What do you do when you know you should get out and play, soaking up those Vitamin D rays, but still want to stay indoors playing the video games you love? Look no further than game, Ingress, the game that takes you on the move to compete for who has the most control: Ingress!

The objective of the game is to pick between two factions. Each faction is trying to compete to gain control of the Exotic Matter, otherwise known as XM to save or enslave mankind. Only one can stand to be the most successful faction to complete the agenda of the fate of the world’s advancement of human beings.

The game was released in 2014 for Android devices only to advance to iOS devices. In an article written by Michael Anderson, he explains the fictional story behind the game, “On November 30th, now known as “Epiphany Night," everything changed. The Niantic lab at CERN was exposed to a massive dose of XM radiation, sending the researchers into frenzied bouts of creativity, like Enoch Dalby’s musical compositions.

Whatever the researchers saw that night irreparably splintered the team: some researchers went on to work for Hulong Transglobal, IQTech, and Visur Technology, while others (like Roland Jarvis) ended up dead. The schism of the team was due in large part to philosophical differences about the true purpose of XM, exacerbated by their exposure to massive quantities of XM through Epiphany Night. To the team members who went on to became the core of the Enlightened faction, the Shaper’s influence on sensitive individuals through XM was viewed as the next step in human evolution. For the team members who chose the path of greatest Resistance, the Shaper’s influence was in XM was deemed a “Shaper Mind Virus” that must be countered.

The Enlightenment want to use the radiation to further advance the human race and become stronger than ever before, whereas the Resistance want to stop the Enlightenment, and keep humans the way we’ve always been as a race. The game itself is easy to understand and fun once the big competitions come up, otherwise known as Anomalies. Each faction walks around their area with their phone devices in search of the portals that are scattered. When they find an enemy portal (in which case the Enlightenment are green and the Resistance are blue) the player must attack (if the can due to level), the portal and change it’s color to their teams color. The player can use all types of items to help assist in taking down a portal’s shield, or set up perimeters to connect with other portals to make them stronger.

If you are interested in playing the game, don’t worry it’s free, and you can download the app in the Google Play store. The Ingress community on Google+ is where you can reach out to your local Ingress group to see what is going in in your local area. There are Ingress Reports video tutorials for suggestions on how to reach level 8 in no time. However, you can only change your faction once with requesting a manual reset on your account. This goes to show that picking your faction must be something you’re willing to side with. Who will you choose to faction with? The Resistance, trying to stop the Shaper, or embrace the change with the Enlightened.

Those who are just starting off should mainly focus on the first three levels of portals and then work their way up. It is a common agreement that players think that once you get to level 4 is when things get interesting and can be more useful in Anomalies.

Anomalies are an Ingress player’s time to shine and bring out their best in their faction. A few times a year, just like Comic Con, the players gather in their groups and are led by leaders to take down portals within a heavily populated portal area. The event itself can last for a few days, and the players are even given discounts for hotels, plane tickets, and are given prizes such as badges during their stay. Think of it as Capture the Flag in the movie, "Divergent," only with various portals, and tons of competition.

I myself am a new member of the game, Enlightenment Agent TheLastEmzii Level 2. Impressive, I know. While I’m just a baby at the game, I have gotten some fun responses from two members, a Resistance and an Enlightenment, of the game whom I know and what their view is on the game.

Why did you choose your faction?

“When you start the game, you see the question on picking a side. If you pick the Enlightenment you have to the chance to advance the human mind, or the choice of picking the Resistance, you can stop the “enslavement of mankind” as the app puts it. So Enlightenment was a no go for me. Preventing the slavery of mankind was like ‘yeah let’s stop the enslavement of mankind, because enslavement is bad!’ Also I just like the fact that I’m resisting something.”-R

“Reading the short introduction of the Enlightenment on the screen that prompted you to choose which team you will pursue, intrigued me heavily. Knowing I was diving into a team of members looking to improve the world around them and conglomerate their minds together to advance ourselves brought everything to one solid interesting idea.”-E

What is your favorite part of the game?

