Google Ingress : The New Augmented reality Game

(You are reading - Google Ingress game : The new augmented reality game by Google. )

Google Ingress – “The world around you is not what it seems.
Our future is at stake and you must choose a side…..”

Google has been quietly working behind closed doors for a while now the way it seems now- Google ingress is the name of the secret cat with the bell. Google has been working on a new augmented reality based game called Google Ingress which can be said to be like based on foursquare idea but seriously tons more serious! Being an avid Google+ user I had been witnessing lots of Google ingress trends on Google+ since past few days or a week it seems. Now let us delve into the details of  Google Ingress :

In a nut shell you use your Android Smartphone ( iOS version coming later, part of an android domination propaganda  xD. Maybe Hahahahaaa !) choose a side, the enlightened or the resistance, one is bent on world domination via mind control the other fights against it and you ‘duke it out’ for control of portals… the idea being to cooperate with your team (worldwide) to link together as many portals as possible… but that is far from all you do… I wont spoil the fun or hazard a guess what the real goal behind the game is (even though a thousand other web sites, bloggers and blogs have page after page of guesses as to what the final goal is… fact is we simply do not know, or aren’t enlightened enough yet! ) but I will tell you after playing for a day I am hooked and have to literally fight the urge to go out and.. well fight.

(You are reading - Google Ingress game : The new augmented reality game by Google. )

Right now this is a closed beta run of Ingress.. you have to be invited to join in order to play.. and before you ask – no I do not have any invites not for the kind of people I know, right now they are tightly controlled by Brandon Badger and a few others, hopefully the game opens up to the public real soon.. the more players the better the game will get or at least that’s what I hope!

It was all a part of Google’s mysterious Niantic Project. Speculations about the specific details began around  November 1st, when a Google-hosted website launched, it featured a bulletin board full of cryptic videos and seriously odd looking posters.

The board was titled “The Sphere of Weirdness,” and new, unexplained pictures with unknown origins were uploaded every day, adding to the mystery and excitement surrounding it!

As it turned out, this was all part of a big introduction to Google’s brand-new mobile gaming experience, Ingress. The project had been in development for several months, led by an internal development team, Niantic Labs. The team has been led by John Hanke, former CEO of Keyhole, Inc., a software development company that was acquired by Google back in 2004. Shortly after, the team’s mapping technology software became what is now the immensely popular  Google Earth.

An Alternate Reality Game, or ARG, Google Ingress puts players into a story centered around portals that have recently begun to open throughout our world, essentially bridging our universe with another. However, these portals are only able to be sense by those who possess such an ability, which is where your mobile device comes into play.

(You are reading - Google Ingress game : The new augmented reality game by Google. )

Portals can be found in real-world locations based on Google’s database of interesting locations. All of the portal sites are public areas, such as museums, libraries, and other similar well-known locations. When starting Ingress, players must choose a faction to work for; The Enlightened, whose sole mission is to share the existence of these portals with the world, or The Resistance, an organization dedicated to controlling the portals in order to protect the world from potentially dangerous powers.

The bulk of the gameplay comes from visiting these portal locations in an attempt to capture them for your chosen faction. It’s as simple as traveling to the specific museum or public venue and pressing a button on your device, and your GPS is used to validate your location. Players can then work together to create shields for protecting portals, or begin attacking enemy-controlled portals.

Players can only see what is happening in their immediate location while using their mobile device of choice. However, Google and Niantic Labs have created an online client that provides a world map of game activity, so users will be able to keep track of how their chosen faction is doing worldwide.

(You are reading - Google Ingress game : The new augmented reality game by Google. )

Google isn’t the first in the tech world to release a mobile game centered around real-world exploration and mobile device GPS usage. However, it’s the first to offer a real story which has been very nicely combined with social interaction between players and large factions. Whether or not the experiment is a true success remains to be seen!

Are you the ENLIGHTENED or the RESISTANCE ?

 Check out the video below for an introduction to the world of Ingress.

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Latest updated on 13th January, Sunday. 2013 13:50 IST.

Although Google Ingress seems pretty basic on the surface but deep within it’s a very powerful data collection utility for Google. Only if Apple could make so many people adopt such an idea then Apple Maps would never have failed.

Recently, I got my own Google Ingress invite. I was excited like crazy about actually getting to play the game. On the top it’s just like using Google Maps. But add to it the augmented reality layer and all the fun of setting up portals, deploying resonators etc. and you have super fun game. I actually was near my college and still playing Ingress. As lady luck was with me that day the first portal opened up near my college library itself.

Now enough of the nerdish excitement. Here, I have screenshots of the awesome Google Ingress game for you. Had a handful there. Playing Google Ingress game is like a full time job. Those who ain’t got time needn’t apply.
And I must warn you.
It’s ADDICTIVE!

(Click to enlarge and see in a new window.)

Google Ingress game start screen.

Google Ingress game location.

Google Ingress game mission.

Google Ingress game deploy.

Google Ingress game resonators.

Google Ingress Game portals.

Google Ingress Game portals.

Stay tuned for more news on Google Ingress game!

UPDATE : The Google Ingress game has now been taken out of it’s beta phase. It’s now available for everyone to play. So have a nice time playing thr most fun augmented reality game.

My Ingress ID is “Mahakaal”. See you there! 

What’s your take, let us know in the comments section below.

Google Ingress -The New Augmented reality Game © Inspire2Rise.com 2013

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Aditya Nath Jha

Aditya Nath Jha is an Engineer from New Delhi, India. His areas of interest include Gadgets, WordPress, speed optimization & latest technology. When he is not busy blogging he loves to write poetry, compose his own songs and has a taste for music! Find him on Facebook, Twitter, Linked in, Instagram. And watch his videos on YouTube.