CHENNAI: People often start gaming for the thrill of trying something new. But once they get into it with their hands on the mouse and eyes on the screen, they start to improvise and discover new tactics... that is when they truly become gamers,” says Het Vora.
Gamer Foxtrot, as he is known otherwise, has been gaming since the age of five. He has played all the classics like Pac-Man, Prince of Persia, Aladdin, Contra and Mario. The first game he ever played on a competitive scale was Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi which came out in 2007. “I was about nine and was purely a console-based gamer at that time. God of War and Killzone were the games which really pulled me towards gaming,” remembers Vora
The 19-year-old gamer has won several tournaments. More recently, he won the Gaming Fest tournament, Black Ops 3 (PS4) at JNTU Hyderabad in 2016, with backing from his parents. He was also a part of Rainbow Six Siege Community Cup India. Currently pursuing B.Tech Computer Science course with specialisation in Game Art and Development at Backstage Pass Institute of Gaming, Hyderabad, he says that he maintains separate schedules for playing his favourite games and studying.
He believes that most people do not take gaming seriously. They are not aware of the benefits. “I recently started a gaming based YouTube channel named AwayFromKeyboard where I share some expert gaming hacks. I spend half of my time gaming, and the other half editing and making the videos presentable for the channel.” (laughs)
Just like every other gamer, he has his own set of favourites. He happens to love Rocket League and Forza Horizon because the sound of cars gives him a lot of satisfaction and the games are always fun to play.
He emphasises that the gaming scene in India has changed significantly. “Gaming in India has come way far from what it used to be. The industry has grown to a very great extent and people from India have gradually started to take up gaming as a full time profession, especially turning pro at games like Dota2 and CS:GO, and considering the number of tournaments that are held in metro cities, the day isn’t far when India will have its own professional E-Sports team.”
According to him beginners should start playing games like Counter-Strike, Call Of Duty, R6S, Dota, League of Legends and Overwatch. “If there’s anyone out there who wants to join the gaming world he should not give up hopes. Out here in the gaming world, everyone who plays, no matter how small or big a game, is always a gamer and they will always be welcome,” he points out.
He draws inspiration from well-known gamers Optic Pamaj and Serenity17 as they are best at what they do. He is looking forward to the upcoming game in the franchise of Call Of Duty named Call Of Duty: World War 2. He and his team are preparing for the Champions Cup India in the game Rainbow Six Siege scheduled for next month.“2018 is set to bring us great games like Anthem, God of War and many more. I’d love to try all of them.”