The Top 10 Gambling Manga for 2024
Nowadays, the internet provides endless ways of entertainment from the comfort of your home, such as online slots or live dealer tables. But today, we are going to tell you about our top 10 gambling manga list. We have included some all-time classics titles as well as some recent manga about gambling. Each of the storylines is unique, and every main character has exceptional gambling skills.
Manga 101 – The Basics
The term manga means whimsical pictures, and it is often referred to Japanese comic books or graphic novels. This art style originated in the late 19th century in the land of the rising sun. First, manga stories were printed in black and white, however, you could find colourful manga as well.
Japanese would use manga to describe comics, cartoons and animation. But, anywhere else, people would use the term to refer to comics. This comic book style is beloved by children and grown-ups alike all around the globe. Among the popular genres are adventure, comedy, drama, historical, Sci-Fri, fantasy, romance, and erotica.
Manga is often mistaken with anime. That may be because a large portion of anime series is based on manga. In Japanese, anime stands for animation. But the rest of the world refers to Japanese-style animation as anime. Without further ado, let’s dive into the world of best gambling manga.
- Kaiji (The Best Gambling Manga)
- Akagi (Twelve Million Copies Sold)
- Kakegurui (Adaptation by Netflix)
- Gamble Fish (Betting High School)
- Liar Game (Mysterious $1m Package)
- Legendary Gambler Tetsuya (Top Post WWII Story)
- Gin to Kin (Can be Found on Amazon Prime)
- Usogui (Very Exciting and Thrilling Plot)
- Psychic Gambler: Betting Man (Superpowers Meet Gambling)
- One Outs (Brilliant Pitcher and Gambler)
1. Kaiji
Genre | Gambling, Action Fiction, Thriller |
Written by | Nobuyuki Fukumoto |
Released | February 19, 1996 |
Volumes | 73 (and counting) |
First in our best gambling manga ranking with Kaiji by Nobuyuki Fukumoto. This popular Japanese manga is focused on the art of gambling and quickly captured the hearts of many. First published in Feb 1996, the story is separated into six parts, and it is named after the main character. Due to its popularity, movie and anime adaptations were released. Just as we released a well-written, dedicated article on the top online roulette bonus offers for UK players.
Kaiji is a young man who fails to land a job. Instead of working, he spends his time on pranks, gambling, liquor, cigarettes and ends up with tons of debts. But everything changes with an invite to a high-stakes game from the loan shark, Endo.
2. Akagi: The Genius Who Descended into Darkness
Genre | Gambling, Mahjong |
Written by | Nobuyuki Fukumoto |
Released | June 1, 1991 |
Volumes | 36 |
Next is Akagi: The Genius Who Descended into Darkness written by Nobuyuki Fukumoto. Originally published in 1991, the author based this manga on his previous work – Ten. Twelve million copies of the comics were sold, then movie and anime adaptations followed. Also, the story inspired the creation of companion books, spin-off manga and video games.
A boy called Shigeru Akagi is the main character in this manga. It all starts when he wins at Mahjong (a tile-based game) against yakuza members. At that point, the boy does not know the first thing about the game but defeats his opponents only with the help of his intuition.
3. Kakegurui
Genre | Gambling |
Written by | Homura Kawamoto |
Released | March 22, 2014 |
Volumes | 13 |
Moving forward, we have the popular gambling manga series Kakegurui by Homura Kawamoto. The first volume was published in 2014 and it took many by a storm, quickly gaining a loyal audience worldwide. Shortly after the manga release, an anime and action movie adaptations were created.
The main character, Yumeko Jabami, is transferred at Hyakkaou Private Academy where children of the richest families in the country study. Shortly after her arrival, Yumeko changes the social dynamics at the school. She is a stunning, cheerful and intelligent girl but also a compulsive gambler. However, unlike her peers, Yumeko gambles purely for fun.
4. Gamble Fish
Genre | Gambling, Harem, Psychological |
Written by | Aoyama Hiromi |
Released | June 8, 2007 |
Volumes | 15 |
Gamble Fish is at number 4, in our top 10 gambling manga list. Originally published in 2007, the story was written by Aoyama Hiromi. Everything is taking place in a private school attended by rich children. The main character is Tomu Shirasagi, who happens to be the teenage son of the popular swindler, Yumeichirou Shirasagi.
At first, the rest of the students, mostly the boys, are giving Tom Shirasagi a hard time because he previously attended a public school. However, things quickly change after the mysterious boy reveals that he is a crazy gambler. As the story unfolds, we learn more about the dark side of the school and Tom’s past.
5. Liar Game
Genre | Gambling, Psychological Thriller, Suspense |
Written by | Shinobu Kaitani |
Released | February 17, 2005 |
Volumes | 19 |
Halfway through our top 10 list, at fifth place, we have Liar Game. It is not only written by Shinobu Kaitani but also illustrated by the artist. The popular manga was first published in 2005, then the story quickly gained fame, and it was turned into a TV series and live-action movies.
