The Five Best Gambling Anime Shows

Generally, when you think of gambling in Japan, you think of pachinko. This is because Japan has a historic background banning gambling parlors and hanafuda cards. Currently, all forms of gambling are prohibited in Japan.

However, that doesn’t stop Tetsuya from achieving his goal of becoming a gambling legend.

The Legendary Gambler Tetsuya is a series that includes 20 episodes, which were released between 2000 and 2001. This series is based on a manga series titled The Legend of the Gambler: Tetsuya. Tetsuya is a young Mahjong master in post-World War 2 Japan, who claims big prize pools through Shinjuku City.

Tetsuya will use any trick to win, including cheating and deception. Many other shows on this list focus on player development and mental games to win. Cheating is a unique feature in anime about gambling. According to Tetsuya’s moral philosophy,  it is entirely fair to cheat.

He often states:

“It’s only cheating when you are caught.”

Legendary Gambler Tetsuya is based on the stories of Hourouki Mahjong, aka Takehiro Irokawa. The story feels realistic because it captures the genuine emotions people feel when they engage in illicit activity in war-struck Japan. Casino parlors are banned there in real life and the show.

Like many other anime based on sports and gambling, the action is often exaggerated for dramatic effect. That being said, the Legendary Gambler Tetsuya is definitely a show you should check out.

The opening to Legendary Gambler Tetsuya!

Touhai Densetsu Akagi, also known as Akagi in international releases and as a short-form for the manga name, is a 24-episode anime show featuring the underworld of the Mahjong scene.

Akagi was released between October 2005 and March 2006. This show, released at PG 17+, was well received by fans and continues to be a hidden gem amongst anime enthusiasts. It received mass praise even amongst amateur anime viewers.

Before even knowing the plot, you should be aware that Madhouse Animation Studio created the animation for Akagi. Madhouse is known for developing and releasing many hit-shonen anime, including Death Note, One Punch Man, Hunter X Hunter (2011), Overlord, and No Game No Life (another excellent gambling anime).

The story of Touhai Densetsu Akagi starts with the character Nangou struggling to obtain money to pay off his deep, three million-plus yen debt to the mafia. Nangou’s debt is because of his pressing gambling addiction.

Nangou places a final wager on his life against the mafia through a game of Mahjong. Just as Nangou is about to lose, an extremely talented Mahjong player named Shigeru Akagi breaks in to help. The story takes many twists and turns from there.

Watch Akagi to learn what happens next.

╚ Music: ReallySlowMotion - Faux Power ╚ Anime: Touhai Densetsu Akagi: Yami ni Maiorita Tensai Comment and give your opinion :)

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Gyakkyou Burai Kaiji is another Madhouse-produced anime based around gambling in the underworld. The main character, Kaiji Itou, is a bum who doesn’t do much aside from loitering around and drinking beer. Kaiji’s friend and former co-worker tricks him into going on a cruise ship to pay off her gambling debts, and insanity ensues.

The first season of this show was released between October 2007 and April 2008. After taking a three-year hiatus, the show’s second season was syndicated only in Japan throughout 2011. This anime does not have an English release.

Kaiji is also a long-running manga released to many fans throughout Japan. It has been published within the Weekly Young Magazine since 2006, totaling up to 76 complete volumes.

Kaiji finds himself a pawn in a competition where the game pieces aren't expected to survive Order now: http://bit.ly/37sk0EX Stream now: http://bit.ly/3dpRdVB

Kakegurui is the only anime on this list with a female protagonist. Unfortunately, this sub-genre is very male-oriented in terms of main characters. With that being said, Kakegurui is a top gambling anime, which is signified by the fact that Netflix chooses to produce the English dub for the show.

Kakegurui stars the main character Yumeko Jabami, as she attends Hyakkaou Private Academy – one of the wealthiest and most influential private high schools throughout Japan. Unbeknownst to many is the fact that at night, the school transforms into a gambling den where students study the art of money, deception, and manipulation.

The students that win the most run the school.

Kakegurui: Compulsive Gambler was released in 2017. It is based on the similarly titled manga that has been running since 2014.

Kakegurui is a binge-worthy show that is great to watch over a weekend.

Music - Creaky Jackals - Random

One Outs isn’t like most other anime on this list.

One Outs follows the plot of the manga, showcasing the rise of the wildcard, star baseball pitcher Toua Tokuchi. Toua plays a version of baseball called “One Outs” and is known to be a compulsive gambler.

The story starts with Toua being recruited for the Saikyou Saitama Lycaons team, the worst-ranked team in the league. There are conflicting opinions between the manager of the Lycaons team, who wants to win, and the owner who is afraid of losing money due to Toua’s high contract cost.

Toua proposes that he earns 5 million yen for every out he gets and will lose 50 million yen for every run that is scored.

One Outs is only 25 episodes long. The show was released between 2008 and 2009.

This anime is intense to watch, and it is excellent for amateur anime fans to breeze through in a couple of weeks.

Song Strut by Adam Lambert Anime One Outs

In addition to these anime, there are many great shows and show arcs that cover gambling. These shows are great picks to watch during a rainy weekend or in place of a casino visit.