Masamune Date is the seventeenth head of the Date clan. In spite of facing an infamously traumatizing childhood, he rose to prominence as the most dominate ruling power in Oshu. He is reputed as one of the wisest figures of the time era, biting back his ambitions to stay as one of the wealthiest independent rulers of his time. After his death, Masamune's famous nickname became the One-Eyed Dragon also used for Li Keyong.
Masamune is the prideful leader of the Date family. After he unites Ōshū, he sets his sights on uniting the whole land under him, starting with Echigo, Shinano, and Kai. Interrupting Kawanakajima and defeating both Kenshin and Shingen, he proceeds onwards towards Owari. During the time of his arrival, Nobunagaand Yoshimoto are at odds in Okehazama. Slaying Yoshimoto, his ambitions to wrestle power away from him amuses Nobunaga. Though Masamune claims Owari and Mikawa, the Oda regroup and face the Honganji Rioters at Ise. The young lord corners his rival but the elder's calm indifference to his efforts stuns him from dealing the finishing blow. Taking Ise with ease, Nobunaga uses the opportunity to reclaim Owari from the Date's control. Isolated, Masamune decides to retreat towards Mikawa and is stuck between the Nobunaga and Shingen at Nagashino.
Should Masamune randomly target any force he sees, his troops will tire from the campaigns. As he heads back to his homeland to give them time to rest, he decides to have one last hurrah by facing Shingen and Kenshin at Odawara Castle. Routing both leaders, he finally decides that he will give in for now yet swears a future comeuppance. Years later, he is seen carrying a golden cross and humbly surrendering to Hideyoshi. Unimpressed by Hideyoshi's quick forgiveness, Masamune declares his renew ambitions for conquering the land.
If Masamune consistently defies Nobunaga, he will want to prove that he is more than a mere boy to the conqueror. Routing both the Oda and Takeda, he resumes his march back to the capital only to see Nobunaga already stationed at Honnōji. Caught between Mitsuhide's betrayal, he orders his men to stay alive as they first defeat the traitor. While dealing with the Akechi army, Nobunaga retreats from the main temple and his reinforcements led by Hideyoshi and Keiji arrive. Trapping the Date army within the flames, the enemy commander declares that the enemy is at Honnōji. Slaying Nobunaga to prove that he is worthy of leading the land, Masamune unifies Japan. As his nervous aide asks what their next conquest will be, the young lord corrects him by saying that a pure reliance on strength solves nothing. He remarks that he wants use his new power to show the world the benefits of seeking new alternative solutions.
Like Oichi, Masamune matures into a young man in Samurai Warriors 2 but retains most aspects of his personality. By the time he unifies Ōshū, he realizes he is no match against Hideyoshi and surrenders in the hopes to keep his homelands. His participation in the siege of Odawara Castle keeps his reputation favorable and his seat in Ōshū intact. In response to Hideyoshi's death and realizing that Ieyasu will be the land's next ruler, Masamune decides to assist the pursuit at Hasedo before Kanetsugu can regroup. Slaying Kanetsugu and Keiji, Masamune wins a victory for Ieyasu and is promoted to a Senior Lord. Feeling the need to further prove himself, he decides to suppress pirates nearby.
Pleased by his efforts, Ieyasu allows him to join the front at Ōsaka Castle. During the battle, he convinces Magoichi, who is intent on protecting Hideyoshi's dream, to join him in the vision for a new world. Questioning his own position in the world after facing Yukimura's unabashed determination, Masamune gains the strength to make his own ambitions a reality. Rather than lead his troops home, he directs them towards Mikatagahara to challenge Ieyasu for the right to rule the land. With Japan in his hands upon Ieyasu's death, he explains his future plans to see other countries with his comrade, Magoichi. At the moment, he just wants to enjoy the new peace under his command.
His dream mode explores his possible participation at Sekigahara for the Eastern Army. His allies are shocked when Hideyori takes to the field and many of the former Toyotomi generals defect. Staying loyal to the east, Masamune defends Ieyasu and the remaining eastern generals.
In the Swordsman scenario of Samurai Warriors: Katana, Masamune seeks to make Keiji a part of his army by any means. To earn the warrior's loyalty, he and the player agree to play along with his whims by competing in a series of trials. The warlord resorts to cheating in the treasure hunt trial to compensate for his losing streak. However, this fails to deter the protagonist from winning the contest fairly. Impressed by his competitor's goal to become a master swordsman, he hopes to recruit him as a potential vassal someday.
