History VideoGame / MuramasaTheDemonBlade

* {{Youkai}}: The game's based on Japanese mythology. Naturally, there are plenty: the ''{{kitsune}}'' that serve Inarimyojin assist Kisuke and Momohime, with Yuzuruha and Kongiku taking human form to serve as guides; ''{{tengu}}'' and ''{{kappa}}'' are common enemies, as are the ''{{karakasa}}''-type Obake, although they look slightly different from their usual form (that being a one-legged umbrella monster with a single eye and a mouth with a long tongue). Every boss (other than named characters like Kurozaru and Torahime) are based on famous Yokai and legends.

In 2013, the game was [[UpdatedRerelease ported to the]] PlaystationVita as "Muramasa Rebirth" (still just Oboro Muramasa in Japan), with an updated script and controls. In addition, Muramasa Rebirth got DownloadableContent, which took the form of an [[AnotherSideAnotherStory alternate mode]]; called "Genroku Legends", it features nothing regarding Muramasa or his Demon Blades, instead focusing on completely different/new characters in four three-chapter-long stories that take place in the same universe.

* CuteMonsterGirl: We're talking a game set in [[JidaiGeki Feudal Japan]]. [[{{Kitsune}} Kongiku and Yuzuruha]] are standouts here. Raijin ([[{{Beastess}} who resembles an oni]]) is quite attractive, but her beauty is mostly overshadowed by her brash and aggresive nature (almost to [[TheLadette Ladette]] levels, [[{{Tsundere}} go figure]]). The only times it surfaces is when she's knocked out of the sky (she lands on her rump and takes a moment to tend to her rear in a typical {{Dojikko}} fashion; notably, her voice raises from sultrily deep and tough to innocuously cute) and briefly after the BossBattle with her when Fujin calms her down. And once you beat her, she is just adorable. More are added for ''Rebirth''; the first main character is Okoi, a female [[CatGirl Nekomata]], and the second is Rajyaki, a small Oni girl. Meanwhile, Gonbe is assisted by his wife's still-attractive ghost, while Arashimaru's snake familiar is actually a shapeshifting minor deity out for his blood.

In 2013, the game was [[UpdatedRerelease ported to the]] PlaystationVita as "Muramasa Rebirth" (still just Oboro Muramasa in Japan), with an updated script and controls. In addition, it was announced that Muramasa Rebirth would be getting DownloadableContent, which took the form of an [[AnotherSideAnotherStory alternate mode]]; called "Genroku Legends", it features nothing regarding Muramasa or his Demon Blades, instead focusing on completely different/new characters in four three-chapter-long stories that take place in the same universe.

* LikeABadassOutOfHell: [[spoiler:Momohime, although Kisuke ''can'' go there after the player sees both endings.]]

* SpiritualSuccessor: As said above, ''Muramasa'' is one to ''Odin Sphere'', which in turn makes this game one to ''Princess Crown''[[labelnote:*]]a 1997 SegaSaturn game made by members of Creator/{{Atlus}} who went on to become Creator/{{Vanillaware}}[[/labelnote]] by proxy. ''Muramasa'' was even referred to as ''Princess Crown 3'' during development.

** One of the bonus bosses are TheSevenSamurai.

Legend tells of the swordsmith {{Muramasa}} Senji, whose blades, though unparalleled in quality, carry with them a terrible curse. Though these 'Demon Blades' can cut through anything, they compel their wielders to uncontrollable bloodlust, and they must draw blood before being resheathed... whether that blood is from an enemy or the swordsman himself.

* StatuesqueStunner: {{Exaggerated|Trope}} with Raijin, ''by far'' one of the tallest women encounter in the game.

** In JapaneseMythology, Raijin carries small hammers to beat on the ring of drums of behind him and thus stir up thunderstorms. Naturally, ''Muramasa''[='s=] [[GenderBender take on Raijin]] keeps them, but when you consider that this Raijin is [[AmazonianBeauty outright ripped]] as opposed to [[StoutStrength slightly chunky]], perhaps those hammers also double as dumbbells.

