Mass saturation of ALs is ruining the game

[+Deepdiggingmole]

As in the example of the Carpool in Assen (Netherlands) where nearly 600 ALs have been placed with no intent on showing folk a nice location and enjoying the area - you can sit in your car in the carpool and answer nearly 1200 AL questions and log all those stages. 
With the new output of ALs it is evident that many are discussing the possibility of doing something similar in the UK

This is not geocaching - these do not take you to a nice location and the geofencing limit has meant that all of these can be done without getting out of your car.
The image attached shows this lot in Assen and for perspective top to bottom and left to right are approx 700m in both directions. 
This is no different to armchair logging ALs which I know GCHQ outlawed some while back. So why is this allowed ?

[Keystone]

Adventures don't go through a review process, and the choice of locations is totally up to the account owner who received the Adventure credit.

 

Everyone reading my post should remember this the next time someone complains about the mean Reviewer who is enforcing the .1 mile cache saturation guideline.

Edited March 18 by Keystone

[+L0ne.R]

How does someone get so many ALs to hide? I only have one.

[+L0ne.R]

On 3/13/2024 at 7:38 PM, Deepdiggingmole said:

As in the example of the Carpool in Assen (Netherlands) where nearly 600 ALs have been placed with no intent on showing folk a nice location and enjoying the area - you can sit in your car in the carpool and answer nearly 1200 AL questions and log all those stages. 
With the new output of ALs it is evident that many are discussing the possibility of doing something similar in the UK

This is not geocaching - these do not take you to a nice location and the geofencing limit has meant that all of these can be done without getting out of your car.
The image attached shows this lot in Assen and for perspective top to bottom and left to right are approx 700m in both directions. 
This is no different to armchair logging ALs which I know GCHQ outlawed some while back. So why is this allowed ?

Reminds me of Munzee. Very predictable outcome. But I thought it was difficult to get an AL credit.

Edited March 15 by L0ne.R

[+Sottiwotti]

17 hours ago, L0ne.R said:

How does someone get so many ALs to hide? I only have one.

They work together with other people who have AL credits. Similar thing for the Atomium in Brussels, a crazy amount of ALs made by a lot of different people, to easily get a high number of finds

Edited March 14 by Sottiwotti

[+HHL]

Looks good, even with some AdventureLabs still missing.

 

[+thebruce0]

As much as "if you don't like it you can just ignore it" is true, there is something to be said about the impression of the geocaching activity when connected into the game is a virtual code-entering game that fills maps with icons that have nothing to do with "find something at these gps coordinates"; you know, the language of location. Inundation of 'geoarts' like this in the AL playground is associating geocaching with "the language of smiley counts".

I have nothing against ALs, but man, it's really a side-game that can piggy back on 'geocaching' and this kind of numbers-labbing is just getting out of hand.

YMMV.

ETA: ...in the context of geocaching. I think it's great if people can enjoy it. But it's getting a little crowded in here...

Edited March 14 by thebruce0

[+HHL]

1 hour ago, thebruce0 said:

Inundation of 'geoarts' like this in the AL playground is associating geocaching with "the language of smiley counts".

I completely agree with you.

[+Deepdiggingmole]

21 hours ago, Keystone said:

Adventures don't go through a review process, and the choice of locations is totally up to the account owner who received the Adventure credit.

 

Remember this the next time someone complains about the mean Reviewer who is enforcing the .1 mile cache saturation guideline.

No arguments there but I was aware if how these worked having a few credits myself. I was just wondering if GCHQ are ok with this misuse of the AL setup 

[+HHL]

7 hours ago, Deepdiggingmole said:

with this misuse of the AL setup 

It's not a misuse. It's just an other use.

Edited March 15 by HHL

[+Hynz]

15 hours ago, thebruce0 said:

As much as "if you don't like it you can just ignore it" is true,

Really? Sounds to me like saying "ignore the noise/smell/lighting" or are there any means of filtering out such misused (yes!) ALs?

[+HHL]

On 3/15/2024 at 9:51 AM, Hynz said:

are there any means of filtering out such misused (yes!) ALs

Yes, there are ways to ignore these ALs: Just do not visit those GeoArt locations. It's that simple. [Text entfernt auf Wunsch eines einzelnen Herrn.]

Edited March 16 by HHL
typo | censorship note

[+JL_HSTRE]

On 3/13/2024 at 10:54 PM, Keystone said:

Adventures don't go through a review process 

 

It's become very apparent they need to.

 

I understand Groundspeak's likely thinking: there's no physical container so what's the worst that could happen?

 

The lesson for Groundspeak, and everyone else, is that if people can then some of them will, no matter how much they shouldn't, even if breaks the rules. The only way to stop them is sufficient enforcement. The plethora of play-anywhere ALs has made that very apparent.

[+Goldenwattle]

If ALs were rare they would be more attractive. 

[+Goldenwattle]

The opposite of those crowded AL maps is here in Buenos Aires where I am visiting at present. It was sort of special, as today I found every AL in the city...all two of them. Felt much more special than a couple in a crowded field. The more 'special' of the two had a bonus cache as well.