Already friends with Magoichi at the start of the third title, they work together to unite Ōshū under his command. However, they were unable to prevent the death of his father, which haunts him in his dreams. To not make his father's death in vain, Masamune swears to keep winning his campaigns. Joining his friend in the Sanada call for mercenary aid in an attempt to alleviate his grief, he makes his acquaintance with Yukimura, Keiji, and Kanetsugu at Ueda Castle. Whilst there, Kanetsugu makes it abundantly clear that he despises Masamune, as he merely deems that the latter unjustly killed his parent for power. Even so, Kanetsugu speaks in his favor against Kanbei's suspicions regarding his surrender at Odawara Castle, aware of Masamune's desire to protect his home from annihilation.
With Ujiyasu's death, the land is at peace with Hideyoshi's vision. Masamune, lauding the idea that everyone can smile in the new era, decides to use this chance as a second shot at conquering the land by rioting in Ōshū. Facing the Toyotomi suppression forces led by Kai, he is frustrated to hear the resistance has little support for his goal to change the perceptions currently held by people, or the core of the land. Deciding to relent for the good of his vision, he carries a golden cross as he confronts Hideyoshi in person in the capital. Declaring his innocence against Kanbei's incriminating evidence, his antics conversely bemuse Hideyoshi, who deems him fit for his dragon nickname. His formal meeting with Hideyoshi stops his recklessness for the time.
After Hideyoshi dies of illness, unrest within the Toyotomi ranks spreads. It escalates so much that Kiyomasa, Masanori, and others cause a riot against Mitsunari in the capital. The men Masamune met at Ueda Castle move to his assistance. Still in Kanetsugu's debt from Odawara, he and Magoichi decide to help the isolated general escape to Ieyasu's mansion for safety. Using his alliance with Ieyasu for his dream, he challenges the Uesugi army at Hasedō. A defeated Kanetsugu has no regrets and expects Masamune to kill him to end everything. Instead, Masamune spares him and tells Kanetsugu that a greater world lies beyond the land of peace that Ieyasu desires, declaring that he will keep fighting to see it a reality.
Sengoku Musou 3: Empires explores the idea of him overcoming the Toyotomi during their rise to power in his story. He is initially aghast when his father makes him the head of their clan, but Terumune convinces him to accept it in order to realize his own potential. Masamune, who had only been concerned of what others expected of him, rises up to the challenge with Tsunamoto Oniniwa as his guardian. He later learns of Yoshitsugu Nihonmatsu's defection to the Ōuchi and eliminates their troops at Odemori Castle. With Sadatsuna routed in battle, the Date lord punishes Yoshitsugu by greatly reducing his territories despite the latter's pleading for a lighter sentence. Because of this, Terumune is taken hostage and dies as a result, leading Masamune to avenge his death on the Nihonmatsu clan.
After moving past his father's death, he pretends to obey Hideyoshi's edict for disarmament while building up a sizable army in secret. He also meets Magoichi for the first time after the mercenary sneaks into his room for a chance to talk. Informed of the internal conflict at Ōzaki, Masamune agrees to help Magoichi under the pretext of quelling the rebellion for the Toyotomi. Unsatisfied with his victory there, the young warlord makes his next move by forming an alliance with the Hōjō clan in person. On his way to Odawara Castle, he comes across a bear standing in the way. His attempt to shoot the animal is thwarted by its owner Kai. Despite the rough start between them, she guides him to Ujiyasu who consents to Masamune's request so long as his people are unharmed. Upon returning, his domain is visited by Hideyoshi who seeks the Date's help in subduing the Hōjō. Realizing the Toyotomi leader is aware of his previous engagement with Ujiyasu, he complies by ordering Tsunamoto to take his place in the assault of Oshi Castle while personally setting forth to the other side's aid. His duplicity offends Kai greatly, though Masamune ignores her protests to save the Hōjō from their fate. Their efforts are rendered useless when Odawara falls to the Toyotomi. Masamune leaves to avoid capture while Kai is taken by Hideyoshi's men to Ōsaka Castle.
Not willing to give up on her, his only option to reach Ōsaka is to pass through the Tokugawa's lands. He has no trouble promising rulership to Ieyasu in exchange for support if it means he can influence the core of the land. Masamune's resolve deeply moves Tsunamoto while Kanetsugu humorously mistakes it for love. The Toyotomi's artillery proves too much for the Date army to bear, forcing their lord to issue a retreat. Unknown to them, Masamune slips past the front lines and climbs the castle rooftops to see Kai who begs him to leave alive. With the odds stacked against him, he miraculously overthrows Hideyoshi and returns to Tōhoku while escorting Kai along the way. The ending implies that they have fallen for each other.
