Kim Jung-ju, the founder of the online gaming giant from South Korea, Nexon, has died at the age of 54. It is known, his death occurred at the end of last month in the United States (US). However, his private investment company did not provide details on the cause of death.
"With deep sadness, Nexon mourns the unexpected death of its beloved founder, Jungju Jay Kim, who passed away in February. The deceased has been receiving treatment for depression and we are saddened that it seems to have worsened recently," said NXC, quoted by Yonhap. News, Wednesday (2/3/2022).
Owen Mahoney, CEO and president of Nexon, also shared his sadness at the loss of their mentor. According to him, as a founder and visionary leader, his figure encourages those around him to ignore the skeptics and trust his creative instincts more.
"It is difficult to express the tragedy of the loss of our friend and mentor Jay Kim. A man who had an immeasurable positive impact on the world. He will be greatly missed by the Nexon family and all of his friends," said Mahoney.
His sudden departure was a blow to the hearts of South Korean game industry activists. This is because Kim is an iconic figure and a pioneer.
Kim was born on February 22, 1968 in Seoul and founded Nexon in 1994. Where he became a promoter for free to play games on PC, including launching the Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) genre in 1996.
Some of the popular titles are The Kingdom of the Winds, MapleStory, KartRider, Mabinogi and Dungeon & Fighter. Then he decided to step down from his position as CEO at NXC, after serving for 16 years. Then handed it over to JaeKyo last year.
According to Forbes, Kim will become the third richest person in South Korea in May 2021. He once promised to donate USD 93 million to start-ups and children's hospitals.