As you may have heard, beginning Jan 6, 2024 the First Saturday medal will be awarded to in-person participants only. Agents can still join virtual events to stay connected with others remotely, but the First Saturday medal grant will require in-person participation.
COVID-19 is still an active presence in our communities, and we continue to remind Agents to follow guidelines from local health authorities when playing, but in-person meetups are an important aspect to Ingress and we wish to encourage more local play.
The original intent behind First Saturday was a community-organized initiative to bring Agents together across Faction lines, and to help new recruits to get to know their local communities. There are ways to do this virtually or remotely also, but we believe it’s now time to return to in-person First Saturday events.
First Saturday events can help to nudge more Agents to gather outdoors in public meeting places, building connections with places and people. Walking outdoors has many benefits, not limited to just game rewards. Ingress is better with friends, and we believe this move will have a positive impact on Agents, their communities, and on Ingress.
Thank you to FevGames and IFS-UN for making First Saturday possible. It’s only through their efforts to organize and facilitate this global community initiative that First Saturday is able to continue.
Find a First Saturday location near you at https://fevgames.net/ifs/events/