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Zayn Malik surprised fans by appearing on a competitive Yu-Gi-Oh! Masters Duel stream. On Thursday, August 29, 2024, the English singer shared an Instagram post revealing he was the Shadow Duelist, stating:
"Surprise, I was the Shadow Duelist! Thanks @ygomasterduel for having me and giving me the opportunity to showcase my Yu-Gi-Oh! fandom to the world and congrats to the winner on claiming the Nocturne mask!"
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For the uninitiated, Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel is a free-to-play digital card game (2022), based on the fictional trading card game, Duel Monsters. The game plays an important role in the manga Yu-Gi-Oh! by Kazuki Takahashi.
Recently, IGN hosted a special Master Duel tournament called the Shadow Duelist. Participants competed not only for the title but also to guess which celebrity was behind the masked persona named Nocturne.
As news of the event spread, internet users were quick to react. One stated:
"bro is king of doing side quests."
Many expressed their surprise at Zayn being a fan of Yu-Gi-Oh! One even joked that he must cosplay as a character at the NY Comic Con every year. Here are some comments seen under the singer's IG post:
Netizens continued to gush about the crooner's surprise guest appearance on Master Duel.
Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel dropped several hints about Zayn being Nocturne through the month
Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel streamed the finals of the Shadow Duelist tournament in a live stream hosted by IGN on their YouTube channel. The stream began at 11:00 a.m. PST with the final match, followed by the reveal of Nocturne’s secret identity.
Zayn wore a mask and gloves and used a voice modifier throughout the promotion and the finale stream. Around the 1:18 mark of the broadcast, Nocturne revealed himself. The hosts frequently questioned the Icarus Falls singer about his thoughts on the match and who he thought would win the title.
The game's official social media channels dropped hints about Nocturne’s identity throughout the month. This included a reference to his former band, One Direction, stating,
"Before going solo, Nocturne was part of a celebrated brotherhood of troubadours."
Another clue noted that Malik boxed for two years as a teenager before turning to music. Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel's shared the hint:
"In their youth, Nocturne donned fighters' mitts as a different sort of Duelist. #YuGiOhMASTERDUEL."
Following his reveal, the singer detailed his love for the series (the manga was adapted into an anime) and learning to play the game. When asked about his new music, Malik stated:
"I’m dabbling a little bit with South-Asian sound. So I’m making some records, like singing in a completely different language, which is really interesting and proves difficult at different points. But it’s a challenge, and I like a challenge."
He also added that he had "some pretty big announcement" coming up. Many fans interpret this as an upcoming tour or concert to promote his recent album Room Under the Stairs. Malik has not yet confirmed the same.
