Liar Game

Description

The card reads as follows:
Congratulations! You are one of the 1 in 100,000 people who has been entered in the amazing LIAR GAME TOURNAMENT!

Along with the postcard there is 100 million yen in notes. That's the beginning of the Liar Game. When the game ends, in 30 days, you will have to return your 100 million. If your opponent steals them, he can keep them as a prize, and you will have a debt of 100 million...

Type

Manga

Related Series

Liar Game - Roots of A (Side Story)

Associated Names

Игра Лжецов

झूटो खेल

เกมหลอกคนลวง (Thai)

ライアーゲーム

라이어 게임

Groups Scanlating

Latest Release(s)

c.201 (end) by TDX 10 years ago

c.200 by TDX 10 years ago

c.199 by TDX 10 years ago

Search for all releases of this series

Status in Country of Origin

19 Volumes (Complete)

Completely Scanlated?

Yes

Anime Start/End Chapter

N/A

User Reviews

N/A

Forum

11 topics, 78 posts

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User Rating

Average: 8.6 / 10.0 (1513 votes)

Bayesian Average: 8.56 / 10.0

31%

28%

22%

10%

Last Updated

January 12th, 2025 12:31am PST - 4 months ago

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Genre

Drama Mystery Psychological Seinen
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Categories

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Category Recommendations

Tomodachi Game

Usagi Yojimbo

One Outs

Tobaku Mokushiroku Kaiji

Recommendations

Hagane no Renkinjutsushi

Author(s)

KAITANI Shinobu

Artist(s)

KAITANI Shinobu

Year

2005

Original Publisher

Shueisha

Serialized In (magazine)

Shuukan Young Jump (Shueisha)

Licensed (in English)

English Publisher

N/A

Activity Stats (vs. other series)

Weekly Pos #755

(+1)

Monthly Pos #1301

(-198)

3 Month Pos #2181

(+71)

6 Month Pos #2386

(+179)

Year Pos #2463

(+92)

List Stats

On 3725 reading lists

On 1851 wish lists

On 1755 completed lists

On 273 unfinished lists

On 708 custom lists

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Forum Posts Click to view the forum

Shinobu Kaitani's Liar Game Manga Ends in January

10 years ago

Liar Game Enters Final Arc

11 years ago

Liar Game Goes on Hiatus Before New Arc

12 years ago

Does anyone knows what happened to Liar Game

12 years ago

Ch. 169

12 years ago

User Comments [ Order by time added ]

Has potential

by SaneJenn
17 years ago

Rating: N/A

I like it, surprisingly - the story is somewhat original, although, admittedly, the main character is far too naive. Even though the solutions do seem a little too simple, I think it makes it a bit more realistic. The story is starting to get a little too dramatic and exaggerated, though. Also, I think the mangaka needs new ways to "stretch" the rubberband -the girl is unnecessarily jumping herself into the game without much reason besides her "honesty."

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That last arc...

by MondSemmel
10 years ago

Rating: 8.0 / 10.0

... did not do the manga any favors. I really like most of the manga - Nao starts off as really annoying, and develops slowly, but she does develop into a quite good character. And Akiyama's shenanigans are always fun.

But the last arc falls flat in comparison with the rest. The manga ending reveals the identities of the liar game organizers, and I didn't find that revelation particularly satisfying, or in keeping with the tone of the rest of the manga.

Not to mention that the ending is actually way too open for my taste. I just can't tell whether this is because it's intentinoally leaving room for a sequel, or because it was axed.

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Amazing!

by ache
13 years ago

Rating: N/A

I love this manga with all my breath, heart, soul, even if the thought of a game like the Liar Game actually existing in the real world - and it COULD... maybe - creeps the heck outta me. But that's just the thing, when you delve into this world: the line between what is and what could be get blurred. I'm not saying that Shinobu Kaitani's writing is without its flaws: there are some loopholes, and several instances of reality suspension, but overall it's a bold, daring dive into the human psyche and the darkness that lurks within.

