I've tried a lot of things the last few years to meet people and make friends. I've pushed myself into uncomfortable situations on the theory that to get different results you have to have a different input. The only thing that has worked and that I've enjoyed has been Ingress.
What is it? Well, it's a phone game that you have to physically visit places to play. Anything of even the remotest interest is a spot to visit. I can pretty much guarantee that every statue, piece of art, plaque and old building you know is already in the game. Therefore you go to a lot of interesting places and find new things in the place you've lived for years.
The game also has inbuilt limits that mean you can only do certain things by meeting up with other players. And certainly everything is easier with other players. This means there is a bunch of people out there waiting to meet up with and help any new players.
You will also do a lot of walking! Some of the weight-loss I've seen in other players is remarkable.
People play to different levels, and while I play every day, I'm not considered hardcore! But every now and then I catch the absurdity of what we are doing and say out loud with a big grin "this game is mental. What are we doing?" as we walk down a rock jetty in the pitch dark at 4:30 in the morning using our phones to light the way. That actually happened last weekend!
I've also waded through cold, green, chest high water for the pride of getting to a well known hard to get to spot. I've been part of 20-people team (not 20-man, there's a good portion of players that are female) that have gone through the night to trash an enemy stronghold area. I've travelled hundreds of miles in a weekend to join hundreds of players in a huge battle.
Ingress is the only thing I could put out there as a success story for others to be inspired by. So if you've been inspired to give it a go, please pick the Enlightened/Green team as a thank you to me.
https://www.ingress.com/ -
What is it? Well, it's a phone game that you have to physically visit places to play. Anything of even the remotest interest is a spot to visit. I can pretty much guarantee that every statue, piece of art, plaque and old building you know is already in the game. Therefore you go to a lot of interesting places and find new things in the place you've lived for years.
The game also has inbuilt limits that mean you can only do certain things by meeting up with other players. And certainly everything is easier with other players. This means there is a bunch of people out there waiting to meet up with and help any new players.
You will also do a lot of walking! Some of the weight-loss I've seen in other players is remarkable.
People play to different levels, and while I play every day, I'm not considered hardcore! But every now and then I catch the absurdity of what we are doing and say out loud with a big grin "this game is mental. What are we doing?" as we walk down a rock jetty in the pitch dark at 4:30 in the morning using our phones to light the way. That actually happened last weekend!
I've also waded through cold, green, chest high water for the pride of getting to a well known hard to get to spot. I've been part of 20-people team (not 20-man, there's a good portion of players that are female) that have gone through the night to trash an enemy stronghold area. I've travelled hundreds of miles in a weekend to join hundreds of players in a huge battle.
Ingress is the only thing I could put out there as a success story for others to be inspired by. So if you've been inspired to give it a go, please pick the Enlightened/Green team as a thank you to me.
https://www.ingress.com/ -
