Yu-Gi-Oh! is one of the most beloved franchises in anime history. Based on its trading card game, manga, anime, and several spinoff titles, the series captured the hearts of many young fans thanks to the Saturday morning cartoon treatment it received in North America alongside Pokémon's anime. But Yu-Gi-Oh! wasn’t always based around the Duel Monsters card game the TCG is inspired by.

Yu-Gi-Oh! was created by the late Kazuki Takahashi and serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from September 14, 1996, to March 8, 2004, spanning 343 chapters. The story initially followed Yugi Mutou, a timid teenager who became possessed by Dark Yugi, a confident spirit, to confront bullies and evildoers through high-stakes contests called Shadow Games. While episodic at first, the series eventually shifted focus to the card game, driving the plot through two major tournament arcs and other storylines. Takahashi initially had other plans for the series, which may have led to Yu-Gi-Oh! never reaching its full potential as a franchise.

What Yu-Gi-Oh! Could Have Been, According To Series Creator

Kazuki Takahashi Let Fans Know From The Onset Yu-Gi-Oh! Had A Strange Origin

The first volume of Yu-Gi-Oh! released on March 4, 1997, where Takahashi left a note for new readers of his series. He thanks everyone who purchased the first volume and encourages those who are borrowing the manga from a friend to buy one before mentioning the series’ “strange story.” He talks about how the story of Yu-Gi-Oh! was initially about the mysteries of everyday life before it turned into a manga centered around a fictional card game, stating:

YES! THE YU-GI-OH! GRAPHIC NOVEL'S BEEN RELEASED! FOR ALL OF YOU WHO'VE PURCHASED THIS, THANK YOU SO MUCH! AND FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE BORROWING IT FROM YOUR FRIENDS...PLEASE BUY ONE! IT MUST SOUND WEIRD FOR THE ARTIST TO BE SAYING THIS, BUT I THINK THAT YU-GI-OH! IS KIND OF A STRANGE STORY. ALTHOUGH AT FIRST I WANTED TO CREATE A STORY THAT CENTERED AROUND "THE MYSTERIOUS" IN EVERYDAY LIFE, BEFORE I REALIZED IT, I ENDED UP INCORPORATING THIS AND THAT-SO MANY DIFFER- ENT THINGS. I HOPE YOU ALL BECOME GOOD FRIENDS OF YUGI, JÔNOUCHI, AND ANZU!

-KAZUKI TAKAHASHI, 1997

Although Yu-Gi-Oh! is known for its card game, the first few chapters of the series were dark and focused on street games with deadly consequences, mostly as punishment for cheaters and other scrupulous individuals. These games included picking banknotes off their hand by stabbing money with a knife, dice games, or challenging a gunman to a game where they use one of their ten fingers, and whoever dies loses. It took several chapters for the first duel to take place and even longer for it to become a primary focus.

The “Mysterious” In Everyday Life Can Still Be Seen In Yu-Gi-Oh!

The Origin of Dark Yugi And His Past Self Kept Readers Engaged Till The End

Although the series shifted focus to games over the mysteries of life, that sense of the unknown is still evident in the series' co-protagonist, Dark Yugi. His abilities and origin, which extended back to Ancient Egypt, kept people on their toes as to how the average Yugi Mutou fit into his dark half’s ancestry. Having a badass alter ego is something many have fantasized about, and watching people, his love interest Anzu (known as Téa in the English dub), and Yugi himself having to navigate it kept readers hooked before Duel Monsters came into play and toward the end of the series when all answers were finally exposed.

It’s rare for Shōnen Jump to allow an artist to throw several ideas at the wall in their manga before something like Duel Monsters finally sticks. If it were released in the present day, it’s more than likely Shōnen Jump would’ve canceled Yu-Gi-Oh! before the series found itself. Takahashi and Yu-Gi-Oh! overcame many hurdles from inception to finding audiences at the right time to become the mega-hit franchise it is today.