The Indian Air Force (IAF) is all set to release  Phase II of its 3D Mobile  Air Combat game, ‘Guardians of the Skies’ (GOTS) on the android, iOS and windows mobile app stores on December 11, 2014 at  the Air Force Auditorium, Subroto Park.  

             GOTS   takes the player to a simulated world, wherein the player becomes the part of Air Force engaging in air combat operations against a fictitious country called Zaruzia.  The player undergoes flying  training and subsequently gets engaged in combat  missions in various aircraft types of the IAF fighters, transport and helicopter fleet .  Many of the missions featured in the game will be seen for the first time on a mobile based game anywhere in the world.  The game will also have a multiplayer feature in which players will be able to carry out simulated combat against each other using their mobiles and WiFi network.  IAF has vastly focused on getting a realistic portrayal of its flying operations, which is also a first of its kind effort by any Air Force in the world on a mobile based platform.  The game is optimized to run on devices with as less as 512 MB RAM. 

            The first phase of the game with the two ‘teaser’ missions was released in July, this year.   The game received an enthusiastic response from gamers in the age group of fifteen to twenty five years and has been acclaimed for its realistic graphics and game play.  The game has won the prestigious ‘Best Indian Game’ award from Microsoft on its windows application store, proving the gamming worth of the game and popularity amongst gamers.  The game was historically designed as a tool to engross players in the world of IAF operational missions and give them a chance to role play life as a combat pilot.  IAF recognizes the widespread acceptance of smart phones all over India and sees the worth of a mobile based gaming tool to propagate its ethos, which reaches out to far greater targeted audience than traditional print and video media outreach efforts.  With over a million downloads till date, the phase two release featuring the complete range of one training and ten combat missions, will propel the game to greater stature and downloads in excess of five million by the end of 2015.  This will effectively mean reaching out to millions of individuals and engaging them with snippets of operational life in the IAF as a combat pilot and motivate them to pursue a challenging and exciting career in the Indian Air Force. 

            The game has been developed by ‘Threye’ Interactive in accordance with the strict concept and guidelines laid down by the IAF.    With accolades rolling for its mobile games, the IAF has successfully taken of on its maiden virtual sortie in July, this year and now aims to ‘touch the sky with glory’ in the mobile gaming field.

RCD/MKS/CMG