Tech: Smartphone games that test your survival skills

Kites Mumbai (100K downloads)
A popular game among kite enthusiasts, Kites Mumbai is a 3D re-imagination of the art of flying kites. The game is meant for both active kite flyers as well as people who haven't ever held a manjaa. One can also collect coins, bet on kites, purchase new and enhanced kites, and even choose different sky scenarios to fly their kite in. The game also has an online scoreboard with gamers' global rankings on them, based on their individual scores.

(L-R) Taral Mehta, Prasad Kajrekar, Amol Mody and Nikhil Malankar of Gameon at their Borivli office. Pic/Sneha Kharabe

The game was created in December 2013 by Games Eon, the Mumbai-based game development company that includes Prasad Kajarekar, Amol Mody, Nikhil Malankar, and Taral Patel. "Since the kite flying festival was in the following month, we decided to go ahead and build a game on that," says Patel (23), its marketing head.

Taxi 3D Parking (100K downloads)
Designed to make Mumbai come alive on your screen, Taxi 3D Parking is about the gamer taking charge of the iconic Indian taxi and whizzing past chaotic streets to get to the coveted parking spot.

The game has over 30 playable levels - ranging from Nerul to CST - that increase in difficulty as you progress. But, by the time one gets to Dadar and Byculla stages, the parking gets really tough. One can play either of the two available modes - Time Trial or Parking, and can also choose their favourite taxi, be it the old-school van, the vintage cab, or the hatchback taxi.

Created in January 2015, by renowned game developer games2win, Taxi 3D Parking is available on both, iOS and Android. "Since we are Indians, we look at developing games with an Indian theme," says Dinesh Gopalakrishnan, product manager, games2win, who made this version Mumbai-centric because, as we know, it's not easy to find a parking spot in the city."

games2win also have two other Mumbai based games that they have developed with a similar concept, namely, BEST 3D Parking and Parking Frenzy India - both with a download count of more than 100K.

Driving Test Mumbai (100k downloads)
A game built to help people behind the wheel improve their driving sense and provide them with a knowledge of signals and different road signs in the city, Driving Test Mumbai contains famous landmarks such as CST, Hotel Taj, and BSE.

Currently, the game has three levels and gets progressively challenging. Amit Jain, a resident of Raipur, built the game in 2013. "I already knew the computer language C++, and developed the game myself by learning from the Internet," he says. According to Jain, the process of acquiring a license from the RTO can be learnt easily by playing this game.

Muumbai Lokkal (100K downloads)
This 4.4 rated app on Play store is the ultimate test for a true Mumbaikar. Whether you are born in Mumbai, moved here recently, or have lived here in the past, the game will help you refresh, know and learn more about Mumbai's characteristics - especially the local trains.