Beginning today, Android users will receive an invite to join Google’s Niantic Labs game, Ingress. The game is a spy-warfare augmented reality game that makes use of virtual overlays. Players are referred to as “Agents” and defend and overtake portals by collaborating with other players in teams. The game strives to be playable on mobile and wearable devices with desktops being used as data centers of sorts for players to communicate location information to others on the playing field.
“It’s almost like an e-sport gamer event, where people strongly identify with their teams. After that part is over, it becomes very social at the live events,” said John Hanke, vice president of Niantic Labs in an interview with GamesBeat. “We see ourselves as a platform company. The idea behind Ingress is to understand the space of mobile social-location games and what it means for the future of Android, Google Glass, and game developers.”
Niantic Labs was initially started with individuals who worked on Google Maps, Google Earth and Street View. They have spent the past year smoothing out the game’s technical infrastructure to handle a large volume of players without a hitch.
Currently, Ingress is being played in a 39 city global event called Operation #13MAGNUS. Players who join today will have an opportunity to receive a Founder Medal if they reach Level 5 by December 14, when the game formally launches.
Ingress has already inspired two e-books and a comic series. Hanke has discussed the wide appeal of the game due to its augmented reality nature and as a good way to make friends.
“Gaming and real-life meetups are really coming together. I can’t say we predicted how popular the live meetups would be. We didn’t anticipate the degree to which people would go to live events to meet people they didn’t already know. The game is a social icebreaker.”
Source: VentureBeat
