There is no doubt that the original protagonist of the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime series, Yugi Muto, was one of the best duelists of his time. His time as King of Games is legendary, with his biggest feats still being ed fondly by fans of the franchise. Few players can claim to have challenged Yugi and won their encounter.

Yet, when his playing style and deck-building strategies are analyzed from afar, his legendary status begins to be put into question. Although he is undoubtedly one of the best protagonists in the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise, he has many flaws that would cost him his title outside the anime. There is another equally beloved character who could rival Yugi’s prowess if they ever dueled in real life: Jaden Yuki.

Yugi Is a Great Duelist, But Only Within the Anime

Most of His Victories Relied on the Powers of His Millennium Item

Throughout the Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters anime, fans were able to see the titular protagonist defeat the best and most powerful duelists in his world. His best and most iconic cards have become emblematic, with his signature Dark Magician being used as the face of the franchise even decades after its first appearance. Nonetheless, there are many hints hidden in the series that point to Yugi’s career not being as successful as fans used to believe. For example, many of his most important duels during the Duelist Kingdom arc of the series were only accomplished by drastic leaps in logic.

Strategies like destroying his moon Spell card or summoning an infinite number of Kurboh tokens his most powerful cards are high-level hard-to-summon creatures that would make it difficult for him to ever draw useful tools.

Worst of all, his decision to only include a single copy of any card would prevent him from ever seeing the monster, spell, or trap that he needs at any given moment. The only reason why he was able to win his duels was thanks to the power of his Puzzle, ranked by many as the most powerful Millennium Item. The special ability of this treasure allowed the to obtain a card that would be useful to them if they were ever losing a game. Without it, Yugi’s horrid deckbuilding would have cost him his title long ago.

Jaden's Decks Are Much More Consistent & Coherent Than Yugi's

Jaden's Hero Deck Is Still Being Played Today

Although often underestimated by fans of the series, Yu-Gi-Oh! Gx’s Jaden Yuki has proven several times that his skills could help him defeat Yugi in a duel with no magic involved. For starters, his deckbuilding decisions are much better. Knowing that his deck was based around summoning Fusion Monsters, he made sure to include as many different combinations of Elemental Heroes as possible. The theme of his strategy also helps greatly, as including mostly monsters that belong to a simple archetype allowed him to access the vast for his creatures.

Even though Jaden fell into some of Yugi’s bad habits, like adding extremely situational cards to his deck, he did a much better job preparing contingencies. The impact of the Hero archetype is such that it is one of the few anime decks that saw competitive success in real life. If he and Yugi were to ever face a duel without magic or plot conveniences, there is little chance for the King of Games to emerge victorious. Unfortunately, the series never revealed the outcome of Yugi and Jaden's only duel, leaving the debate open.

Despite Jaden’s more advanced deckbuilding skills, there is no denying that both he and Yugi are beloved characters that fans ire. Their duels and adventures are iconic to the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise and there is little doubt that followers of the series will continue applauding them and praising their cherished monsters.