Ingress: 5 Things That Make Me Choose a Mission

So, there was this discussion in one of the hang-outs about why people did or didn’t do a mission, and it got me thinking as to the reasons why I chose the missions I did over other missions starting in the main area. And these were the reasons I came up with:

They’re part of a series

What can I say? I like mission series. I love the mosaics they form, and I like exploring things according to a theme.

They link logically

Not all series link logically. Some just seem to trip all over the city in a random pattern trying to include as many portals as possible. Some parts of a series might make you double back to get to the start of the next mission. These are all frustrating. I love a series that links together in an almost seamless path that leads you along a route in a logical manner, without doubling back. Those are the missions I’ll do over any other.

They are walkable in a reasonable amount of time

I’m usually constrained to public transport or my own, two feet – and I have time limitations, as well. I either have a class to attend, or I have to be back in time to do school pick-up. In a couple of years, I’ll be stuck to trying to complete things during a lunch break, before work, or in some small space on the weekend. And, since I don’t like to leave something undone for another time, I choose my missions accordingly. A logical sequence of portals, reachable by bus, or by a short walk from the bus, and completable within an hour to two hours will always have precedence over something I know will take most of the day to complete.

They are accessible

As I mentioned above, most of the time I am constrained by public transport, so I need to be able to reach a mission without relying on a car. While I will do those missions I need a vehicle to reach, they take extra planning and time set aside, so I usually leave them until I can sort those factors out, and will do something else that I can get to in their place.

They aren’t spread out over half the city

I just don’t like having to spend six hours on a bus to work my way through eight or nine portals. And I don’t see much fitness benefit out of having to drive from one portal to the next over an hour or two in order to complete one mission. I find it awkward, messy, inefficient and unsatisfying. Now, if it’s a series, and I have to get out of the car, or off the bus for a 15-30 minute walk around local portals, that’s a different matter. That gets me exploring a new area. But a single portal for 15-20 minutes travel just doesn’t work for me.

And having said all that, I kind of take a pokemon attitude to missions. I will eventually complete the ones in my area, and then… well, then I’ll have to travel, and build in Ingress time to holidays. And that can’t be a bad thing, can it?

Well, those missions won't get themselves done, so I guess it's time to move.