Yu-Gi-Oh! Never Revealed The Winner Of Yugi And Kaiba's Final Duel, But We're Pretty Sure We Know The Answer

Yugi and Kaiba’s rivalry is perhaps one of the most beloved aspects of the Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters anime. Throughout the series, these skilled duelists faced each other on several occasions to determine who was the true King of Games. While the protagonist won almost all their games, except for one of the most unfair losses during Duelist Kingdom, Seto never made victory easy to achieve.

Lamentably, their final duel in the series, during the Dark Side of Dimensions film, was never concluded, leaving fans wondering what the result might have been. Still, by analyzing their cards and the overall state of the game before Aigami’s interference, the true winner of the game can be easily determined.

Yugi and Kaiba’s Final Duel Is Still Unresolved

Aigami Prevented Fans From Knowing the Result

After Pharaoh Atem returned to the Spirit World during the Ceremonial Duel of the original Yu-Gi-Oh! anime, Kaiba became obsessed with the idea of challenging him again. For Seto, only the Egyptian ruler was talented enough to be his true rival, and he still had to surpass his skills as a duelist. Yugi, the person closest to the Pharaoh, was the CEO’s only chance to bring Atem back, which prompted Kaiba to challenge him to a duel.

If Seto won, the protagonist would be forced to bring the spirit back so Kaiba could defeat him and claim his title as King of Games. Yugi knew that Kaiba did not see him as a threat, as he did not believe in his skills as a duelist. Nonetheless, he gave it his all and managed to overcome all the strategies of his rival. During the final moments of the duel, Yugi predicted that his opponent would try to revive one of his strongest cards, the Deep-Eyes White Dragon, and attack to win the game.

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By using his Finale Geas trap card, Yugi banished all other monsters from the graveyard except his Dark Magician, allowing him to summon his signature monster and attack. The movie hinted at Kaiba having another plan under his sleeve, as he was seen smiling right before his rival’s attack landed. Woefully, this duel never had a proper ending, as a monstrous version of the movie’s villain, Aigami, interrupted the game to challenge the heroes to a game.

Was Kaiba About to Defeat Yugi?

The Movie Implies He Had No Chance of Winning

Yugi uses Final Geas to negate Kaiba's summon and win the duel

The final moments of Kaiba and Yugi’s duel during the Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Side of Dimensions movie has been a cause of confusion for most fans over the years. Even though the protagonist was seemingly close to winning the game, Seto’s smirk before being attacked appeared to indicate he had a strategy to win. Nonetheless, by studying Kaiba’s hand moments before Yugi’s attack, his inevitable defeat becomes apparent. When the turn began, Kaiba had nothing but a copy of the game’s most iconic card, The Blue-Eyes White Dragon, as well as a set Polymerization and High-Speed Aria trap.

The latter was used when Yugi gifted him Monster Reborn, taking away even more of his resources, as the effect of the spell was negated by Yugi’s strategy. This implies that, by the time Yugi attacked, Kaiba had nothing but Polymerization in his field and Blue-Eyes in hand. None of these cards would have helped him avoid Yugi’s attack, meaning the winner of the duel should have been Yugi.

Kaiba’s Smirk Is One of Satisfaction

The Man Found Another Worthy Opponent

Kaiba smirking before Yugi's attack lands.

One of the main themes of the Dark Side of Dimensions movie is the lack of faith Kaiba has in Yugi. This film is a sequel to the manga created by the beloved Kazuki Takahashi, which did not include Seto as one of the spectators at the Ceremonial Duel. As far as the CEO knew, Yugi had never won his games alone, as he always had Atem by his side. Yugi’s mission during the movie was to help Kaiba move on and leave the Pharaoh in the past as well as prove himself as the true King of Games.

His final and brilliant play during the duel against Kaiba was a demonstration of his amazing skills and high intellect. During this moment, Yugi established himself as the best duelist in the original Yu-Gi-Oh! anime and made it clear that he did not need Atem to win his duels. Kaiba’s smirk was most likely a sign of him accepting him as the true King of Games and feeling satisfaction at knowing that he had found a new rival.