But ultimately it's not a pessimistic piece of work, although I wouldn't go so far as to say it's optimistic: but Nao (bumbling, naive, well-meaning, endearing Nao) does represent something, and the way he's made her out to be integral to Akiyama's successes in the Liar Game - where the reason the two of them will succeed, in the end, is because they are partners in this - is, I believe, a reflection of his stance in this world of "liars". And I LOVE when writers, artists, whatever use their medium of choice to advocate something they believe in.

One of my favourite parts of this manga too is Nao's growth. Yes, she starts off as weak - of course she would, any normal person WOULD be a little shaky if they'd ever gotten involved in something as horrifying as the Liar Game - but because of Akiyama and her own experiences, becomes so much stronger, something even the dealers take note of. And I love Akiyama too as a character, though he's so much flatter than Nao: I think the spin-off centered on him is Shinobu Kaitani's way of fleshing out his character without detracting overmuch from the central plot of the Liar Game, which I thought was a pretty smart way to make us care about Akiyama and still preserve the flow of the story.

All in all, this is a really good story, and one with fridge value, that will constantly benefit from repeat reads. The only problem, if there is one, is that since it's ongoing, we can't read it all in one-shot. SIGH. HUNGRY FOR MORE.

... Last updated 13 years ago

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Can't wait for more

by carlemb
14 years ago

Rating: 10.0 / 10.0

Started reading because I thought it had an interesting premise and I absolutely loved it.

It's a series where you have to concentrate a bit to understand what's going on and how all the various scams work but it's the puzzles that make the series so interesting in the first place. It's quite amazing to see how at first glance a quite simple setup can evolve into a complicated and engrossing battle of wits. The last arc especially was amazing, never have I found a game of musical chairs so interesting 😀 (Can kinda understand why it's on hiatus though, it must take a while to think all that stuff up...though I'd love it if he/she'd come back to it soon!)

I especially like the development of Nao's character as she starts of as quite naive and not really clued in, but later while still quite innocent she gets a little more canny and starts coming up with some good strategies of her own.

The artwork is a bit weird at times but fits the tone of the series.

Overall I highly recommend this for anyone who's tired of reading generically brainless stuff and up for something a bit more unique and stimulating 😀

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Only the end is bad

by Sburator
3 years ago

Rating: 8.0 / 10.0

It's rushed and open.

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YOU'RE the real loser in this game!

by StoneLuigi
4 years ago

Rating: N/A

So, here's the thing with Liar Game.

The second half is straight up dog shit. It's a truly classic example of an author apparently improvising a narrative and chopping off an end to order, like a drunken butcher. The first few arcs are tremendous, speaking to an enormous conspiracy and promising incredible escalation. Our wimpy protagonist and her invincible sidekick have good chemistry, and bit by bit she hardens without compromising her principles. Game by game, the series steps it up, becoming ever more phenomenally tense, paranoid, complex, exciting and weird. It's a fantastic run while it lasts.

But it suddenly starts coasting. Then it stalls. I think it happens around the second Yokoya arc. In his first game - the clever little bastard, Yokoya, is a legendary presence, a terrifying enemy and manufacturer of truly frightening machinations. His Orwellian grip on his group and their secret rebellion against him are some of the most gripping, even slightly surreal, psychological drama manga I've read to date. When the cast's efforts to take him down finally pay off, it's a guaranteed breath of relief. Best of all, when he resentfully ruins the moment, our hero Nao - who seemed like such a crybaby - very politely argues him down and utterly demolishes his sore loser's pride, saving the day where the resident genius could not. It's a wonderful moment of character development for her to honestly, conclusively best such a powerful foe.

Then Yokoya turns into a joke. He pulls a Vegeta and keeps coming back, unconvincingly vowing I'll get you next time!! In the next arc he can barely rebuild a gang; he gets clowned around and literally bowled over and knocked on his ass. Why's he still here? He's not charismatic or smart enough to be Akiyama's rival anymore. When his mask is off, he's just an annoying little rich kid with several complexes. What an awful antagonist! And it really obviates Nao's success, if he's not really defeated - worse than that, if he's never going to be concretely defeated. There's no point to fighting him if he's just going to come back with new toys like Wile E Coyote.