Everything starts when Nao Kanzaki, an honest college girl, receives $1 million in a mysterious package. Also, to the insane sum of money, there is a note saying that Nao is a contestant in the Liar Game tournament. But the money gets stolen, that is when she meets her soon-to-be-partner Shinichi Akiyama.
6. Legendary Gambler Tetsuya
Genre | Gambling |
Written by | Fūmei Sai |
Released | July 30, 1997 |
Volumes | 41 |
Moving forward in our ranking of manga about gambling, we have Legendary Gambler Tetsuya by Fūmei Sai. The story was first published in 1997, and in 2000 anime adaptation was released. During the same year, 2000, Legendary Gambler Tetsuya won the Kodansha Manga Award for the teen male audience.
The story is taking place during the post WWII period in Shinjuku. Survivors struggle to put food on the table, some have turned to gambling to earn some hard cash. While travelling, Tetsuya goes from one parlour to another winning against mahjong players. But then, he finds his the highly skilled player Boushu-san.
7. Gin to Kin
Genre | Gambling, Drama |
Written by | Nobuyuki Fukumoto |
Released | 1992 |
Volumes | 11 |
At lucky #7, we have Gin to Kin written and illustrated by Nobuyuki Fukumoto. The manga was first released in 1992. Only recently, in 2017, a live-action adaptation series appeared. Then, Amazon Prime added Gin to Kin to its collection, and it can be found under the name Silver and Gold (lit. translation from Japanese).
Failing to succeed in the real world, Morita Tetsuo decides to test his luck and starts gambling. However, it all changes when he meets the main character – Hirai Ginji, a devilish fixer in the underworld that goes by Gin. Morita Tetsuo gets pulled by Hirai Ginji into the dark world of shady backroom deals with greedy politicians.
8. Usogui
Genre | Gambling, Psychological, Seinen |
Written by | Toshio Sako |
Released | May 11, 2006 |
Volumes | 49 |
Usogui by Toshio Sako is the next story in our best gambling manga list. The title is translated to ‘the lie eater’. The manga was first released in 2006. Later, in 2012, the story was adapted into an original video animation. Baku Madarame is the usogui and main character.
This super-smart gambler is willing to bet his own life. Games allowing players to do that are Escape the Abandoned Building, Old Maid and Hangman. Kakerou is a powerful organisation that monitors the players and controls such tournaments. In the story, Baku is caught in the middle of the war between Kakerou and their rival IDEAL.
9. Psychic Gambler: Betting Man
Genre | Gambling, Mature |
Written by | Doldom |
Released | April 22, 2016 |
Volumes | 68 |
Here, we have Psychic Gambler: Betting Man written by Doldom. The manga was originally published a few years back in 2016, and it tells the story of Jin-goo – a man that can see through objects. At first, he uses his power to seduce women. After that, the character chooses to take advantage of his power when gambling.
This decision makes Jin-goo ecstatic because he is certain that seeing through objects will help him defeat whoever plays against him. Unfortunately for our guy, things go down the drain fast as there is more to his opponents than what he sees at first glance. Beware that this comic book is full of betrayal, heartbreak and explicit content.
10. One Outs
Genre | Sports, Psychological, Seinen |
Written by | Shinobu Kaitani |
Released | November 14, 1998 |
Volumes | 19 |
At #10, we have One Outs which was written by and illustrated by Shinobu Kaitani. One Outs is a game lot like baseball, but it is played between a pitcher and one batter. The story was originally published in 1998 and then revamped in 2008. The same year anime series was broadcasted.
The main character is Tōa Tokuchi – brilliant gambler and pitcher. The least successful team in the One Outs league is Lycaons. Tōa Tokuchi gets an offer to be a pitcher for that team. He suggests a rather unusual agreement – for each pitch Tōa wins 5m yen, but for every run, he loses 50m yen.
Final Thoughts about Gambling Manga
The world of manga is full of exciting and thrilling stories for everyone. Earlier we discussed that the art style is often mistaken with anime as most popular anime series are based on manga stories. Also, we ranked the top 10 manga about gambling and presented you with a quick summary of each one. If you liked this article, then we are sure you will love our top 10 ranking of the best gambling anime series. And since most of our readers, no matter how much they enjoy manga, like to gamble, we would like to show you how to choose a roulette website in which to have an amazing gambling experience.
Frequently Asked Questions
We sincerely hope you enjoyed reading this piece as much as we did writing it. However, in case you have any questions on the matter, then you are in luck because we prepared this FAQ section. Here, we will provide you with answers to the most popular queries about the top gambling manga.