Ninja Gaiden 4 Takes Flight and Sets New Guinness World Record Over Miami

Two helicopters carve a path through the warm Miami night, and in one of the choppers, Emmanuel Rodriguez (aka “Master” – the man behind Team Ninja’s community outreach) gripped a controller tight with one hand. Swae Lee the rapper (you probably know his voice from hits like “Sunflower”) sat beside him and they were both completely locked in to a game that needed lightning-fast decisions and reflexes. What happened next engraved Ninja Gaiden 4 into the record books – literally.

Rodriguez and Lee sent commands to the console, directing Yakumo, a ninja prodigy from the game’s future Tokyo. On the large screen above, Yakumo jumped from one tower to the next, dodging mechs, strange monsters, and other high-tech enemies while his sword flashed in the rain. Everything that transpired in real time was broadcast from the chopper to the screen using fancy sports broadcasting technology, and the entire system was designed by Heli-D, the masters in over-the-top aerial stunts. If either of the guys made a minor timing error, a combo would go wrong, and the entire act would fall apart.

However, no such thing happened, as a Guinness World Record was born for the largest video game display flown by helicopter. This gigantic 20-square-metre screen, suspended 26 feet in the air and swaying softly in the breeze (yes, even from a helicopter), outperformed everything else on the market. Guinness World Records confirmed that the screen and flight route were legitimate, and that the screen showed live action without interruption, even when the wind tried to blow it off track. And, like in Ninja Gaiden 4, life in that realm revolves around high-wire tension. Tokyo is afflicted with toxic rain, and inhabitants are driven into huge skyscrapers that stretch to the clouds.


As the Raven clan’s rising star, Yakumo defeats foes using a unique style known as Bloodbind Ninjutsu, which transforms ordinary weapons into absolute pandemonium. Then there are the classics, such as the flying drop and flying swallow, for when you need a little extra precision. Every now and then, Ryu Hayabusa, the franchise’s renowned steady-on hero, appears. Team Ninja handled the basic fighting, that delicate rhythm of block-counter combos that put your reflexes to the test without letting up. On top of that, PlatinumGames included fluid animations and beautiful ambient effects to make each leap feel like you’re flying, and they nailed it exactly right. You may even customize the difficulty level for yourself, so go all out on ‘brutal’ or ease yourself in on ‘gentle’ – all while you figure out the tangled web between Yakumo and Ryu.