Yu-Gi-Oh! is the story of Yugi and his friends who are caught up in the game craze that is sweeping the nation. Yugi's grandfather manages a gaming shop and introduces him to an ancient Egyptian card fighting game called "Duel Monsters". The game pits different mystical creatures against one another in magical duels on a shifting battlefield filled with traps and magical pitfalls. When the haze of battle clears, only one can be called Yu-Gi-Oh!, King of Games. Yugi unlocks the secret of the ancient Egyptian Millennium Puzzle that releases a powerful spirit of an Egyptian King, Yami Yugi. When Yugi solves the Millennium Puzzle, he is awarded with the spirit of the all-powerful game king. And he starts on a path to become the King of Duelists!

Yugi loves to play and solve games. Yugi lives with his grandfather, who manages a gaming shop. His grandfather introduces him to the ancient Egyptian "Millennium Puzzle". After Yugi unlocks the puzzle's secret, his life changes. He becomes Yami Yugi, a powerful spirit and starts to duel with many rivals. He'll fight with opponents, sometimes even while playing by their rules, and, of course, beats them at their own game. Since Yugi is shy and kind in his normal state, he is lucky to have some strong friends like Joey, who is possibly his best friend, Tristan, and Téa.

The alter ego of Yugi. Using the Millennium Puzzle, Yugi is filled with magical energy, which makes him more powerful and a master duelist.

Seto Kaiba is rich. He can't live with the fact that Yugi beat him. His ultimate goal in life is to beat Yugi using whatever means necessary. Kaiba has a younger brother named Mokuba, who shares Kaiba's passion of gaming. When Kaiba and Mokuba were raised in an orphanage, Kaiba promised Mokuba that he would take care of them no matter what. Even though Kaiba is the wealthy CEO of his own multinational high-tech corporation, KaibaCorp, his real passion lies in the world of Duel Monsters. There, he uses his ruthless business drive to overcome any who challenge him. He is an expert in the art of dueling and challenges Yugi as a rival.

Kazuki Takahashi, the author of YU-GI-OH, was born on October 4, 1961 in Tokyo.

The creator of YU-GI-OH! became passionate about drawing comics in his teens, and made his debut in Japan's best-selling weekly comic magazine, Shonen Jump, in 1991.

After taking some time to recharge his artistic energy, he began drawing the comics series YU-GI-OH! in 1996. The animated version of YU-GI-OH! debuted in 2000 and became an immediate hit, spawning a mania that included video games, animation, and a card game, all of which boasted record sales. 23 million comics have been sold thus far.

YU-GI-OH!'s appeal has spread across every facet of the media, and Kazuki Takahashi is now known as one of Japan's foremost comic artists.