Supposedly, the game is based around the true story and legends surrounding Himuro Mansion in Japan. The mansion is rumored to be the gruesome death site of a Japanese family and several of its associates a few decades ago. However, when asked, Makoto Shibata, the series producer, said the game was based on two old Japanese urban legends and ghost stories; he made no mention of the previous tales of the Himuro Mansion murders, which brings into question the factuality of this previous "basis" for the true story. It is also worth noting that the game was not explicitly advertised as being based on a true story in Japan, and that the "based on a true story" tag line was not used until Tecmo released the game outside of Japan.[1] [edit]