* The fourth story is ''Hell's Where The Heart Is'' (released in September 2014), starring Rajyaki, a [[CuteMonsterGirl female]] [[PintsizedPowerhouse child]] [[SuperStrongChild Oni]]... who also happens to be the youngest daughter of King Enma, Lord of Hell. Having misplaced the sacred treasures of the "Seven Gods of Fortune", Rajyaki was on a mission to recover them when former monk-turned-playboy Seikichi accidentally proposes to her, to which she accepts and decides to try and be the "bestest" wife she can be, while taking him with her on her mission (via stuffing him into a magical bag). Rajyaki, similar to Miike, has three forms she can access for combat, all of which (due to use of one of the aforementioned Fortune God treasures) are her at different ages; as a Child (her default form), she hits hard and fast with a large hatchet and can summon a large demon-faced hammer for her Secret Art. As an Adult, she fights with cumbersome but devastating swings of a Kanabo (classic Oni Club), with her Secret Art summoning a fireball that she smashes into the enemy at high speeds; lastly, she can transform into a massive, hulking Demon (who looks similar to Raijin from the Muramasa storyline rather than the normal Oni) that destroys everything via [[RapidFireFisticuffs overwhelming flurries of punches]] or turning into a moving Fireball (both attacks of which end with [[StuffBlowingUp a massive and damaging explosion]]). Lastly, some of Rajyaki's attacks in all forms, if they damage an enemy enough, can deal "Crushing Blows", wherein she's surrounded by an aura and does more damage.

* AboveTheInfluence: [[spoiler: Torahime gives Kisuke permission to do ''[[ArentYouGoingToRavishMe whatever]]'' [[ArentYouGoingToRavishMe he wants to her]] during their hot spring encounter, and he does nothing.]]

** The Demon Blades of the title can cut demons, gods, dragons, and pretty much anything else. As with the Muramasa blades of legend, dip one into a river and any leaves floating by will be cut in half. And in his second ending Kisuke manages to [[spoiler: cut Jinkuro's soul out of Momohime without harming her.]] Now ''that's'' sharp.
** The Oboro Muramasa, which can only be acquired after forging and finding all of the 107 other swords, is so sharp that it [[spoiler: cuts fate. Or, in practical terms, it allows for MentalTimeTravel]]. Just because the sword is really, really sharp.

* AGodIAm: [[spoiler: The Shogun, after being possessed by Inugami. Jinkuro as well, following his failure to retrieve his sword in Hell.]]

* AndTheAdventureContinues: [[spoiler: Kisuke's second and third endings. The narrator even lampshades it one of them by mentioning that the events of the game are the first story of 20. Momohime's second ending is also like this, with her leaving her new adopted home to unravel the secrets behind her IdentityAmnesia. Arashimaru's second ending ''looks'' like it will be this, with Jiraya and Tsunade setting out together to thwart the schemes of So Xian, but the narrator decides to skip ahead to the end and give the audience a "sneak peek" of the final battle.]]

* AuthorAppeal: Naturally. Big breasts (Kongiku), big butts (Yuzuruha), muscular women (Raijin) and delicious-looking food (even the simplest rice ball).

* BigBad: [[spoiler: Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, the Shogun, was the one who was ultimately behind the attack on the Kagami clan and the theft of the Kuzuryu Muramasa, which kicks off the plot for both Momohime and Kisuke.]]

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: Momohime's second ending is this. Jinkuro and Kisuke score a MutualKill on each other in the final battle and Jinkuro uses the soul fusion art to save Momohime's life. Months later Momohime is shown living a quiet life in the country with an elderly couple, alive and healthy but stricken with IdentityAmnesia -- [[NeverForgottenSkill and possessing instinctive mastery of the Oboro style.]] [[AndTheAdventureContinues She proceeds to leave on a journey to discover who she was after rediscovering her skills.]]]]
** [[spoiler: Momohime's third ending, though it arguably counts as a DownerEnding as well. While Jinkuro avoids stabbing Momohime and possessing her, it's highly implied that instead her fiance (Jinkuro's intended target) was possessed instead...giving Jinkuro lots of power that Momohime couldn't give and allowing him to cause lots of chaos. Of course, Momohime tends to bring out the best in Jinkuro, and it's not like Yukinojo didn't have it coming, so it's not as bad as it could be.]]
** If not for the purposefully ambiguous hope that [[spoiler: Arashimaru might be saved and Shirohebi freed]], the ''Seven Ghostly Nights' Curse'''s second ending would be dark as all get out.