“People. You get the opportunity to meet new people. The game isn’t something you play on your own, you have to work with other people and get portals all in one area, which we call a Farm. Of course you can play this game on your own, but when you get higher level items, you have to get into higher level portals and you can only do that with knowing people, meeting people. Once you start playing the game, the first portal you hack automatically tells other players in your area and they reach out to new players and build their community together.”-R

“While I love the idea of being forced to adventure out to certain places and areas some of us never heard of, I value the community far more. There has never been a single soul I've met so far that hasn't cherished the members of Ingress like we all do. The community of Ingress is a superior and creative group of people.”-E

Have you gone to an Anomaly, and what was it like when you went?

“Yes, I was just at one last weekend! It was fantastic! We got hooked up with a team of high level agents around San Diego, and we were working as a team to take objectives and fighting against the Enlightenment. And it was quite the experience to meet new people and work with them in this game. You have to trust your teammates and listen, so they can do the job they need to do, and you can do the job you need to do. They did have a good deal for the Anomaly, when you go to the website you can search up the discounts for flights and hotels stays.” -R

“Yes. Obsidian of Wisconsin, satellite. It was breathtaking to see the massive number of members attending the anomaly, but being part of a strong solid community team and playing my part rushed the blood through my veins to do everything in my power to lead us to victory. Whether you were green or blue on that day, every person played their part and made the game what it is.”-E

Is the game worth getting up and leaving the comfort of home to play?

“Oh absolutely! I like sitting at home and playing games, but the portals, according to the lore of the game, are actual places that inspired human thought or memories of humanity. So portals can be anything from a memorial to a funny looking sculpture. So a person making their portal is thinking “Wow look at this I want to make this a portal” and submit it to Niantic, giving the players an insight to what they’re capturing, but still taking a look into that memory.”-R

“Without a doubt. That factor of getting outdoors and adventuring out alone is enough to draw thousands of members to discover what this is all about. Even an achievement within every agent's profile, known as Trekker, tracks the number of kilometers you've walked throughout your time in the game. Some have made milestones and to the front page of Ingress Newsletters because of their achievements in health with the aid of the game. Playing has brought me to find things I've never once seen or heard of in the city I've grown up in my entire life.”-E

What is your level and favorite badge?

“I am currently level 9, Agent RKoori , and my favorite badge is The Hacker, because it is the one thing I am good at. I am the best glyth hacker in Vegas.”-R

“My name is NovaTex, current level is 11, only 2 gold badges short from 12. My favorite achievement regardless of how frustrating it was, is the Guardian Badge. It tracks the number of consecutive days you've held down a single portal without losing it. Having several rivals in my area, I've lost my Guardian portals only a few days before they had gotten to 150 days (Which is the final tier badge). After finally achieving the Onyx Tier Guardian of 150 days, (Currently going on 218) Knowing that I had finally outdone those around me seeking to take out my hiding spots, and bested them.”-E

Do you recommend the game and why?

“I recommend the game, because why not go outside to play a game instead of playing video games inside all day? There’s a good chance, a good chunk of people you meet are staying to play the game because of the community of the game. If you ever travel to another country, you can meet up with other agents of your factio-Rn to help there. Getting connections from others, is what makes this fun.”-R

“I'd almost consider it indecency just not to recommend it. Ingress uncovers an entire world that has existed underneath our eyes for longer than we thought. You meet dozens of people both on your side and against you, while still amazing folk regardless of what faction they chose. Cross Faction meetups in the local area are a personal favorite because you get to meet everyone you've been working with, and everyone giving you a hard time while you're out.”-E

There you have it! The world-wide game on the move, Ingress! Give it a go I’m sure you’ll find something to be Enlightened about, or be Resistant towards getting up and leaving your home for an unforgettable adventure.