New to the Yu-Gi-Oh! Animated Series
Each animated Yu-Gi-Oh! series features characters playing a strategy card game called Duel Monsters. This strategy card game lets the characters from the animated series face off against one another, without resorting to physical violence. The stakes of each game are sometimes high, as characters compete to protect their friends, help their loved ones, or determine the fate of the world! The Duel Monsters card game on the Yu-Gi-Oh! television show closely resembles the Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME that you can purchase at your local shop.
There are 4 different Yu-Gi-Oh! animated series. The oldest one is the original Yu-Gi-Oh! series, which first aired on television in North America in 2001. That series was followed by Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, which premiered in North America in 2005. The third Yu-Gi-Oh! series, Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s, aired in North America in 2008, and after it concluded, it was followed by Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL. Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL first aired in North America in 2011, and is still an ongoing series.
Every animated Yu-Gi-Oh! series takes place in a separate timeline and features a different cast of characters. Check out the brief summaries below for more information about each series!
The Original Yu-Gi-Oh! Series
Meet Yugi and his best buds Joey, Tristan and Téa. They share a love for the newest game that’s sweeping the nation: Duel Monsters!
Duel Monsters is a card-battling game in which players put different mystical creatures against one another in creative and strategic duels! Packed with awesome monsters and mighty spell cards, Yugi and his friends are totally obsessed with the game.
But there’s more to this card game than meets the eye!
Legend has it five thousand years ago, ancient Egyptian Pharaohs used to play a magical game very similar to Duel Monsters. This ancient game involved magical ceremonies, which were used to foresee the future and ultimately decide one’s destiny. They called it the Shadow Games. Since the game used so many magical spells and ferocious creatures, it wasn’t long before the game got out of hand and threatened to destroy the world. Fortunately, a brave Pharaoh stepped in and averted this cataclysm.
Now, in present times, the game has been revived in the form of playing cards.
Meanwhile, Yugi’s grandfather gives him an old Egyptian puzzle that no one can solve, but when Yugi finally pieces the puzzle together, his life is forever changed. The puzzle instills Yugi with an ancient spirit, and the two work together to form a stronger, more confident duelist.
Soon after, the mysterious creator of the Duel Monsters card game, Maximillion Pegasus, kidnaps Yugi’s grandfather, and Yugi is drawn into a Duel Monsters competition that Pegasus arranged. Now Yugi must duel his way through a tournament and defeat Pegasus in order to save his grandfather.
How will Yugi do it? Will the help of his friends, his belief in the heart of the cards and the mysterious power of his magical Millennium Puzzle be enough?
Giant monsters! Powerful magic! And ancient Egyptian legends!
Yu-Gi-Oh! is one action-packed adventure series that holds all the cards! It’s your move!
For more information about the original Yu-Gi-Oh! series, click here!
Yu-Gi-Oh! GX
Set several years after the previous Yu-Gi-Oh! series, GX follows a new generation of duelists at the prestigious Duel Academy—a highly competitive boarding school where pencils and books have been replaced by Duel Disks and monster cards! Still, it’s not just about making the grade for these up and coming students – it’s about becoming the next King of Games!
For more information about Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, click here!
Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s
The future of dueling is revving up! And with it begins a new legend! Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s!
Welcome to New Domino City! Once the playground to legendary duelist Yugi Muto, this sprawling metropolis has since been transformed into a futuristic society where dueling has kicked into overdrive. With recent technological advancements made by KaibaCorp, dueling has undergone a metamorphosis that has revolutionized the makeup and pace of the game! It’s now a heart-pounding, adrenaline-filled and fuel injected competition where duelists ride supercharged hyper cycles called Duel Runners and battle it out in hi-octane contests called “Turbo Duels.” The winners and losers aren’t just separated by skill and strength… but by SPEED!
However, for five special duelists, it’s not just about winning or losing anymore – it’s about survival, for they are the chosen “Signers” who have been marked by destiny to uncover the secrets of the five dragons!
With new cards, new players and new adventures, you’d better start your engines and get set to duel!
Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s – don’t let the revolution pass you by!
For more information about Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s, click here!
Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL
When aspiring duelist Yuma meets Astral, a mysterious visitor from another universe, it seems like destiny. Yuma needs Astral to teach him how to duel, and Astral needs Yuma to help him regain his memories!
They would be dueling’s greatest tag team…. except they don’t get along!