From there on, if I recall correctly, things just go down the toilet. There's no advancement, just increasingly arcane and stupid rulesets that feel like "Takeshi's Castle" rejects. Akiyama and Nao, the most important characters in the plot, are allowed to go stale like unattended croissants. Then, to really pull the chain, Fukunaga, the bright star in the cast, gets unceremoniously written out entirely! Why would you do that to the most inventive and unpredictable character?!

Of course, like many others have said, the ending is trite and unexciting. "Everything is exactly what it looks like, the end." In fact it has the same "powerful men behind the government conspire to harden up the country" conceit as Kongou Banchou, a fighting comic for ten-year-olds, but Kongou Banchou made it artful and elegant and fun. The sad part is that even though the ending comes out of nowhere, I was begging for it to happen.

But I still recommend it, at least for the first couple arcs! You'll know quickly whether or not the series is for you. The things the series does right are absolutely stunning. Every rule is bent and exploited, every detail is important, and each arc has a ton of effort put into it. The character art uses formal realistic proportions and makes everyone easily distinguishable.

Not only is Liar Game gripping and likable, it's highly approachable. This is a comic of endless, wall to wall insanity and unforeseeable twists. I say, if you're a fan of "formal mindgames", like the stuff you see in Death Note and Kaiji, you really owe it to yourself to read this today.

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Great Manga to Read with unsatisfactory Ending

by GreedyLocust
10 years ago

Rating: N/A

I recommend this read to anyone who likes psychological manga

however, while I understand that they had to reveal the secrets in the end, I feel they rushed that part and it feels axed

it could be because they want to enter the sequel (which it strongly hints at) but I feel they couldve made one more volume before cutting that, or at least have one where the main character finds out or suggest stuff and what not

regardless, I look forward to the sequel and recommend this manga to anyone labeling as one of my favorite reads

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An intriguing, addictive, and complex story

by moonmystery
11 years ago

Rating: 10.0 / 10.0

While the mind games are actually quite simple and predictable (at least for me), the character development is really good.

Nao, a truly annoying university girl with too little wit and suspicions of others, learns from a con-artist to become a more realistic and intelligent person.

Meanwhile, her good nature also slowly awakens the better sides of the con artist. It's a win win situation!!

The best part for me is that I can clearly see Nao's improvement throughout the story, and the fact that every now and then she would revert back to her old self makes this story more realistic as well.

I JUST NEED THE AUTHOR TO STOP HAVING LONG HIATUSES AND EVERYTHING WOULD BE PERFECT.

... Last updated 11 years ago

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A very good manga

by Tanniaotaku
14 years ago

Rating: N/A

Despite some harsh critique it recieves, I could easily say that by far this is one of the best mangas and not to mention, underrated I have read. The plot is quite intresting and different from many other seinin manga.

It keeps you at the edge of your seat without there having to be any over the top battles.

As for the female lead, Nao, I dont think she is annoying at all. She is very kind and innocent, which works as a contrasts to all the sneaky and dishonest charavters in the story. She also gradually begins to grow a backbone during the series. I think she is an oasis in a desert of cliché and overused agressive/loud female leads.

... Last updated 9 years ago

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Pretty awesome

by strawberriez880
15 years ago

Rating: N/A

I think this manga is really smart. Each game has their unique points that grab my attention (I've only read up to the end of Round 3 so far). The manga is mainly psychological and relies greatly on intelligence. I find myself comparing Liar Game to Death Note, and to be honest, I think it is almost as clever as Death note, which is saying something.
One thing I don't like about it is the main character, Nao. Like many people say, she is utterly stupid and unrealistically honest most of the time, which is infuriating as hell. And the fact that she cannot survive in one round without Akiyama just pisses me off to no end. Akiyama is a credible character, but he has a dull personality and a stereotypical look which makes him very forgettable. Other characters in the story usually have below average intelligence or just plain moronic.
Anyway, despite those, I enjoy reading Liar Game. The cleverness of the puzzles is the only thing that keeps me reading.

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