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EnglishWhat Are the Enlightened and Resistance Factions in Ingress?
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Ingress has two factions, and you must join one of them. The Enlightened treat Exotic Matter (XM) as a gift and a destiny, believing humanity should use its mind-enhancing properties to evolve. The Resistance treat XM as a potential threat of unknown origin that must be controlled and studied in order to protect humanity. Both factions are locked in a hidden worldwide conflict over the same substance, so your choice determines who you collaborate with and which side of that conflict you fight for.
Where the conflict comes from
According to the game's lore, a secret government research lab discovered a new substance called Exotic Matter (XM). XM enters our world through hidden Portals and carries a signal that affects the human mind, increasing intelligence and creativity in some people. The two factions formed around opposite conclusions about what that signal means for humanity.
The two factions compared
| Enlightened | Resistance | |
|---|---|---|
| View of XM | A gift. Destiny. | A potential threat of unknown origin. |
| View of its effects | A way for humanity to reach a new state of being through its mind-enhancing properties. | Something of mysterious intent that must be controlled and studied. |
| Goal for humanity | Evolve humanity. | Protect humanity. |
The disagreement is not about whether XM exists or whether it changes people — both factions accept that. The split is over whether that change should be embraced or contained.
What choosing a side actually changes
- Who you collaborate with. Ingress is team-based, so your faction is the group you coordinate with for Links, Fields, and larger operations.
- Who you fight. You use XM weapons to neutralize Portals controlled by the rival faction, or by the mysterious Machina Virus.
- What you're fighting for. The game frames the choice as "what will you fight for?" — evolution or protection.
Your day-to-day actions are the same either way: detect and discover Portals with the Ingress Scanner, capture them, build networks of Links and Fields, and coordinate with teammates. The faction decides whose interests those actions serve.
How to decide
If the idea of XM as something humanity should embrace and grow through appeals to you, the Enlightened framing fits. If you'd rather see an unknown influence on the human mind studied and kept under control, the Resistance framing fits. Since the choice shapes your teammates and your side in the conflict, it's worth picking the view you'd actually argue for — you'll be acting on it every time you capture a Portal.