Request to Remove Inaccessible Portals
Sundermeyer-ING
Posts: 1 ✭✭
Hello:
This is a long-standing problem that I hope someone can provide some constructive information on so that we can play effectively in our area. Near Sioux Falls, SD (USA) are these two portals:
The Dome at EROS
Eros Water Tower
These two portals are located at the EROS Data Center north of Sioux Falls and are inaccessible to the general public. They are exclusively controlled by a few Resistance players and have very rarely been flipped to Enlightened legally. Most of the time it is by a Resistance player to reset the links or by a spoofer trying to cheat.
Longtime players have given up trying to change the portals because previous attempts to report the portals as invalid have failed. We have trouble keeping new players, from both sides, because a few Resistance players will use these two portals to keep the city fielded over, especially during special events.
The direct problem with these two particular portals is that they are inaccessible to the general public. The facility is gated and secured and visitors are only allowed in the main building where the staff works. There used to be tours out to "The Dome at EROS" but things changed when too many PoGo players were asking to go out there. Now the only way to get to either portal is if you work there, or if you have a special invite from an employee and that will never be an Enlightened visit.
The one rare exception was this last winter when an Enlightened player flew over the portals and flipped them.
This doesn't even cover the fact that the Resistance players that control these two portals will annoy you if you happen to work there and are Enlightened. It is just a frustrating deal all around.
The other portals in the main building should be fine since the site is normally open to the public. Right now, with COVID, the site is accessible by appointment only but after we get some normalcy, they should open back up to everyone. So I have no problems with portals being at the facility, it is just very unfair that these two specific portals are being used to prevent fair play.
Now, I know EROS was a key player in providing mapping data to Google Earth from which Niantic evolved but that history should make this a positive play location. We can keep the history of the location and make it fair for everyone if these two portals are removed and flagged to never be set up again. The Resistance players that control them will be severely upset, but we should all want is best for not only the game but the community as well.
I know there are other portals on the planet that have these same issues but please don't discount this one by grouping all problem locations the same. It would be more beneficial to work on these on a case by case basis. I just want to see some progress on this.
Please let me know your thoughts on this and if they must stay up, I really need a good solid reason for it. It is difficult to explain to new players that they have no options when these fields are active and that there has been no official reason for leaving those portals there.
-Sundermeyer
Comments
Portals do not have to be accessible to all members to the public, just by some members of the public. One person having access to something means it's accessible. Such portals add strategic interest to Ingress.
The standard response to this is to think creatively, or social engineering. I've flown over portals in a small plane to get control of them. I've found people who had access to a facility and recruited them to my team. Working hard to neutralize an opponents' advantage is one of the things that makes Ingress fun.
Although we're on different Ingress teams, I agree with @Hosette-ING's comment above. If people have access to this portal, it's accessible, despite some rather severe limitations. That's my Wayfarer assessment. My views are my own and are not intended to represent those of Niantic, etc. etc. etc.
I'm concerned though, by the comments that the guardians of this portal will "annoy" Enl players that have access through their jobs. If this is good-natured game bantering, maybe some light trash talk, well, that can be tolerated and worked through. If it escalates to harassment, then the players' conduct may be reportable either to Ingress or to the employers as appropriate. Stay safe. I'd probably be looking for ways to coordinate boxing in that portal, myself - no one can cover a city using only one portal, they'd have to link to something after all. :)