Durgesh Gupta - Televisionpoint.com | Mumbai
Breaking wind, burping and shirking responsibilities were something that only uncouth people were associated with, but now it has become a way to de-stress and can be done with the click of a mouse all thanks to gaming. The Indian gaming industry, which is growing at a rapid pace, is also seeing some innovative twists that are characteristically desi.

While there are games on sites like Zapak.com and Games2win.com modeled around navigating through crowded city roads there are also games like Pig Blast and Sugandhiben P.A.A.D which seem to be equally popular. Pig Blast involves rescuing a pig trapped in its pen by controlling the power of its air movements and in the latter game Sugandhiben's farts are directed at terrorists to keep them at bay. In both these games the characters are constantly fed bean juice, vada pav or theplas to keep their gas quotient high.

Manisha, an animator, says "Burping in public is considered improper but it's always great to have fun at someone else's expense. My colleagues and I absolutely love these games and they are a far cry from the violent, racy ones which only add to one's stress levels."

The makers of these games say that such funny, corny and humourous games are a huge hit with their audience, especially youngsters. "We get about 2.1 million hits a month. Most of the users who play these games are youngsters and many of them have commented that they find such games more interesting than the strategies and races. A majority of the target audience of these games claim that it helps them de stress," remarks Alok Kejriwal, Founder and CEO, Games2win.com.

The makers of these games admit that they could be gross, a notion that could vary among users, but say that they are nevertheless popular. Adds Kejriwal, "We agree that these games sometimes border on the gross factor but then our users encourage us with their feedback and some of these games are actually born out of comments from users."

According to gaming portals, there is a marked increase in the number of gamers in India. While sporting games remain a clear favourite, the ones with a touch of humour are also high on the popularity lists.

"This is because when you are playing racy, adrenaline filled games there is a lot of concentration involved and it can be a physically as well as mentally exhausting experience. On the other hand, with such 'fun' games you can unwind and laugh at these situations - all of which contribute to reducing your stress levels. Even though some of these games are considered gross or embarrassing, the truth is that we have received excellent and positive feedback from our gamers," says Rohit Sharma, COO, Zapak Digital Entertainment.

Well it seems like when food can be ordered online and even bills can be paid, it shouldn't be a surprise that such activities too find a place on the World Wide Web.