The player controls a young boy named Tarosuke as he must make his way through Jigoku, the Japanese concept of Hell, to reach Buddha, who will determine his fate.

[1] Tarosuke must venture through the monster-infested world of jigoku to reach Yama, the Buddhist deity that judges the dead, who determines his final fate.

[2][3] The game increases in difficulty as Tarosuke progresses, with some levels requiring him to find three secret items in order to unlock the way to the next area and search for hidden pathways.

[2][3] The Family Computer version of the game adds a "pious" meter, which is filled when Tarosuke performs good deeds such as complete specific objectives in some levels.

Tarosuke also appears as a playable character in the Japan-only role-playing PlayStation 2 game Namco X Capcom, where he is teamed up with Taira no Kagekiyo from Genpei Tōma Den.