E-Paper
Govt launches games on India’s freedom struggle
On April 8, the ministry set up a task force for the animation, visual effects, gaming and comic (AVGC) sector to boost domestic production
The ministry of information and broadcasting on Wednesday officially launched the Azadi Quest games, a series of online educational mobile games developed in collaboration with Zynga India, a gaming company.
“These games are an effort to tap into the huge market of online gamers and to educate them through games. Various arms of the Government of India have collected information about unsung freedom fighters from the corners of the country. Azadi Quest is an effort to make this learning of this knowledge engaging and interactive”, Union minister Anurag Thakur said at the launch here on Wednesday.
“The gaming sector has grown by 28% in 2021 alone. The number of online gamers has risen by 8 per cent from 2020 to 2021 and by 2023 the number of such gamers is expected to reach 45 crore,” the minister added.
On April 8, the ministry set up a task force for the animation, visual effects, gaming and comic (AVGC) sector to boost domestic production. The games have already garnered over 50,000 downloads, the ministry said in a statement.
The first game is the Azadi Quest: Match 3 Puzzle, which, according to a ministry statement, “is a simple and easy to play casual game presenting the players with the colourful journey of India’s independence from 1857 to 1947”.
“As players progress through the gameplay, spread across 495 levels, they can collect 75 trivia cards, each showcasing key moments in history, compete on leaderboards, and share in-game rewards and progress on social media,” the statement added.
The second game is Heroes of Bharat, which is designed as “a quiz game to test the knowledge of the players about the heroes of Indian independence through 750 questions spread across 75 levels and also tell them about the lesser-known heroes through 75 ‘Azadi Veer’ cards which can be shared across social media platforms”, the ministry said.
Officials familiar with the matter said more games are in the pipeline. “There will be more chapter chapters and games, such as quizzes about unsung revolutionaries and women warriors who played a part in gaining Indian Independence,” the official said.
Apurva Chandra, secretary, I&B ministry, joint secretary Vikram Sahay and country head of Zynga India, Kishore Kichli, were also present at the launch.