Samurai Warriors 4 Masamune has been with Kojūrō for as long as any of them can remember. His earliest appearance in the wars is his desire to exploit the Uesugi civil conflict to his advantage, seeking to end the Uesugi in one fell swoop. Masamune returns to Ōshū and continues to seek opportunities for expanding his family's territory in the Tohoku chapter. His southern neighbor, Yoshitsugu Nihonmatsu, fears his advance and hastily offers a peace treaty. Masamune fails to see through Yoshitsugu's discontent for him and is faced with Yoshitsugu holding his father hostage. Despite his personal reservations, Masamune obeys his father's command to fire at will, killing them both. As the Date army claim Nihonmatsu Castle, Yoshinobu Satake rides his troops in protest. Masamune, stricken with grief and regret over his decision, recklessly rides with his own regiment to confront him at Hitotoribashi. The self-blame increases when Sagetsu Oniniwa dies because of his orders.
His broken emotional state continues to interfere with his rulings and a swift collapse in Date alliances follows. Yoshiaki Mogami and Yoshinobu lead an unified attack on two fronts at Koriyama. Masamune refuses to accept Kojūrō's advice to withdraw with the self-imposed mission to become become the land's unifier. The young Date lord believes that is the only way for him to honor his father's memory. He feels further motivated towards his goal when Magoichi and Keiji arrive with news of Hideyoshi's unification in the center, feeling that he is losing valuable time against the local competition. When the gigantic Toyotomi army threatens Ōshū, Masamune welcomes the challenge as a shortcut to accomplishing his ambitions to power.
Once Kojūrō acts as his impostor and is injured, Masamune realizes his goal is self-destructive and foolhardy if it means sacrificing those close to him. He abandons his self-imposed mission, accepts his father's passing, and dons the responsibilities of clan head. Finally listening to Kojūrō's advice, Masamune peacefully surrenders to Hideyoshi prior to the Odawara conflict. The Date lord and vassal are surprised when Hideyoshi forgives them and allows them to keep their current ranks and property. Seeking to protect the legacy he has inherited in an era of everlasting peace, Masamune later submits to Ieyasu. His new alliance demands his participation at Hasedō and Ōsaka Castle.
The 4-II Lord and Retainer Story begins with his ailing eye being ripped out by Kojūrō. He swiftly recovers from the pain and forces himself for his first campaign to assuage Kojūrō's remorse. Throughout the scenario, he acts as a prudent leader who defends Kojūrō from his dissenters. Masamune is not frank about his trust and affinity in him, so it takes time for Kojūrō to empathize with him. He initially forbids the ill Kojūrō from joining him at Ōsaka Castle but caves in to his retainer's insistence. As compensation, he orders for their survival. Whether Masamune is aware of Kojūrō's final fate is left open to interpretation.
He plays a minor supporting role during the Spirit of the Sanada, where he is a late supporter of the Toyotomi and the Tokugawa. He is first only mentioned to be a part of the main siege at Odawara Castle with the forces of Hideyoshi. When Hideyoshi and Toshiie die and the government splits into the eastern and western factions, Masamune opts to tackle the riled up Uesugi forces at Hasedō. Once word breaks out that Mitsunari and the Western army were destroyed at Sekigahara, he attempts to personally capture the Uesugi commanders but fails.
He is seen with the other Eastern generals watching the deliberation for the fates of Yukimura and Masayuki Sanada after they delayed Hidetada's army and kept him from going to Sekigahara. When fighting breaks out between the Tokugawa Shogunate and the remaining Toyotomi forces at Ōsaka, Masamune is charged with attacking Yukimura at the Sanada Ward. Despite his massive numbers, Yukimura makes use of the disorganization and the low morale within the Shogunate forces and defeats Masamune, exposing Ieyasu's position to the Toyotomi forces.
During the summer siege, he is a part of Hidetada's forces which attempt to capture Yukimura at the outskirts of Ōsaka. Ultimately, he and the rest of the army are defeated by the warrior. A year after the Ōsaka campaign and Ieyasu's passing, he and the surviving Sengoku generals meet each other once again at Ōsaka, and he and Takatora report rumors purporting that Hidetada was weak due to his overly high treatment of the Sanada.
Masamune is first called forth by Ieyasu to defend Edo Castle which is under attack by Orochi's army. Confident that they can win with his help, Masamune assists by personally riding out and launching several ambushes with his men. Foiled at every turn, Masamune becomes infuriated with each failure. Finally facing Orochi personally as they near the main keep, he is struck with the darkness that surrounds the Serpent King upon his defeat. The same darkness distorts Masamune's inner doubts into a reverent belief that humanity can never win against Orochi. Therefore, he becomes one of Orochi's loyal followers, rising up in ranks to eventually be Orochi's secondary right-hand man.
