Keiichi Maebara and his family move from the noisy, bustling city to the quiet little town of Hinamizawa in the summer of 1983. As Keiichi settles in, he meets some local girls who quickly become his steadfast group of friends: Satoko Houjou, Rika Furude, Rena Ryuuguu, and Mion Sonozaki. While their life is mostly carefree and fun-filled, he begins to discover that things in Hinamizawa are not as they appear to be.

During the annual Cotton Drifting Festival, Keiichi learns that there have been murders and disappearances for the past few years in the aftermath of the celebration. Referred to as "Oyashiro's Curse," the suspicious townsfolk say that those who anger Hinamizawa's patron god will be cursed to die or disappear. At first, he believes that such things are mere folk tales meant to scare misbehaving children. But when a murder and a disappearance occur after the festival and his friends refuse to talk about the strange events in the village, Keiichi begins to wonder if his new friends may have something to do with the horrific events—and if he might be the next to die.