Conflicts have arisen over ownership of the Demon Blades, samurai swords forged by Muramasa Sengo that bring tragedy and madness upon their wielders.

Navigation takes place through hand-drawn 2D side-scrolling environments reminiscent of Japanese artwork of the period, and can enter towns to talk with non-playable characters (NPCs) and buy items such as health restoratives and accept quests.

[4][8] When blocking or using a blade's Secret Art special move, its Soul Power gauge depletes: if emptied, the sword breaks and its offensive abilities are drastically reduced.

Tsunayoshi's thirst for power has created conflict around ownership of the Demon Blades, samurai swords forged by the legendary swordsmith Muramasa Sengo that crave blood when drawn and bring madness and death to those foolish enough to draw them.

[1][10][11] The two lead characters are Momohime (百姫), a princess of the Narukami clan from the province of Mino; and Kisuke (鬼助), a runaway ninja with no memories but a burning desire for vengeance.

Descending into Hell, Jinkuro's soul is briefly captured by a demon, and it is only with Momohime's help that he escapes and learns that the Dark Resurrection was never in the storehouse.

With Momohime's body beginning to fail due to the strain Soul Transference put on it, Jinkuro attempts to ascent to Heaven so he can become an immortal demon, but is stopped by Raijin and Fujin.

[12] While willing to accept his death and allow Momohime her remaining time in her body, Kongiku shows them another way to Heaven on Mount Kongō, where Rankai's temple is located.

In the third ending, after the battle with Fudo-Myoou, Jinkuro is transported to the night he attacked Yukinojo by the Oboro Muramasa Demon Blade, which can defy the passage of fate.

Pursuing her, Kisuke fights both Torahime and undead soldiers loyal to her family, and agents who are preserving the flow of magic energy to Mount Fuji.

[12] Rescuing Torahime from the spider demon Tsuchigumo, Kisuke learns that she died while fleeing from Tsunayoshi's forces, and that her present life is a temporary gift from Amitābha.

After the battle, Kisuke asks Amitābha to return the now-enlightened Torahime to life, then commits suicide as an act of defiance when his demand is refused.

[15] In "A Spirited Seven Nights' Haunting", the Iga ninja Arashimaru goes on the run after learning his latest target, the Okabe clan leader and caretaker of the Spear of Bishamon, was his father.

Taking shelter in a shrine, Arashimaru accidentally breaks a mirror sacred to the Goddess Inaraki, who becomes a Shirohebi (white snake) that curses him to die in seven days.

After besting his master Shiranui in combat, Arashimaru learns that his mission was orchestrated by the monk So Xian, a century old Chinese spy working to destabilize Japan's ruling classes who was indirectly responsible for taking the young Kisuke from his family.

Arashimaru kills So Xian and escapes with Shiranui's aid, then goes peacefully to his death after asking the saddened Shirohebi to give his head and Spear of Bishamon to his brother Dengoro to restore the Okabe house.

[19] According to sound producer Hitoshi Sakimoto, the game's director George Kamitani was laying out plans for Muramasa when Odin Sphere was in the middle of development.

[21] The number of protagonists in the story was dictated by the game's budget, as Kamitani's initial idea was for more characters similar to the narrative of Princess Crown.

[43] Due to the game's strong Japanese atmosphere, it was seen as a hard sell in the West, but during localization a lot of work went into preserving it rather than adjusting it for Western tastes.

[49] Upon release in the United Kingdom, most retailers did not stock it: this was put down to a general attitude that it would not sell like prevalent franchises or games from mainstream genres.

[56] In addition to the main game, four self-contained stories were released as downloadable content (DLC) under the title Genroku Legends,[b] featuring new characters within the Muramasa universe.

[13][60][61] A special edition of Muramasa Rebirth exclusive to Japan contained all four DLC episodes alongside the original content and was released on March 19, 2015.

[68] Destructoid's Conrad Zimmerman called it "a very solid title", saying that while flawed in its story delivery and instances of repetition, its visuals were "absolutely beautiful" and it proved fun to play.

[70] GameSpot's Tom McShea praised the visuals, boss battles and collectable swords, but found few other activities outside combat, which itself lacked depth.

[71] IGN's Colin Moriarty called Rebirth a "faithful port", praising the improved localization and generally enjoying playing despite backtracking hampering the experience.

[79] Chris Holzworth of Electronic Gaming Monthly was impressed by the visuals and indifferent about the story, and recommended playing it on a higher difficulty setting.

[67] On its debut in Japan, The Demon Blade reached #2 in game sales charts, coming in behind Sengoku Basara: Battle Heroes with 29,000 units sold.

[83] In a feature on notable video games in 2009, GamesTM stated that The Demon Blade sold "extremely well", besting established Western franchise releases such as Dead Space: Extraction.

[85] In a 2010 interview, publisher Marvelous Entertainment stated that, despite positive reception from both critics and players, Muramasa: The Demon Blade had suffered from low sales in Japan, North America and Europe.

[87] Within the first month following its release in Japan, the game topped 100,000 shipments, with at least 67,800 physical retail sales, and the remainder as digital copies distributed on the PlayStation Network.