Lady Liberty lights up

Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 takes on an icon FORMAT PS3, PS NOW / PUB KOEI TECMO / DEV TEAM NINJA / RELEASED 2009 / SCORE N/A

Can an idea be defeated with a sword and not healthy debate? Yes, yes it can, when that idea is physically embodied in the Statue Of Liberty and it’s gone rogue. Sorry America, Lady Liberty has become possessed and needs to be put down.

Though the Statue Of Liberty appears in Ninja Gaiden 2, it’s only in the subsequently released Sigma edition that this famous landmark comes to life. She doesn’t need Jackie Wilson to get up and move – instead it’s the work of Alexei, one of the four

Greater Fiends Of Vazdah, who are threatening the world (and the population of New York City). He’s cast a spell over the statue to ‘enjoy her company’, the monster.

Fighting one of the world’s most iconic statues is a perfect fit for a game that saw us defeat a giant Buddha in the opening crawl. This battle is something else, as she lays the smack down with her gigantic arm slams and swipes. Each ground pound sends out a shockwave to dodge, and three in a row can prove taxing but stay in the fight because the final slam leaves her open to attack.

Just when we’re getting a handle on Lady Liberty’s less-thanarmless attacks, she digs into her arsenal and channels lighting in our direction. Cocking her head back to taunt us, she summons ground lightning to spark up from under our feet – we dodge it.

Then she creates balls of homing lightning that follow us around the battle arena, far harder to evade.

Defeating the Statue Of Liberty isn’t too challenging but there’re few games that go as far as weaponising an ideal. A part of us feels guilty for sending a nation’s soul to the bottom of the Hudson.