The 4 chapter challenges in Ninja Gaiden 4 and the setting that voids them

The four chapter trophies share one condition the game never shows on screen, and it stops them popping even when you clear the chapter perfectly.

Completing them unlocksSurf Ninja trophySurf NinjaBronze16.94%

And it counts towards Laser's Edge, The Grind Never Stops, Free as a Bird, required for the platinum.

The EveryTrophy team2 min readPublished on 21/08/2026Updated on 21/08/2026Covers 4 of the 53 trophies

Auto Movement has to be turned off

Four trophies ask you to clear a specific chapter without a mistake: 02 without falling, 06 and 10 without hitting obstacles, and 12 without taking a single laser.

All four share a condition that appears in brackets in the description and that plenty of people skip over: Auto Movement has to be turned off.

If you leave it on, you can play the chapter perfectly and the trophy will not pop. It is the most common mistake on the whole list, and it gives you no clue about what went wrong.

Careful

Check the setting in the menu before you start each of the four chapters. It costs ten seconds and saves you replaying a whole chapter.

The four, from hardest to most manageable

The percentages show clearly which one really hurts.

ChapterTrophyConditionWho has it
10Surf NinjaWithout hitting a single obstacle16.94%
12Laser's EdgeWithout being hit by a laser18.35%
02The Grind Never StopsWithout falling once22.80%
06Free as a BirdWithout hitting a single obstacle39.50%

The good news: you can retry them as many times as you like

This is where the best feature of Ninja Gaiden 4 for anyone going for the platinum comes in: chapter select. Once you have cleared a chapter, you can go back to it as many times as you want.

That means these four trophies are not missable, and you can give them a whole session of attempts on your second playthrough, with the character already upgraded.

At EveryTrophy we consider it the main reason why an 8.5-out-of-10 platinum is held by 14.46% of players: here you do not fail, here you give up.

The trophies involved

Each one links to its section inside the full Ninja Gaiden 4 trophy guide.

Surf NinjaBronze16.94%
Clear Chapter 10 without hitting any obstacles (Auto Movement OFF)
Original name: Surf Ninja
Laser's EdgeBronze18.35%
Clear Chapter 12 without being hit by a laser (Auto Movement OFF)
Original name: Laser's Edge
Clear Chapter 02 without falling once (Auto Movement OFF)
Original name: The Grind Never Stops
Free as a BirdBronze39.50%
Clear Chapter 06 without hitting any obstacles (Auto Movement OFF)
Original name: Free as a Bird

Other Ninja Gaiden 4 guides

Master Ninja difficulty in Ninja Gaiden 4 and the trophy that decides the platinum
Master Ninja is the wall of this platinum. Why it needs a run of its own, when to take it on and what the data says about who gets through it.
The 8 trophies in the Ninja Gaiden 4 expansion The Two Masters
The expansion adds 8 trophies that do not count towards the platinum and that are a good deal harder than the whole base game. The two rarest in the game are here.
All 18 Ninja Gaiden 4 Purgatory Gates: where each one is
One gate per chapter except 14, always off the main path. And the warning that costs hours: the ones in the Challenge menu don't count.
All 20 Ninja Gaiden 4 bosses and why the second half repeats them
The game's 20 bosses in chapter order, the rematch structure nobody explains, and the 14 boss trials including the one that only appears if you kill a secret boss.
The 15 Gourdies in Ninja Gaiden 4, chapter by chapter
Twelve chapters, fifteen Gourdies, five of them blue ones that run if they see you. Here is each one with the exact detour to take off the main path.
The 23 health items in Ninja Gaiden 4: 11 in chests, 12 as rewards
Ninja Fortitude is not bugged: half the items are not in chests but come from completing missions, and four only exist in New Game+. Here are all twenty-three.
From 100% to 19.58%: why Dark Dragon Blade mastery is locked
The first technique trophies land on their own and the last demand a boss trial that only exists after the campaign. Which weapon serves which, where the Crow Gear pieces are, and the prerequisite nobody sees.
Nothing is missable: why the first playthrough needs no caution
The six campaign trophies are progression, and finishing it opens everything through chapter select. Ryu's three chapters, the health items they hide, and the trophy that sounds like plot but is a boss trial.
Pack Mule forces New Game+ by design: the flower kunai missions only exist there
Twenty missions land on their own and all 55 demand a second run. Plus four enemies that cannot be obliterated, the ninjas that only appear in the combat trials, and the no-death chapter you get to pick.
The DLC first boss's 16.54% does not measure difficulty: it measures who bought it
The expansion's three story bosses lose half a point between them: whoever starts, finishes. Then the new trials open, and that is where the percentages drop below ten per cent.