NXC Corp., his private investment firm, said in a statement Tuesday, without giving a cause of death. He died at the end of last month in the U.S.

Kim, who majored in computer science and engineering at Seoul National University, founded Nexon in South Korea in 1994 and pioneered the use of “loot boxes,” where players purchase virtual merchandise. ...