Why Ingress is better than Pokemon Go

The latest craze descending on us is Pokemon go.

It’s funny to think that a couple of years ago, Google did an April Fool Joke based on this, but it actually came to fruition to become an profoundly popular game.

This is a game where you channel your inner trainer and use the GPS on your phone to catch as many Pokemons as you can. Once you reach level 5, you could choose a team and train your Pokemons for battle if you like.

Here I am!

As it is created by Niantic Labs, the game is similar to Ingress. Each Pokestop and Gym is always an Ingress Portal. You’ll have to move around to be able to interact with the Pokestops and for the Pokemon to appear.

I’ve been playing the game for a couple of weeks now and while the game can be quite enjoyable, I think it’s just not for me.

I mean there are some benefits, health-wise for example, as you get motivated to walk around to hatch an egg in anticipation of what creature will pop out. And the game is cheerful – I like the colourful interface and there are so many adorable Pokemons to collect.

But once you’ve gone past that, the cons for me outweighs the pros.

1.Keeps crashing

It bugs me a lot when I manage to catch a Pokemon and then the screen hangs.  Or when the app closes by itself as soon as I start it up. Pokemon makes me rage so much that I’m tempted to throw my phone.

That is if you could start it up at all. I had a lot of server problems when I started playing, but it seems to be easing in at the moment.

2. Sucks up a lot of data and battery

If you think that Ingress uses a lot of data and battery, wait till you start playing Pokemon Go. It’s not uncommon to use up to 200 MB in a day. That’s something annoying I’d have to be careful not to go beyond the limit. My mobile service provider tends to sneakily take credits and I’d only realise when it’s too late.

Personally, I don’t have an issue about running out of juice as I always carry my Anker with me, but I’d have to charge them at the end of the day when I play Pokemon Go instead of every other day.

3. A different culture

There are a lot of children (as well as the young  at heart) playing this game, making the dynamics different. There’s a lot of rushing around, a lot of frenzy …

As soon as you see an Esca Module appearing on a pokestop, you’ll see tens of people immediately appearing out of nowhere. Yes, even in Rome. I’m not kidding you. It’s quite scary to see all these people conglomerating around in such a short time.

While Ingress can be quite wild especially when you’re trying to win the check point for your faction, it’s usually done in a more cultured manner. You don’t see agents stampeding into a remote area to capture a portal … we do it more, stealthily.

4. Unsafe

It’s not safe for playing both Ingress and Pokemon Go while you’re on the driving. It’s not easy to stay focused on the road and still be able to play. Which is why I never play Ingress while I’m driving.

But unlike Ingress when the portals are static, the critters could suddenly pop out. Sometimes you’d feel compelled to throw your Pokeball and that’s when you stop being aware of your real life surroundings.

Even when you’re on foot, there could be a chance that you’d get beaten up, robbed, or even run down by vehicles. Yikes!

5. No finesse

Perhaps I haven’t delved deep in enough. I guess there is the challenge of fighting in the gym, but as far as I’ve experienced Pokemon Go is basically just move around, Touch the Pokestops, catch Pokemons, level up – wash, rinse, repeat.

After a while, it would get repetitive and boring. You can’t even socialise with anyone in-game.

I try to walk away and I stumble

Ingress on the other hand, needs a bit more brain power as you think about which limited mods and resonators to use and the search for the right portals for linking and fielding, Ingress becomes a lot more fun when you play in a group as you try to reach the same end target together.

But regardless of what’s been said, Ingress has been around for almost four years and is starting to stagnate. Pokemon Go has a tremendous popularity since it’s release – probably because of the simplicity. As it’s still a relatively new game, it’ll probably evolve with time and but  I’m sure that it’s a game to stay. At least for four years.