* BonusDungeon: There are several dead end paths that serve this purpose. When you beat the game once with both characters, all boss dungeons are available, turning them into this. Finally, the enemy lairs are bonus dungeons, including the aptly named level 92 Enemy Lair "Total Pandemonium/Night of Absolute Chaos." You have to fight through multiple waves of almost every type of enemy in the game. This includes some of the bosses [[spoiler: as well as clones of the player characters]].

** [[spoiler: Jinkuro and Rankai appear in Miike's first ending; Jinkuro is one of the people hired to try and take care of her when she haunts the Wakamiya clan in her rampage of DisproportionateRetribution. Being [[{{Badass}} Jinkuro]], he Curbstomps her with ease and winds up cutting her tails off, rendering her powerless... But not before she curses him with illness and inevitable death, which is what lead to Momohime's storyline. Rankai, WalkingTheEarth after Monohime's first ending, shows up in the scene afterwards. Kongiku also appears in the hot spring.]]
** [[spoiler: An older Sayo shows up to help resolve Gonbe's problems in his second ending, revealing not only that he was reliving his and his allies' failed revolution for 14 years, but also that he's been dead all this time; she helps him and his wife achieve peace and ascend to heaven, then erects tombstones for them. Additionally, the "Infinite Light", whom Gonbe prays to when he first sees ghost Otae, is the title of Amitabha, whom Kisuke meets in his first ending.]]
** [[spoiler: Rajyaki shows up toward the end of Arashimaru's first ending; also counts as an EarlyBirdCameo, since this was Rajyaki's first appearance in Muramasa Rebirth before her story was even announced proper. Mumyo also names Oboroya Senjyu (who taught Jinkuro the Oboro style, and saved Kisuke from death via [[MergerOfSouls soul fusion]]) as being his student in the second ending; lastly Kisuke's mentioned during the story as having been abducted like Arashimaru was, and he is again mentioned in the second ending in reference to his story's third (or, less likely, second) ending, as a wandering swordmaster helping Jiraya to destroy Orochimaru.]]

* ContinuityNod: [[spoiler: The way Mumyo steals Arashimaru's body in the second ending is the Soul Transfer technique, which it turns out he invented (along with Oboroya, who was his student); he's even wielding the Kuromitsu/Dark Ressurection Sword required for the technique. Later, when he's fighting Jiraiya and Tsunadehime, they reveal that they're wielding Demon Blades of their own to combat him; these Demon Blades are explicitly named Descent Into Misery and Threads Of Fate, the swords you obtain in the Muramasa storyline from Momohime and Kisuke's first endings (and are both required for obtaining their second endings).]]

* CuteMonsterGirl: We're talking a game set in [[JidaiGeki Feudal Japan]]. [[{{Kitsune}} Kongiku and Yuzuruha]] are standouts here. Raijin ([[{{Beastess}} who resembles an oni]]) is quite attractive, but her beauty is mostly overshadowed by her brash and aggresive nature (almost to [[TheLadette Ladette]] levels, [[{{Tsundere}} go figure]]). The only times it surfaces is when she's knocked out of the sky (she lands on her rump and takes a moment to tend to her rear in a typical {{Dojikko}} fashion; notably, her voice raises from sultrily deep and tough to innocuously cute) and briefly after the BossBattle with her when Fujin calms her down. And once you beat her, she is just adorable. More are added for Rebirth; the first main character is Okoi, a female [[CatGirl Nekomata]], and the second is Rajyaki, a small Oni girl. Meanwhile, Gonbe is assisted by his wife's still-attractive ghost, while Arashimaru's snake familiar is actually a shapeshifting minor deity out for his blood.

* DeadAllAlong: [[spoiler: Most of the central cast are undead: Momohime doesn't really count, although she was presumed dead after Jinkuro cut her; Kisuke was mortally wounded by his brethren after betraying the clan for love, and returned to life through fusing with an angry ghostly swordmaster; Torahime was assassinated by the Shogun, and is sent back by Amitabha for a limited time to exact vengeance and save the world from the Inugami alongside her army of ghosts.]]

