Yu-Gi-Oh! creator Kazuki Takahashi found dead at 60

Kazuki Takahashi was the original creator of the Yu-Gi-Oh!NHK broadcaster and The Japan Times on Thursday reported that the manga series, which spawned a popular collection of cards and many anime and video games, had been found dead in Japan’s Okinawa Prefecture. Takahashi was 60 years old and was known by his pen name Kazuo Takahashi.

NHK reports that authorities are still trying to determine the cause of Takahashi’s death. Takahashi’s body was reportedly found off the coast on Wednesday, and he was said to be traveling alone on a snorkeling trip.

Yu-Gi-Oh! first ran as a serialized manga in Weekly Shonen JumpThe magazine was published in September 1996, and it ran until March 2004. This is the story of Yu-Gi-Oh!The story centers on Yugi Muto (spiky haired), the protagonist who solves an ancient puzzle called “The Millennium Puzzle” and summons a mysterious spirit to power his alter ego, Yami Yugi. The two of them seek power and join forces to challenge other players to high-stakes games.

It Yu-Gi-Oh!Later, manga was adapted to multiple animated series and spinoffs.

Yu-Gi-Oh! The Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game was launched in Japan in 1999. Konami, the publisher brought it to America in 2002. Trading card games were hugely successful. More than 35 million cards have been sold. Konami made adaptations of the anime and manga series into video games. There were early versions for Game Boy Advance and PlayStation. Konami’s free-to-play video game was released in January. Yu-Gi-Oh! Yu-Gi-Oh!For Windows PC, the game quickly became a smash hit on Steam.

Before his death, Takahashi had been actively working on comics. In June, Marvel and Viz Media published Takahashi’s Secret Reverse, a comic starring Iron Man & Spider-Man. Tony Stark goes to Japan with his family to visit a Japanese gaming convention. There, he encounters the CEO of an obscure card company.