The game was released in Japan in May 2002, where it quickly became the number one selling trading card game for over a year. Owing to this popularity, it was released in the United States on March 5, 2004. The game shares several similarities with "", the world's first collectible card game, which was also published by Wizards of the Coast. In fact, "Duel Masters" was originally intended as an alternative tradename for "Magic: The Gathering" and the earlier game play was abandoned in the "Duel Masters" manga plot to promote this latest experience.