* DemonicPossession: Technically he's human, but Jinkuro's (accidental) possession of Momohime's body counts as this. [[spoiler: Averted for Kisuke; he was granted his knowledge of the style by Jinkuro's master, Senju, but the technique used is more like a spiritual FusionDance, essentially causing Senju to cease existing but imparting ALL his knowledge and abilities to Kisuke, whose personality isn't changed to any significant degree.]] There's also [[spoiler: The Shogun, who is possessed by the Inugami... Though since he DID want the sword the Inugami was sealed into in the first place, and we never see his personality before you fight him, the extent of the possession is a bit muddled...]]

* MultipleEndings: Three each for Kisuke and Momohime. The second ending for both characters involves [[spoiler: fighting the other character to more or less a stalemate instead of their usual final boss]], while the third [[spoiler:uses the ultimate sword's ability to "cut even fate itself" to return both characters back to the moment in time when their story would've normally begun, but with all their memories up until that point intact as well as carrying the eponymous Oboro Muramasa. For Jinkuro, this isn't a particulary good deal, since the reason he used the body possession skill to begin with was because his own body was close to dying anyway... which he does soon afterwards. However, it is heavily implied that he took over Yukinojyo's body before he died to be married to Momohime. Between him acting differently, all of a sudden disagreeing with his father, and naming his "new" fighting style (which is actually just Oboro style) Izuna style, Izuna being Jinkuro's last name. In the end he fooled EVERYONE, even most gamers. Not bad for an old guy.]] DLC characters get two each.

* StealthPun: Raijin has thunder thighs.

** Sometimes plot-critical information does get left out. Namely [[spoiler:just how Kisuke [[PercussiveTherapy recovers his memories.]]]] Luckily the story is unrelated to progression.

* PercussiveTherapy: Sayo claims attacking Kisuke with her Buddhist charms will show him the light. [[spoiler:She's right and it restores his memories. At least, if you survive the boss fight.]]

** Fujin has a line in the Japanese (to Raijin) that amounts to "I love your fat ass." The English has "I'm very fond of you." And there's plenty more where that came from.

* TheCameo: Each installment of Genroku Legends involves at least one character from another story, chiefly the main Muramasa storyline(ignoring all the NPC's throughout the main world);

* MultipleEndings: Three each for Kisuke an Momohime. The second ending for both characters involves [[spoiler: fighting the other character to more or less a stalemate instead of their usual final boss]], while the third [[spoiler:uses the ultimate sword's ability to "cut even fate itself" to return both characters back to the moment in time when their story would've normally begun, but with all their memories up until that point intact as well as carrying the eponymous Oboro Muramasa. For Jinkuro, this isn't a particulary good deal, since the reason he used the body possession skill to begin with was because his own body was close to dying anyway... which he does soon afterwards. However, it is heavily implied that he took over Yukinojyo's body before he died to be married to Momohime. Between him acting differently, all of a sudden disagreeing with his father, and naming his "new" fighting style (which is actually just Oboro style) Izuna style, Izuna being Jinkuro's last name. In the end he fooled EVERYONE, even most gamers. Not bad for an old guy.]] DLC characters get two each.

* CuteMonsterGirl: We're talking a game set in [[JidaiGeki FeudalJapan]]. [[{{Kitsune}} Kongiku and Yuzuruha]] are standouts here. Raijin ([[{{Beastess}} who resembles an oni]]) is quite attractive, but her beauty is mostly overshadowed by her brash and aggresive nature (almost to [[TheLadette Ladette]] levels, [[{{Tsundere}} go figure]]). The only times it surfaces is when she's knocked out of the sky (she lands on her rump and takes a moment to tend to her rear in a typical {{Dojikko}} fashion; notably, her voice raises from sultrily deep and tough to innocuously cute) and briefly after the BossBattle with her when Fujin calms her down. And once you beat her, she is just adorable. More are added for Rebirth; the first main character is Okoi, a female [[CatGirl Nekomata]], and the second is Rajyaki, a small Oni girl. Meanwhile, Gonbe is assisted by his wife's still-attractive ghost, while Arashimaru's snake familiar is actually a shapeshifting minor deity out for his blood.