During Shu's Gaiden stages in Warriors Orochi, Masamune continues to serve Orochi until he is confronted by his old friend Magoichi. Defeated, he tells his former friend that his life is free for the victor to decide. Magoichi decides to spare him and Masamune ends up joining the Shu army to defeat Orochi.
In the second game, Masamune is disgusted at how the other lords continue to squabble with one another after Orochi's passing. Believing that Orochi's control over him is temporary, Shingen and Kanetsugu try to convince him to join their coalition at Chang Ban. However, Masamune refuses as he believes that Orochi's reign is the only true rule and assists Kiyomori's efforts. Once Orochi is resurrected, he quickly returns to his lord's side without hesitation.
His dream stage is shared with Sima Yi and Mitsunari. Together they ward off the Coalition Army with their strategies. Musou OROCHI Z gives him two additional dream scenarios. One stage teams him with Keiji and Orochi at Bai Di Castle, as they engage in a mock battle amongst the other half of the early Orochi forces led by Da Ji. Masamune's personal task in the battle is stopping Zhuge Liang's sorcery within the Stone Sentinel Maze. The other dream stage has him teamed with Himiko and Benkei at Mikatagahara. He joins the duo to save Da Ji from being taken away by Wei and Wu, although he isn't particularly happy with the deed. He warns Benkei about trusting Da Ji and supplies the manpower for the ally main camp.
He is still among Orochi's followers and tried to find a method of resurrecting his lord again in Warriors Orochi 3. Masamune continues to defy humanity as a hopeful servant for Orochi until he sees the Orochi clone spat out by Hydra at Luoyang. Disappointed by the shallow copy of his lord, Masamune then volunteers to join the coalition to destroy the impostor. An annoyed Masamune later joins Sima Yi on an errand to investigate the "girl in a box" at Guangzong. He quickly loses his patience with the defending Yellow Turbans, but his efforts leads to Gracia and Zhang Jiao's allegiance to their group.
Masamune works with Sima Yi again in the downloadable stage, "Domestic Disputes", as they work together in stopping couples from fighting so turn their attentions to Orochi. In "Stop Thief!", he and Sima Shi search for the one who stole their meat buns. In "The Rescue of Da Ji", Masamune protects the demon from the Mystic Army at Koshi Castle.
Ultimate has Masamune and Sima Shi aid Gracia in finding the whereabouts of her father. Their search leads them to Ueda Castle where Da Ji has been hiding.
In Warriors Orochi 4, he is amongst the defeated warlords that have become vassals of the Oda. Aside from Nobunaga, he and the rest of the Date are also allied with Sima Yi's detachment of Wei forces. Due to this, he and Sima Yi are attacked by Liu Bei's rebel army at Tedorigawa. Though their ambush troops are defeated, they bring in their reserves to surround the remainder of Liu Bei's army. Zhuge Liang, however, unexpectedly arrives and outwits Sima Yi and Masamune. After their defeat, both men surrender and agree to help fight Nobunaga.
Masamune later accompanies his allies in dealing with Lu Bu and Loki's forces at Guangling.
He is accompanies Xiaoqiao to Nagashino where he has to help her gather flowers for Zhou Yu, but she ends up procrastinating and getting side tracked multiple times. Unbeknownst to them, Kojūro and Zhou Yu, having secretly followed the pair, end up mopping out many potential threats. Upon meeting each other, the Demon army arrives, attracted by Dong Zhuo's presence, and attacks them. After the battle, Masamune hands all sorts of trinkets that were passed onto him from the journey to Kojūro as a way to thank him for what he's done thus far.
The main storyline in Pokémon Conquest has Masamune recognize Nobunaga to be his superior in military power and strength. Although he desires to conquer Ransei for himself, he is rational enough to acknowledge that he is currently too weak to overthrow Nobunaga. For the sake of his ambition, Masamune surrenders to Nobunaga and schemes to one day have enough power to claim the land in his own name. When the protagonist defeats him at his home, Avia, Masamune sees the loss as an excuse to be relieved of his duties to Nobunaga. He promises to someday return with stronger forces as he departs from his castle.
In the Legacy of Chris Thorndyke,
And he is voiced by Reuben Langdon much his Basara Counterpart in the English dub and reprised by Nobuyuki Hiyama in the Japanese dub.