Hello everyone!
It’s been a while. Forgive me if the format’s a bit off – I need to get used to doing these once again.
Anyway, over the past couple of months I’ve been getting into a relatively new game (it’s not too new – been in “beta” for just over a year). It’s not like the games most of you would be used to, where you’re mostly just focussed on what you’re playing. This one, you’re required to actually get up from your chair (or other relaxation device) and (somewhat) socialise. This game is called Ingress.
For those of you who haven’t heard of it before, it was created by a small start up within Google called Niantic. Although, you’d never really know they were Google employees if you follow the story behind the game. I won’t get into the story in this post – if you’re really interested, I suggest you look it all up on Google+, YouTube, and other Google services – however, the main point of Ingress is to capture portals (found at real-world locations – statues, historic buildings, etc), then link them together to try and form control fields. All of this needs to be done while fighting off the opposing faction to your own – I should mention, there are two factions, the Enlightened (coloured green) and the Resistance (coloured blue). The game favours working in teams to build up large groups of portals into farms, but you are able to play by yourself relatively effectively once you’re a high enough level (usually around level 4 or 5).
I’m really enjoying playing Ingress. I don’t get too much time to really focus on it at the moment, but I have been able to level up to level 7 (almost level 8 at the writing of this post) as a Resistance agent. I’ve also been able to build a few decent sized fields in the time that I’ve been playing (not as massive as some people’s, but large enough for me at the moment). I’ve also become a part of the friendly community for my faction within South Australia, which is really cool.
So, now that I’ve gone through my spiel about the game, are you a fellow Ingress agent? If not, have this post gotten you interested to know more, and possible join in the action? Let me know your answers in the comments below! Also, if you are a player, let us know what you think of Ingress in the comments as well – eg. recommendations for new players, or any other information that I may have missed.
Robert