* CuteMonsterGirl: We're talking a game set in FeudalJapan. [[{{Kitsune}} Kongiku and Yuzuruha]] are standouts here. Raijin ([[{{Beastess}} who resembles an oni]]) is quite attractive, but her beauty is mostly overshadowed by her brash and aggresive nature (almost to [[TheLadette Ladette]] levels, [[{{Tsundere}} go figure]]). The only times it surfaces is when she's knocked out of the sky (she lands on her rump and takes a moment to tend to her rear in a typical {{Dojikko}} fashion; notably, her voice raises from sultrily deep and tough to innocuously cute) and briefly after the BossBattle with her when Fujin calms her down. And once you beat her, she is just adorable. More are added for Rebirth; the first main character is Okoi, a female [[CatGirl Nekomata]], and the second is Rajyaki, a small Oni girl. Meanwhile, Gonbe is assisted by his wife's still-attractive ghost, while Arashimaru's snake familiar is actually a shapeshifting minor deity out for his blood.

** Kisuke and Momohime can fight Oodako, a giant octopus-like sea monster in the middle of a hurricane, and in ''Rebirth'' defeating it earns the trophy "[[CthulhuMythos From the Depths of R'lyeh]]".

* ShoutOut: One of the bonus bosses are TheSevenSamurai.

* ContemptibleCover: One of the Japanese covers for the game's soundtrack has one of Oodako's tentacles covering Momohime's otherwise exposed crotch and her breasts almost falling out of her kimono. Another has Yuzuruha sitting in a seductive pose, lifting her kimono with her foot acting as a SceneryCensor, a third has Torahime naked in a BoobsAndButtPose with one elbow covering her breasts and her buttocks obscured by [[XRayVision her flesh turning transparent]], and a forth is of a naked Momohime seen from behind with her shoulders, back, and butt covered in tattoos, glaring over her shoulder while drawing a sword.

* DamageSpongeBoss: Several.

* KudzuPlot: The story lines and multiple endings are all connected to one another in interesting ways.

* {{Youkai}}: The game's based on Japanese mythology. Naturally, there are plenty: the ''{{kitsune}}'' that serve Inarimyojin assist Kisuke and Momohime, with Yuzuruha and Kongiku taking human form to serve as guides; ''{{tengu}}'' and ''{{kappa}}'' are common enemies, as are the ''[[UmbrellaGhost karakasa]]''-type Obake, although they look slightly different from their usual form (that being a one-legged umbrella monster with a single eye and a mouth with a long tongue). Every boss (other than named characters like Kurozaru and Torahime) are based on famous Yokai and legends.

* AmbidextrousSprite: Tries to justify it for characters in cutscenes by giving them turning animations in which they swap whatever they're holding to their other hand. Out of cutscenes, though, everyone does this, with few exceptions.

* DrawSwordDrawBlood: The eponymous swords cannot be sheathed until they have tasted blood. It there's no one around to kill, the swords will turn on their wielders.

* {{Bowdlerization}}: Not as bad as the ones the 80s and 90s were infamous for, but it's gotten a lot of flack for being overly concise and cutting poetic language (and sometimes whole lines that don't matter to the plot) out in favor of getting straight to the point. This seems to be an unfortunate habit of producer Ignition -- when they don't simply go for a full-blown BlindIdiotTranslation.

** [[spoiler:The entire plot of Rajyaki's story gets off the ground thanks to Seikichi propositioning Momohime when he sees her (or more likely Jinkuro in her body, judging from the armor present on her) sitting on a rock and eating a rice ball. She is on Earth in the first place because she tried to show the treasures of the Seven Gods of Fortune to Raijin (Momohime's seventh boss) and accidentally lost them in the process. And her second ending features Dengoro, Arashimaru's younger brother, as a local lord and enthusiast of the supernatural after his experiences in "A Sprited Seven Nights' Haunting". King Enma, first shown in Gonbe's story, shows up in the first ending, albeit in human form(though his true face temporarily appears over his human body when he speaks). Finally, you can also meet Yuzuruha, Otae and Shirohebi in the same hot spring.]]

* HeroOfAnotherStory: Momohime and Kisuke to one another. Aside from occasionally encountering one another in hot springs [[spoiler:and in certain endings]] the two do not interact with one another.

* KudzuPlot: The story lines and multiple endings are all connected to one another.