Game based on 1971 Indo-Pak war goes viral in India and Bangladesh

What’s the story?

The 1971 war between India and Pakistan led to the birth of a new nation, Bangladesh, which was carved out of what was then known as East Pakistan. Pakistan were dealt a heavy defeat in the war, and ‘Heroes of 71: Retaliation’, a new video game which has emerged in Bangladesh, allow its users to recreate the conflict and liberate East Pakistan.

This game has become a massive hit and has been downloaded more than 40 lakh times according to the Economist with more than 25 lakh downloads from Bangladesh itself. 11 lakh downloads have been from users across India.

In case you didn’t know...

The 1971 war was fought between India and Pakistan after the latter conducted mass genocide in what was then East Pakistan. This led to an abundance of refugees entering Indian territory which led to a full-scale war.

The war resulted in India inflicting a heavy defeat on Pakistan and the territory of East Pakistan became a brand new country, Bangladesh.

The heart of the matter

The current version of the game is actually a sequel to an earlier release “Heroes of 1971”. It has upgraded graphics when compared to the previous version and also features an attractive, sari-clad protagonist Anila, who is a guerrilla fighter rescued from captivity.

Missions like saving women from their Pakistani captors, engaging in full frontal battles with armed forces and also punishing politicians who conspire with the Pakistani Army feature in the game. What is interesting to note is that the game seems to be state-sponsored, with the credits naming two state-run bodies, ICT Division and Bangladesh Computer Council.

What’s next?

Heroes of 71: Retaliation was released on Bangladesh’s Independence Day, March 26. The game is available for download on both the PC and Android platforms and has been rated suitable for audiences above the age of 16 due to the blood and violence involved in the game.

Author’s Take

Playing a war game based on history makes the experience all the more fun and this is the case with Heroes of 71: Retaliation. Knowing that the enemy was responsible for so much suffering will only make one play with that much more passion and vigour.