Like all skills, there are levels in urban exploring. Two people can scout a territory. One finds all sorts of secret spots while the other fellow finds nothing. The difference in such results lied in their scouting ability. One was a seasoned scout… the other was not.
To move up in the world of urban exploring, a scout needs to do two things: 1) He needs to find secret spots. That means exploring the city for hidden gems and sharing them on CityXcape. 2) He needs to verify secret spots. That means going to the secret spots of others and voting on them.
Verifying secret spots has a subjective and non-subjective component. The non-subjective part deals with information integrity. Making sure the address and photos are correct is a good example. The subjective component involves voting yes or no on whether the place is good enough to be considered a secret spot. Secret spots that get too many no votes are automatically removed from the map.
As a scout finds and verifies secret spots, his knowledge of the city grows. This means that experienced scouts are navigational experts who are full of street connections. This translates into three things: money, power, and connections. To illustrate this power gap between new and seasoned explorers, CityXcape has badges for each level.
Scout badges are not just bells and whistles- they carry real privileges. As a scout progresses upward, he/she receives access to all sort of opportunities on CityXcape such as being framed on the city’s leader board. Street King is the city’s top scout. The power of such person is hard to determine so early in CityXcape’s evolution. But whatever it is, we know it will be amazing. Think you got what it takes? Then come test your metal and start exploring.
