In a million places around the globe, a strange form of energy is coming through from what seems like another dimension. We don’t know anything about it — only that it appears to make some people more creative and intelligent. Those people are called The Enlightened, and their goal is to blow those portals wide open. But working against them are the members of The Resistance, people who believe this new energy can’t be trusted.
That’s the lore behind Ingress, an emerging augmented-reality game from Niantic Labs, a startup within Google. The portals are real-world landmarks and points of interest that fall under the control of either in-game faction when nearby players power them up. The idea is to get people out and exploring parts of their own city they may never have been to before, said John Hanke, who oversees the game’s development.
Depending on your attitude toward technology, you might find yourself gravitating toward either The Enlightened or The Resistance. Hanke insists otherwise, but it’s striking as a kind of metaphor for our shifting conversation about tech and how it might be transforming us. You’ve got, on the one hand, tech skeptics who think society is being eroded by what we haven’t fully grasped. Then on the other hand you’ve got enthusiasts who think embracing new advances could yield vast benefits. It’s ironic that by getting people outside and joining with others in huge meet-ups to play the game, the simulation itself is an argument for the latter.
Hundreds of people descended on Washington last weekend for one such meet-up on the Mall, to “bring the Capitol under alien influence.” It’s part of a worldwide series of events for Ingress players — other participating cities include Boston, Chicago, Tokyo and Dusseldorf.
The game is still in closed beta and for Android phones only.
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