List of Yu-Gi-Oh! characters
The Yu-Gi-Oh! series, created by Kazuki Takahashi, features an extensive cast of characters, many of whom are from Domino City, a fictional city in Japan where the series takes place. As many plot elements are influenced by Egypt and its mythology, Egyptian characters appear in the story.
Yu-Gi-Oh! stars Yugi Mutou, a shy boy who loves games and is often bullied. After solving an ancient artifact known as the Millennium Puzzle, his body becomes the host of a mysterious spirit known as Dark Yugi, who has the personality of a gambler. When Yugi or his friends are threatened by those with darkness in their hearts, Dark Yugi reveals himself and challenges them to a "Shadow Game" that reveals the true nature of someone's heart, with their losers being subjected to a dark punishment called a "Penalty Game". Throughout the series, Yugi and his friends Katsuya Jonouchi, Anzu Mazaki, Hiroto Honda, and later Ryo Bakura learn that this other Yugi is the spirit of a nameless pharaoh from Ancient Egypt times who has lost his memories. As they attempt to help the Pharaoh regain his memories, they are put to the test, wagering their lives facing off against others who wield the mysterious Millennium Items and the dark power of the Shadow Games.
Most human characters in the English version of the original manga, published by VIZ Media, use their original Japanese names, while in other English Yu-Gi-Oh! media their names are changed. The Japanese names in Western order and English manga names are listed first and the English anime names are listed second, when applicable. As well, the 4Kids English dub censors or edits instances of violence and sexual content, with characters being sent to the Shadow Realm rather than dying and some designs being changed.
Main characters
Yugi Mutou
is the titular co-protagonist of the story. He wears the Millennium Puzzle, an ancient Egyptian artifact that is one of the seven Millennium Items and contains the spirit of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh. He initially fears this other personality, but over time comes to consider him a close friend. He also develops as a character and is able to defeat antagonists without Dark Yugi's help, proving that he is worthy of being chosen by the Millennium Puzzle.His ace card is the "Dark Magician".
Dark Yugi
Dark Yugi, true name Atem, is the titular co-protagonist of the story. After Yugi solves the Millennium Puzzle, he comes to dwell in Yugi's body; when Yugi or his friends are in danger, he emerges from the Puzzle and takes over Yugi's body to protect them, challenging his opponents to Shadow Games and giving them a Penalty Game as punishment after defeating them or if they cheat. Throughout the series, he meets his eventual rival, Seto Kaiba, who he defeats in their first battle at school and during Death-T, and meets other wielders of the Millennium Items, including Shadi and Dark Bakura.In the Duelist Kingdom arc, after Dark Yugi loses to Pegasus in a video tape duel when the timer runs out, Pegasus steals Sugoroku's soul to get him to come to the Duelist Kingdom, which he does in order to face him and save the stolen souls. There, he faces several opponents and then Kaiba in a duel utilizing his prototype Duel Disk, in which they each wager five star chips. After his Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon is defeated, Kaiba resorts to a suicide attack in order to win and Dark Yugi loses after Yugi intervenes to stop him from attacking Kaiba. Kaiba enters the castle, where Mai, who received extra star chips to repay Dark Yugi for saving her, helps him enter the castle. After defeating Mai, Dark Yugi faces Jonouchi, who defeated Keith. During the battle with Pegasus, Yugi and Dark Yugi come up with the "Mind Shuffle" tactic to prevent Pegasus from reading their minds, forcing Pegasus to start a Shadow Game that only those chosen by the Millennium Items can endure.
After Yugi collapses due to the Shadow Game's effects, Dark Yugi takes over and wins with help from Yugi and his friends, who block the Eye's powers. Afterwards, Pegasus complies with Dark Yugi's demand that he release the stolen souls while telling him that the Items contain an evil intelligence. As they leave the island, Yugi reassures Dark Yugi that, regardless of his origins, he is a valuable friend to them, and he begins his search to learn of his true identity and origins.
It is eventually revealed that he was originally Atem, a pharaoh of Ancient Egypt who was the owner of the Millennium Puzzle, originally known as the Pendant, which he sealed himself and Zorc in following the destruction of Kul Elna. Though he moves on to the afterlife following his final duel with Yugi, in Yu-Gi-Oh! The Dark Side of Dimensions, he returns to help him fight Diva.
