With three consecutive episodes of the anime now aired, discussion among viewers began to surge across the internet. Beyond the loyal followers of PixelPioneers Games, a much larger audience consisted of ordinary gamers.
These viewers knew titles such as The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, Resident Evil, and Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, but they had little knowledge of the stories behind those games. Most of them didn't even realize that the company responsible for developing those titles was PixelPioneers Games.
So when they discovered that Yu-Gi-Oh! had actually been produced by PixelPioneers Games and was being used to promote an upcoming game, many were genuinely shocked.
"This anime is supposed to promote a game? A card game? Like a board game?"
"It's way too short! Why isn't there another episode already?"
"The duels are surprisingly intense. All those card effects and calculations are pretty interesting. And the protagonist carries his grandfather's deck with him everywhere. The atmosphere completely changes once the duel starts."
"The monster battles feel a little over-the-top, but honestly, they're incredibly cool."
"I was completely confused during some of the card battles. I don't really understand the rules yet."
"So in this world, everybody solves their problems by playing cards? If you want to become stronger, you just duel people?"
Most viewers didn't fully understand Yu-Gi-Oh! yet. Of course, that wasn't because of the story itself. The mysteries surrounding the Pharaoh's soul, the Millennium Puzzle, and the deeper narrative hadn't truly begun unfolding. What many viewers struggled with was the duel system itself.
However, this wasn't unexpected. Because of the pacing of the anime, the various mechanics such as Tribute Summons, monster effects, Field Magic, Spell Cards, Trap Cards, and numerous other systems were being introduced gradually. Rather than overwhelming viewers with a massive information dump, the production team carefully revealed each rule step by step through the story.
The anime wasn't simply an advertisement for the game; it served as a foundation for the game's future launch and a subtle introduction to its mechanics, but it never descended into becoming a lengthy tutorial. The primary focus remained the narrative itself.
Thanks to its polished production quality, engaging storyline, and relatively fresh card-dueling theme, combined with the promotional power of PixelPioneers Games, the twenty-four-hour viewership numbers for Yu-Gi-Oh! were exceptionally strong.
Among all currently airing anime, it ranked second only to the sequel of a highly successful action series. Even then, surpassing that series didn't seem impossible. After all, its sequel had proven considerably more conservative than the original classic.
While it maintained respectable ratings, it struggled to capture the same excitement as its predecessor. The visuals showed little innovation, and the story played things safe. Put simply, it felt somewhat outdated.
In contrast, Yu-Gi-Oh! was an entirely new IP. Combined with PixelPioneers Games' continuous promotional efforts and overwhelmingly positive audience reception, its popularity continued to rise. Ever since Warwick began coordinating offline promotional activities, attention toward the series had only increased.
For average anime viewers, Yu-Gi-Oh! was simply an entertaining and unique show.
For gamers who had arrived because of PixelPioneers Games' reputation, however, the focus was different. They were far more interested in the game hidden behind the anime. In particular, the Duel Monsters card battles sparked enormous curiosity.
Many players noticed similarities to the card game featured in The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, though Yu-Gi-Oh! appeared significantly more complex, structured, and competitive. Meanwhile, game developers throughout the industry were making their own guesses.
Most believed that PixelPioneers Games was attempting to create a dedicated PvP card game because card games occupied a relatively niche market; the company had chosen to first build popularity through anime and manga before releasing the actual game. The question was whether viewers would eventually transform into players, and, more importantly, paying customers.
Card battle games weren't a new concept, as many companies had attempted them before. The challenge was that success depended heavily on game balance, content depth, and long-term support. Exactly what kind of card game was PixelPioneers planning? That question intrigued nearly everyone in the industry.
Only Duncan from Gemtechs felt he already knew the answer. After watching Yu-Gi-Oh!, his confidence rose dramatically. Previously, he had only been seventy percent certain; now he was ninety-five percent sure. John and PixelPioneers Games intended to realize the vision he had discussed years earlier.
"Hah... so that's what this is." A smile appeared on Duncan's face.
Back then, Gemtechs had experimented with the new VR platform and had even borrowed inspiration from PixelPioneers Games' innovative auto-battler design.
Now the situation seemed reversed. PixelPioneers was moving toward the VR card-and-board-game concept John had once mentioned. In a sense, it felt like an unusual counterattack.
Unlike traditional seasonal anime that released one episode every week, Yu-Gi-Oh! maintained a rapid schedule of one new episode every two days, and the audience loved it. As a result, the show's popularity continued climbing. Within a single week, its viewership had nearly doubled compared to the second-ranked anime of the season.
Calling it the breakout hit of the quarter wasn't an exaggeration. As word spread, more and more viewers were drawn into the series. Some had never heard of PixelPioneers Games, and others didn't even play games at all. Yet they still found themselves captivated by Yu-Gi-Oh!.
Combined with PixelPioneers' relentless marketing campaign, the anime's visibility continued growing rapidly. Claiming it had become a phenomenon might have been a slight exaggeration. Still, there was no denying its momentum.
Across forums, social media platforms, and fan communities, viewers had even begun cataloging every card that appeared in the anime. Naturally, alongside this growing popularity came something else that everyone had anticipated.
Players practically flooded John's account and PixelPioneers Games' social media pages, and a quick glance revealed countless comments repeating the same questions.
"Great anime. Where's the game?"
"Why isn't there an official website yet?"
"You're painting an awfully big picture here."
"Snake Eater, Yu-Gi-Oh!... President John really knows how to build hype."
Such comments appeared everywhere, even Warwick and its business partners repeatedly contacted John to inquire about development progress.
Inside PixelPioneers Games headquarters, John reviewed the latest development report submitted by the team. The more he read, the more his head began to ache.
"There are only ninety usable cards at the moment?" he asked.
The level designer, Ingomar Sequoia, sighed helplessly. "Technically, there are one hundred and forty completed cards. But aside from the three fully tested starter decks, the remaining cards haven't undergone comprehensive internal testing. There could still be balance issues or undiscovered bugs."
After a brief pause, he continued. "Honestly, the three starter decks are already enough for players to begin with. We've also finished the PvE campaign paths for all three major character decks."
John nodded thoughtfully. Ninety fully verified cards were indeed sufficient for launch. After all, players would only select one starter deck at the beginning. The remaining cards would be obtained gradually through gameplay and collection.
More importantly, the anime's story was rapidly approaching the Duelist Kingdom arc. Coincidentally, the game's plot mode had reached exactly the same stage of development.
"What about the card pack system?" John asked.
"No issues at all," Sequoia answered immediately. "We've repeatedly tested every server function. Everything is stable."
Hearing that, John finally made his decision. "Run one final internal test."
He closed the report and looked around the room. "Then notify the marketing department."
A faint smile appeared on his face. "We're getting ready to launch."