Knights in flying armour

The Indian Air Force's official air combat game, Guardians of the Skies, is one virtual adventure you can't afford to miss

"Whenever India needed a guardian, the air warrior has always stood tall. How can a man die better than facing fearful odds, for the ashes of his father, for the temple of his gods"

These are more than just mere words. They appear in a montage at the beginning of Guardians of the Skies. They might spur you to play the Indian Air Force (IAF)'s official air combat game and for many others might provide an added impetus to pursue a career as an air warrior.

Launched in the first week of July, Guardians is a 3D flight simulator that puts users in the cockpit of some of IAF's finest aircraft as they go through training and combat missions. Developed by Indian developer Threye, Guardians features a fictitious storyline where our nation is at war with the country of Zaruzia. The game has one training and 10 combat missions. The first version of the game currently lets users play just the training mission and two operational combat missions.

Training
'Training Day' allows users to get accustomed to flying in their first aircraft - the Sukhoi 30. You get to work on your take-off and navigation. Subsequently, you begin your armament training where you get to use weapons to neutralise air and land targets. In the final phase of the training programme, you work on mastering your landing. The landing part was a bit tricky - when you crash repeatedly, you thank your stars that it is all virtual!

Combat missions
Guardians currently lets users play just two combat missions - "I Smell A Rat" and "S.O.S". In the first mission, the user flies a SU 30MKI to provide cover to Indian shipping assets in an extended economic zone from pirate activity. The second one is a "search and rescue" mission, where the user flies a Mi 17V5 helicopter. Some other missions that are currently not available for playing include: Uninvited Guest, The Day of the Defender, The Thirst Quencher, The Tank Buster, Last Man Standing and so on.

Gameplay and interface
The graphics and design in Guardians are commendable. The developers at Threye have done a great job in making the game virtually realistic and thrilling. Aircraft designs make sure the gameplay looks even better. The IAF logo can be seen clearly on the aircraft. Guns and rockets leave proper trails when fired at enemies or targets. The user is often addressed as "Razor One", while receiving mission orders. Meanwhile, the soundtrack and effects make the game more exciting - loud riffs form a core part of the music used in Guardians, giving it an adventurous feel.

The game interface has been kept nice and easy. The throttle, brake and landing gear buttons appear on the left of the screen. A radar shows enemy positions. There are two digital metres that appear right above the aircraft. They display the speed and height in knots and feet respectively. You can also toggle your view with a "look" button that allows you to see in every direction. Once the aircraft weapons are activated, a red trigger button appears on the bottom left. You control the speed of the aircraft with the keys, while motion sensors determine the direction. Users get warnings about stalling speed and using the landing gear at the right time through prompt messages on the display.

Aircraft
As mentioned before, the first two missions let users fly the SU 30MKI and Mi 17V5 helicopter. Once the second phase of the game rolls out, users will be able to experience the likes of the M2000, Tejas, Phalcon AWACS, C130, Mi 17, Mi 35 and ALH Dhruv.

Soaring high
In less then a few weeks, Guardians already has more than 50,000 to 1,00,000 downloads, with an average rating of 4.4 out of a possible five stars on Google Play Store.

It is already available on Android for free and will be released for Windows Phone and iOS later this month. The next version of the game - with eight more combat missions - will be released on October 8 this year, which also happens to be our Air Force Day.

As a game, Guardians is a beautifully developed and promising venture. And, as an effort to attract the youth towards a career in the IAF, it is even better.

We would recommend you to download Guardians and try it.

And what better way to sign off than these words that describe the IAF's valour and respect: "Sleep well my mother. Sleep well my father, another beautiful dawn is on its way. Sleep well my sister. Sleep well my brother, there are still stars in the sky..."