Takahashi Kazuki, the man behind the hugely successful Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise, was found dead near near Okinawa Prefecture in Japan. He was 60 years old.
Deadline reports that Takahashi Kazuki (real name Kazuo Takahashi) has died at the age of 60. Takahashi was a manga artist most famous for creating the manga series Yu-Gi-Oh!, which ran in famed manga publication Weekly Shonen Jump from 1996 to 2004. Takahashi was found floating in snorkeling gear near Okinawa Prefecture in Japan. Authorities are looking into the cause of death.
Yu-Gi-Oh! began as a manga, but it really took off when Takahashi outlined the rules for an accompanying card game. The story of the manga involves playing games, and the Pokémon trading card game was very big at the time, so it made sense.
The card game was a tremendous success, with Guinness World Records acknowledging it as the best-selling such game of its ilk. Yu-Gi-Oh! also had an anime series, a movie, video games, and more; back in the day, it was the only franchise of its kind that could stand up to the juggernaut that was (and is) Pokémon.
Takahashi never stopped working, and still controlled the direction of the manga through his Studio Dice imprint. He recently released Marvel’s Secret Reverse, a graphic novel made in collaboration with Marvel that starred Iron Man and Spider-Man.
Our thoughts go out to his loved ones.
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