Games company
Niantic Labs is seeking players here for a Saturday-afternoon session of
Ingress, a kind of digitally enabled capture-the-flag contest that’s been played around the world.
In a press release, Niantic says Ingress agents “visit real-world locations to capture portals, experience history, enjoy at and have fun.” The agents are divided into Resistance and Enlightened agents, who are pitted against each other. The game, which is free, is powered by a mobile phone or other GPS-enabled device. Niantic says "hundreds" of players have already signed up.
Niantic calls the game series “XM Anomalies,” and says that these fantasy contests that take place in the real world “bring together hundreds of Resistance and Enlightened Agents of all ages for an intense burst of walking, running and biking gameplay.”
The stakes are “Human destiny! The future of civilization!” But the games are really more social events. (Here’s a
more detailed explanation from an Ingress enthusiast.)
Saturday’s session here, named “the Abaddon anomaly,” follows October’s Ingress Mission Day, which attracted 200 players in Pittsburgh. Niantic expects this event to attract tourists from the region and even from overseas.
The afternoon-long game, however, is open to experienced and beginner agents alike.
The Abaddon anomaly begins at 1 p.m. Sat., Nov. 14, at the City-County Building, 414 Grant St., Downtown.
Prospective players can download Ingress from the Google Play or iTunes stores. Register
here. You’ll be asked to choose your faction (Resistance or Enlightened) and to provide an agent name.