The man said he made almost US$1,400 by selling them.
Committed players devote between 17 and 26 hours a week to online games, the most popular of which demand hours of concentration and the ability to go without a bathroom break or food for extended periods.
In extreme cases, game addicts have collapsed and died after playing for hours, consuming nothing but soda and instant noodles.
Local media has reported six deaths related to online gaming since late 2002, including a gamer who killed his sister after becoming confused between the online world and real life.
"In most cases, heavy game players show the same kinds of problems -- they do badly at school, have problems with their friends, family and teachers, and even play truant from school," said Lee Su-jin, a counsellor at the Center for Internet Addiction Prevention and Counselling, established by the government in April 2002.
"We receive reports of some 30 new troubled cases every week but the numbers keep rising. Parents are only now becoming aware of the seriousness of the problem."
But given that more than 16 million households are hooked up to the high-speed Internet network, and some 25,000 Internet cafes across the country charge only 1,000 won per hour for broadband access, imposing a regimen of cold turkey on teen game fanatics is no easy task.
And while some game industry alliances have been pushing game makers and distributors to provide purchasing guidelines, the likelihood of authorities imposing regulations that may pull the plug on a lucrative 500 billion won industry seems unlikely.
"Neither the game makers nor the government are fully prepared to tackle the problems once and for all, given their relatively few years' experience in the online gaming sector," said Lee Wang-sang, an analyst at LG Investment & Securities.
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