Japanese artist Kazuki Takahashi, who spawned a global franchise with the comic Yu-Gi-Oh, has died in what appears to be a swimming accident.
Takahashi, whose real first name was Kazuo, was discovered floating in the sea near the town of Nago on Wednesday. The location is in the southern island prefecture of Okinawa, a popular island getaway for Japanese tourists. The area around Nago is known for its spectacular coral reefs, and is a popular region for snorkelling and scuba diving.
Takahashi was found in the ocean wearing snorkelling gear early Wednesday and identified Thursday, according to the Japanese public broadcaster NHK. There were reports he suffered injuries consistent with an animal attack. Authorities continue to investigate his death.
The manga comic Yu-Gi-Oh!, which means King of Games, debuted as a serialized comic running from 1996 to 2004, but exploded into global popular culture, spawning films, TV series, video games, and one of the most popular card trading games. In 2009, the game was crowned by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s most popular card trading game, beating out even Pokemon.
The manga rights are owned by Shueisha, but English distribution is handled by Viz Media, and toys and games by Konami.
https://www.thelicensingletter.com/forget-ether-coins-and-nft-yu-gi-oh-offers-real-coins-for-collectors/