Konami has always nurtured a varied portfolio of entertainment-based properties. Konami’s video game dominance in the 90’s led a generation to associate it with console-based gaming. But Konami also invests in arcade games, rhythm games, pachinko, Olympic-level sports clubs, and, crucially, the Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game (TCG). In 2015, Konami further diversified by shifting their focus away from console gaming towards mobile games.
And yet, Konami retains its link to the mainstream live-streaming-centric gaming arena of today through video game adaptations of its famous TCG. Yu-Gi-Oh! was hailed as the top-selling card game of all time in 2011, and continues this dominance as TCGs transition into digital form. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the original card game’s release in Japan, and the franchise is thriving thanks to the most recent video game in the series: Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel.
In this article, we’re looking at the success of Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel since its release, which streamers are engaging with the game, and how Konami is situated in the live-streaming space.
Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel Finds Equal Success on YouTube Compared to Twitch
Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel pulls in viewership as the go-to digital form of the game in 2024. In the past 12 months, Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel has generated 29.6M hours watched across all live-streaming platforms. The previous main Yu-Gi-Oh! digital card game, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links, saw its viewership fall off upon the release of Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel. However, even 8 years after release, the game has pulled in 3M hours watched annually.
No matter which title you look at, one trend in viewership stands out: Yu-Gi-Oh! games receive an almost equal amount of their viewership from YouTube when compared to Twitch. This varies greatly from other digital card games that are primarily Twitch-centric. In fact at some points (for reasons explored below), YouTube viewership actually outstrips Twitch viewership. The relative preference for Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel content on YouTube no doubt comes from both the game’s and Konami’s main audience being in Japan, where streamers prefer the Google-backed platform to Twitch.
Regardless, it would behoove Konami to grow their Twitch user base through more community-centric campaigns. We’ve seen in the past how initiatives like Twitch Drops campaigns can greatly boost viewership (and therefore player engagement) for digital card games – such as Hearthstone’s 25th anniversary celebration. In fact, community-focused initiatives have also worked for Yu-Gi-Oh!: January 2023 saw a 70% rise in Twitch viewership from two months prior thanks to both the Duelist Cup in December 2022 and Yu-Gi-Oh! Day North America in January 2023.
Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel’s Top Streamers Are Divided Between Japan and America
The geographical transition of the 90’s anime boom is reflected in the top streamers for Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel. Of the top 10 Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel streamers, 5 are from Japan and 4 from the U.S.. The two countries are each represented by the top two streamers with significantly higher average minute viewerships (AMAs) than their competitors: あまくだり and Dkayed with AMAs of 5.8K and 4.4K, respectively. The one outlier on the list, 인간젤리, is a less frequent Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel streamer who has since switched to Chzzk.
Not represented among these streamers, however, are a subsection of streamers who are integral to Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel’s continued success: VTubers. Looking back at the monthly viewership data, distinct peaks in November of each year can be attributed to VTuber impact. Nijisanji, a VTuber agency and collective, puts on an annual Master Duel Festival featuring mega-popular VTubers like Kuzuha and 社築. This event alone has seen spikes in YouTube viewership of 413% and 360% per year.
Konami Finds Live-Streaming Success with Yu-Gi-Oh! and Sports Titles
At the moment, Yu-Gi-Oh! games offer Konami’s strongest foothold in the live-streaming arena. Over the past 12 months, Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel has generated nearly one-third (32.5%) of all online viewership for Konami’s library of titles. Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links, the older title, also contributed a significant 3.5%. The relative popularity of Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel among Konami’s games on live streaming is understandable: The game is F2P and players can craft a competitive deck immediately without sinking too much money into the game. Additionally, the game’s constantly evolving meta and numerous previously-released cards rely upon community discourse to educate newcomers and stay up-to-date on the best decks.
Other Konami games simply aren’t as well suited to live streaming, but still perform admirably. Take Sports games, for example: The second most-popular title, with 17.2%, is eFootball 2024 (a modern continuation of Konami’s successful Pro Evolution Soccer series). Powerful Pro Baseball 2024-2025 hit 8.7% of total Konami game viewership thanks, again, to VTubers engaging with the game.
The other minor hits on live streaming are series that have remakes planned for this year. The Metal Gear Solid franchise has 11.6% viewership with the Metal Gear Solid Δ: Snake Eater remake coming out soon. Meanwhile, the Silent Hill franchise has 3.4% thanks to the upcoming Silent Hill 2 remake (which hopes to capitalize on the horror remake renaissance sparked by Capcom’s Resident Evil remakes). Several massive Konami franchises are still absent, however, including Castlevania, Bomberman, and Contra.
With the planned shift away from hardcore console gaming, it appears Konami may not be interested in the live-streaming market dominated by live service titles. This is a shame: The success of Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel shows what live streaming can do in terms of maintaining a loyal following for Konami. Seeing more ambitious experiments like 2018’s Bombergirl MOBA game (which presaged the popularity of waifu-titles like Genshin Impact and Zenless Zone Zero) could lead to Konami striking gold on live streaming with their beloved characters and IP.
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