The first ever LEGO Yu-Gi-Oh!, inspired by a fan design, has been confirmed to be The Heart of the Cards – Exodia.
Next year, the LEGO Group will release a Yu-Gi-Oh! model for the first time. The Heart of the Cards – Exodia builds the powerful monster Yami Yugi together with the duellist Exodia. Step_on_a_Brick came up with the concept and won a contest on LEGO Ideas.
Professional LEGO designers will now adapt the model for official release. Firm release date, price and final piece count will be announced at a later date. The official set might stick closely to the fan design and combine all of the components on a single display or might change things up.
Step_on_a_Brick will receive 10 complimentary copies of the finished set, 1% of total net sales (which is more than it sounds) and credit within the set materials.
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The contest kicked off back in February. Builders had a few weeks to create something inspired by the Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters anime with a focus on Battle City and Duelist Kingdom tournaments. Models could be no smaller than 400 pieces but no larger than 2,000.
In April, the LEGO Group provided five finalist models for fans to vote for and The Heart of the Cards – Exodia featuring Tami Yugi was the winner.
The four runners-up will receive some LEGO sets as prizes: 21358 Minifigure Vending Machine, 21359 Italian Riviera, 21349 Tuxedo Cat, 21365 Love Birds and 21376 Orange Cat.
“The model also features brick-built replicas of the cards themselves with Exodia ‘emerging’ from them, creating a dynamic display that pays homage to the very first episode of the show,” says Step_on_a_Brick on their submission page. “The central structure makes the entire model sturdy and easy to move. Exodia’s upper body can be rotated and his arms and head can be moved. Similarly, Yugi also offers multiple points of articulation, allowing for different poses.”
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