Katsuya Jonouchi
Katsuya Jonouchi / Joseph "Joey" Wheeler is Yugi's close friend. After Yugi stands up for him and Honda when Ushio beats them up, he realizes that he was jealous of Yugi's "treasure." That night, he retrieves the last piece of the Millennium Puzzle and returns it to Yugi's house, where Yugi completes it and challenges Ushio to the first Shadow Game of the series. Jonouchi is touched by Yugi's behavior and they become close friends, forming his own "treasure."Though skilled at fistfighting and usually able to take on those bigger than himself, such as Bandit Keith, a fight which he loses in the Duel Monsters anime, he handicaps himself against opponents such as Bruce Ryu. Throughout the series, he becomes better at Domino and Duel Monsters with Yugi's help and learns to channel his anger into games instead of violence. He later participates in the Duelist Kingdom tournament for his sister and the Battle City tournament after suspecting that Kaiba is plotting something. Though kind and selfless, he can be immodest and rash and has a fear of the supernatural.
His ace card is the "Red-Eyes B. Dragon" after winning it from "Dinosaur" Ryuzaki in Duelist Kingdom.
Anzu Mazaki
Anzu Mazaki / Téa Gardner is Yugi's childhood best friend. She is athletic, supportive, has a strong school spirit, and has a crush on Dark Yugi. Though not as skilled at games as Yugi, she is knowledgeable of video game RPGs and used to defeat Jonouchi in school before he became a seasoned duelist. She secretly works at the fast food restaurant Burger World while dreaming of becoming a professional dancer in the United States. When Yugi and Jonouchi learn of these secrets when they follow her, thinking she is participating in Enjo kōsai, she comes to respect them for their willingness to support her and keep her secrets.Hiroto Honda
Hiroto Honda / Tristan Taylor is a student of class 1-B at Domino High School who befriends Yugi, Jonouchi, Anzu, and Bakura. In the manga, he starts out as Jonouchi's street thug friend and has a crush on Miho Nosaka. In the Toei anime, he is the head of the school's beautician department, who dislikes Yugi despite him rescuing him and Jonouchi from Ushio. After confessing his love for Miho Nosaka to Jonouchi, he convinces him to ask Yugi for help in writing a love letter to her in the form of a puzzle. When Ms. Chono confiscates the puzzle and threatens to punish Miho if the secret admirer does not come clean, Yugi and Jonouchi stand up for him by claiming that they wrote it. Ms. Chono decides to put the puzzle together to find out who the sender is, but Dark Yugi secretly turns it into a Shadow Game, shattering er pretty face as the Penalty Game. Afterwards, Honda befriends Yugi, despite Miho later turning him down when he asks her out directly.In the Duel Monsters anime, he has a crush on Joey 's sister Serenity and a rivalry with Duke, often competing with him for Serenity's affections.
Ryo Bakura
Ryo Bakura is a transfer student who befriends the group and is interested in games, particularly tabletop role-playing games like Monster World. He is the holder of the Millennium Ring and has a dark spirit dwelling within him, much like with Yugi and Dark Yugi. Prior to his introduction to the story, Bakura's mother and sister, Amane, died in a car accident and he often transferred schools and isolated himself because Dark Bakura's Penalty Games trapped his friends' souls in RPG miniature figures, causing them to fall into comas. With help from Yugi and his friends, they defeat Dark Bakura in a Shadow Game of Monster World, after which he joins them. Despite the danger it poses, Bakura continues to hold onto the Millennium Ring due to being curious about its history. This, along with his trusting and innocent nature, sometimes cause conflict and allows Dark Bakura to continually possess him without his knowledge.In the Toei anime, Miho has a crush on him. In the Duel Monsters anime, his role in the group is reduced compared to the manga, as he is mostly being controlled by Dark Bakura and does not accompany them as often. He is introduced during the Duelist Kingdom arc as someone they knew from school and his love for tabletop role-playing games and making occult decks is downplayed.
His voice uses a British accent in the 4Kids version.
Seto Kaiba
Seto Kaiba is Yugi's rival and the current president and CEO of the Kaiba Corporation, introduced as a prodigious, cold-hearted gamer willing to do whatever it takes to achieve his goals, but had a troubled childhood because of his adoptive father Gozaboro. After learning that Sugoroku possesses the "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" card, he steals the card from Yugi and duels Dark Yugi, who defeats him and gives him the "Experience of Death" Penalty Game. Following his defeat, Kaiba, unable to forget the Penalty Game that he experienced, plans to use Death-T to enact revenge and kill him. He duels Dark Yugi again and loses, receiving the "Mind Crush" Penalty Game to temporarily shatter his heart and purge it of evil, leaving him in a coma for almost a year. Despite being reformed, Kaiba retains his arrogance and rivalry with Dark Yugi. While he leaves the story following the Battle City arc, he is a major character in the anime and, in Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, is the founder of Duel Academy.In the manga, he creates Solid Vision during the events of Death-T, which is expanded on in the manga Transcend Game and film The Dark Side of Dimensions; in the latter, he attempts to bring back Atem in order to settle the score between them. Kaiba uses a "Blue-Eyes" deck and his ace monster is "Blue-Eyes White Dragon".