Indus Battle Royale game adds Olympic pistol shooter Heena Sidhu as a playable character

Pune-based developer SuperGaming has teamed up with Olympic pistol shooter Heena Sidhu to make it look like its upcoming Indo-futuristic battle royale game Indus. The athlete will soon appear as the game character Heena, whose backstory is described as an important part of Indus lore, establishing him as a living legend among the people. For the uninitiated, in April 2014, Sidhu became the first female pistol shooter from India to reach world number one ranking, awarded by the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF).

“I was surprised to see an Indian game studio taking so much care and attention to detail, especially in terms of shooting and gunplay and how it all translates to Indus,” said Sidhu. in a prepared statement. “It’s something I noticed as an avid athlete and gamer, which made working with SuperGaming all the easier.” New character Heena has, in fact, been teased quite overtly in most of Indus’ promotional material, sporting a scout over her left eye and wing-like blades protruding from her back.

SuperGaming says his lore is no different from real-life Sidhu, who had to break with stereotypes to fully realize his passion for shooting. Her story isn’t entirely clear, but a SuperGaming spokesperson suggested she was best compared to Robin Hood for her village – a hero among the needy.

Indus also revealed Mor-Ni, another new entry to its wide roster, who is revered as a popular hero among the Yaksha, a race of intelligent beings. As the name suggests, her appearance resembles that of a peacock – an appropriate headgear paired with a purple-blue combo, in terms of clothing and makeup. Both characters will be available in Indus at launch.

As mentioned in a previous report, Indus is not a class-based shooter like Overwatch. So while all Mythwalkers seem to be designed differently, they don’t currently come with any special skills. “Players will definitely be able to see our own exciting take on player augmentation with special abilities in the Plains of Virlok sometime after launch,” a SuperGaming spokesperson said.

The company held its third community playtesting event late last month, which added new skins, weapons, map and minimap quality of life improvements, customizable controls, and the ability to swipe across the map. Indus puts you in the shoes of a Mythwalker, a hitman working for the COVEN, an intergalactic syndicate in search of a mysterious rare mineral called Cosmium.

In classic battle royale fashion, players will be dropped off on the floating island of Virlok to scavenge for supplies, kill anyone who stands in their way, and come out as the last player standing. Alternatively, players can wait for the Cosmium to spawn in a random location on the map and hook it to end the match instantly.

Pre-registration for Indus is now available on the Google Play Store. PC and console versions are expected in the future.