I started playing Ingress a few months ago, and it’s turning out to be quite the interesting experience. Granted, the game has only been around for about 4 years, but it’s got quite the following of players from all walks of life and all locations. What I like about it is that it includes everyone, no matter where you are from.
This puts you into a virtual struggle between two teams – the Enlightened, and the Resistance. In the area I’m in, it made more sense to be part of the latter, since the Enlightened seem to have more active players, so this way you have more things that you can do. There is a whole backstory about how the world has become filled with Exotic Matter, or XM, and these two factions are fighting for control of different locations that this XM comes into our world through. The “Shapers” are the beings who created XM, and are bringing it to our world.
The same company that made this game later brought out Pokemon Go, which uses pretty much the same engine, but you use locations for gyms and Poke-stops rather than portals. Either way you play, it forces you to go get out into the world and travel, which I think is a good thing. It’s meant to be good, light-hearted competitive fun, and that’s how I play it. Sometimes you get those players who don’t realize that it’s only a game (or forget, or whatever), and they take the game way too seriously, and I think that takes away from the spirit of the game. As long as you have a smartphone/tablet and a thirst for adventure, it’s a great game to play, and you meet interesting people along the way. I was lucky, as I know a few people here locally that play, and we’re all on the same faction side, so it builds a sense of cooperation and fun!
If you haven’t tried it out yet, I really suggest you give it a shot, as it really is free to play. The only cost is your time, gas if you travel by car, and if you choose to buy key lockers (they come in handy, and you can get all 5 for only $10), of if you buy what is called a fracker, which allows you to hack a portal many times in a short amount of time. Other than that, you don’t need to put any real money into this game. It’s a hobby – a way of sharing time that you can have fun doing………..and I enjoy it quite a lot!