A few days ago, Niantic started rolling out a new Operation Portal Recon (OPR) feature that rewards players actively participating in the PokeStop and Ingress Portal review process. OPR’s new Upgrade Rewards allow players to push their own Candidate Portals to the top of the priority list, which in OPR terms means faster resolution for the portals you submitted.
For those who are unaware how PokeStops (and Gyms) get added to Pokemon GO, here’s a quick outline:
- Players submit a PokeStop candidate (or a Portal candidate if you’re playing Ingress) via the in-game submission system
- The candidate lands into Niantic’s OPR system, where players vote on whether or not it should be included as a new Point of Interest (POI)
- Once a settlement has been reached, POIs that were approved find their into Ingress as new Portals and then get imported into Pokemon GO as Stops or Gyms
The new Upgrade system is currently only available in the US as part of Niantic’s staged roll out. The implications for Pokemon GO are quite profound, as we expect OPR reviewers to participate more actively in the approval process, which in terms means faster resolution and more PokeStops and Gyms for everyone.
OPR Upgrade Rewards
OPR Upgrade Rewards gives you the opportunity to earn priority Upgrades by analyzing Candidate Portals in OPR. Upgrades can be used to fast-track your own Candidate Portals that have been submitted.
An Upgrade will be rewarded when you contribute to 100 Agreements. When you earn an Upgrade, it will automatically prioritize one of your existing Candidate Portals. The particular Candidate Portal which the Upgrade is applied to will be chosen at random from your available Candidate Portal submissions. If you do not have any pending Candidate Portal submissions, your Upgrade will be saved for future use. You can only have a maximum of 10 Upgrades saved for future use, so be sure to submit a new Candidate Portal and redeem an Upgrade before you reach this limit. You will be notified on the OPR homepage when an Upgrade has been awarded or redeemed, and you can see your most recent Candidate Portal submissions that have have been prioritized.
Please note that Upgrades will only prioritize the Candidate Portal for a more timely analysis within OPR; the selection criteria will not change in any way.
FAQ
I don’t have any Candidate Portals to submit right now. How many Upgrades can I save for future use? You can save a maximum of 10 unredeemed Upgrades. Any agreements you contribute to beyond that will no longer be tracked towards future Upgrade rewards. Don’t forget to submit a new Candidate Portal and redeem an Upgrade before you reach 10 available.
Can I choose which of my Candidate Portals I want to redeem Upgrades on?
No. An Upgrade will be redeemed for a Candidate Portal in your existing submissions queue at random. If you have only one pending Candidate Portal, the Upgrade will be used on that submission.
What exactly is an Agreement in OPR?
When your analysis of a Candidate Portal ultimately aligns with the final decision reached by OPR — regardless of whether it is approved or rejected — you will receive an Agreement. These Agreements are currently shown as “Portals Created and Rejected” in the OPR stats area, accessible by selecting your profile photo. Please note that you will not receive Agreements for edits made to already existing Portals.
Is my Upgraded Candidate Portal more likely to be accepted?
No. Upgrades will only prioritize the Candidate Portal for a more timely analysis within OPR. The selection criteria will not change in any way.
How long will it take for my Upgraded Candidate Portal to be decided?
There are many factors that play into the decision-time on any Candidate Portal, so it’s not possible to know how long it may take to reach a decision. Since your Upgraded Candidate Portal has been prioritized, rest assured that a decision will be made in a more timely manner than if it was not Upgraded.
Will Niantic Ops be directly reviewing Upgraded Candidate Portals?
No, Upgraded Portal Candidates will go through the same OPR analysis — they will simply be processed in a more timely manner.
Can Upgrades be used for Portal edits?
No, Upgrades can only be applied to Candidate Portals submissions.
Can I be rewarded with Upgrades if my performance is poor?
Yes! If you contribute to 100 Agreements, you will receive an Upgrade regardless of the current status of your performance.