This dueling duo better get their act together quickly because ZEXAL is a whole new duel with greater challenges than ever before!
Fantastic new monsters!
Powerful new cards!
Augmented reality-powered duel technology!
Together, it takes dueling to the next level!
But don’t worry if you’ve never dueled before: As Astral walks Yuma through the basics, new viewers can follow along and learn how to duel. And for seasoned pros, there are plenty of never-before-seen strategies that they can use in real life!
Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL – New Rules, New Duels!
For more information about Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL, click here!
New to the Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga Series
Find out where it all began with the classic Yu-Gi-Oh! series by Kazuki Takahashi! Then advance to the sequels from Duelist to Millennium World all the way to Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL. And if you want to keep up with the latest chapters, read them in the digital edition of Weekly Shonen Jump. For more information about Weekly Shonen Jump, click here!
Yu-Gi-Oh!
Story and Art by Kazuki Takahashi
Sitting by himself in the back of the class, 10th-grader Yugi always had his head in some game–until he solved the Millennium Puzzle, an Egyptian artifact containing a powerful spirit from the age of the pharoahs! Awakened after three thousand years, the King of Games possesses Yugi, recklessly challenging bullies and evildoers to the Shadow Games, where the stakes are high, and even the most ordinary bet may result in weirdness and danger beyond belief! Let the games…begin!
To find out more, go here!
Yu-Gi-Oh!: Duelist
Story and Art by Kazuki Takahashi
Duel Monsters is the world’s most popular collectible card game–but to Yugi Mutou, whose body contains the spirit of the world’s greatest gamer, it may be the most dangerous game he’s ever played! A mysterious videotape sends Yugi and his friends to Duelist Kingdom, the island home of super-rich American game designer Maximillion Pegasus. There, Yugi must compete with the world’s greatest Duel Monsters players for the honor of fighting the man who made the game! But this is no ordinary tournament…the fate of Yugi’s grandfather hangs in the balance. And even if he makes it to the final round, can Yugi possibly face the power of Pegasus’ Millennium Eye?
To find out more, go here!
Yu-Gi-Oh!: Millennium World
Story and Art by Kazuki Takahashi
After hundreds of battles, Yugi has finally gathered all the Egyptian God Cards… the key to unlocking his memories of his past life as an Egyptian pharaoh. When Ryo Bakura gives him the Millennium Eye, Yugi opens the door to the “world of memory,” and his mind travels back in time to ancient Egypt, when the magic and monsters were real! Now Yugi and his friends must explore the world of Yugi’s forgotten past…and fight an enemy who has been waiting for them for 3,000 years!
To find out more, go here!
Yu-Gi-Oh! R
Original Concept by Kazuki Takahashi
Story and Art by Akira Ito
It’s been many duels since Yugi defeated Maxmilion Pegasus, the super-rich designer of the collectible card game “Duel Monsters.” But Yako Tenma, Pegasus’ protégé, has never forgiven Yugi for his master’s horrible fate. To draw Yugi out, Yako kidnaps Anzu Mazaki and takes her to the heart of the Kaibacorp building, guarded by dozens of the world’s most dangerous gamers! But Yako’s true plan for Anzu is much worse than mere revenge…
To find out more, go here!
Yu-Gi-Oh! GX
Original Concept by Kazuki Takahashi
Story and Art by Naoyuki Kageyama
Considered a slacker by his peers, Jaden battles teachers and students alike to make his mark in the Duel World. Can he bring his low-level dorm, Slifer Red, to the top of the deck? Or will the champions in the Obelisk Blue dorm hang onto their winning hand?
To find out more, go here!
Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s
Story by Masahiro Hikokubo, Art by Masashi Sato
A high-speed Turbo Duel through the streets of Satellite brings Yusei Fudo and his friend Sect face-to-face with an urban legend incarnate! Will Yusei lose Sect to the Skeleton Knight? And what sinister plans does Jack Atlas, master of New Domino City, have in store for Yusei?
To find out more, go here!
Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL
Original Concept by Kazuki Takahashi
Story by Shin Yoshida, Art by Naohito Miyoshi
No one loves Dueling more than Yuma Tsukumo, but unfortunately for him, no one is worse at it! This isn’t going to stop Yuma from trying though. When Yuma calls on the memory of his parents during the Duel, a strange being called Astral appears, and the encounter is the start of Yuma’s amazing Duel journey!
To find out more, go here!