New York sky lit up by 500 drones promoting Candy Crush

Five-hundred synchronised drones equipped with powerful LEDs performed a choreographed routine over New York City on November 3 to mark the 10th anniversary of the mobile game Candy Crush.

The 10-minute display involved the drones creating a series of images, hashtags and slogans from the game, ranging from a huge version of the game’s logo to a depiction of the ‘play’ button.

Pixis, the Virginia-based drone events company that organised the display, had to obtain a permit to launch its fleet from neighbouring New Jersey, so as not to violate New York City airspace restrictions and laws prohibiting drones within city limits.

Jeff Kaplan, the general manager of Pixis, told Gothamist New York’s skyline was an “amazing canvas to work with”.

Graham Hill, the owner of a Denver-based drone company, Hire UAV Pro, told Gothamist: “The advantage of drone light shows is being able to turn empty space and empty sky into a large billboard, essentially.”

The Candy Crush promotion is not the first time Pixis has conducted a drone show over New York’s Hudson River. In June, the company organised a display to promote the NBA player draft, with drones sporting giant lights that put out messages such as “the future starts now”.

The practice of using GPS-linked drones for marketing first gained traction in Asia. The opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea featured a display by 1,218 drones, while Hyundai marked the arrival of its Genesis brand in China in March 2021 by deploying 3,281 drones to create its logo over Shanghai’s skyline.

New York State senator Brad Hoylman, however, railed against the stunt. “The profit-seeking drone show threatens the public safety, wildlife and peaceful enjoyment of New York City’s waterfront,” he said.

Hoylman added that the stunt also threatened the millions of migratory birds passing over the city every year, which can be disorientated by objects such as drones. He said he would look into introducing legislation to ban drone-based ads over New York.