Kazuki Takahashi, the Japanese artist who created the beloved manga series Yu-Gi-Oh! has died, aged 60.
According to reports from Japan public broadcaster NHK, Takahashi was discovered floating in shallow waters off the coast of Nago City, Okinawa Island by the Japan Coast Guard on Wednesday morning, June 6. He was wearing snorkeling equipment when found. Police and the Coast Guard are currently investigating the circumstances around Takahashi’s death.
Originally from Tokyo, Takahashi became a star among manga artists thanks to Yu-Gi-Oh!, his first serialized work. The series was first published in 1996 and ran until 2004. Following the story’s success in print, Yu-Gi-Oh! became a multimedia franchise, with a hit anime series, numerous video games, a card game, and more. Takahashi remained a key part of the series throughout his life, having most recently written the original story for the Yu-Gi-Oh! The Dark Side of Dimensions anime film, released in 2017. He predominantly acted as supervisor over many other projects in the franchise.
While Takahasi has worked on several other projects, Yu-Gi-Oh! will be his lasting legacy. The physical card game even has a Guinness World Record for the “trading card game with the highest number of sales in the world”.
IGN’s thoughts are with Takahashi’s family and friends.
Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Features Editor.