Beta test run · Android

Chennai is bigger than your routine.

realm is a photo game for going out. Visit real places, capture them with realm's own camera, and collect cards for what you discover: a sunrise café, a park you'd never noticed, a night at a gig.

How it works

Go out. Capture it. Collect it.

01

Go out

Cafés, parks, libraries, beaches, malls, gigs. Real places and live events are all on the realm map, and new ones are added by people like you.

02

Capture

Shoot with realm's own camera. Each photo is stamped the moment you take it, so every post is the real thing: no gallery uploads, no edits, no fakes.

03

Collect

Posts earn cards and points. There's no checklist to grind: you discover cards by going places, at the right time, in the right way.

Events

Every event has its own card.

Events are the heart of realm. Every big event in Chennai, from concerts and festivals to match days, is already on the map: we add them ourselves. And every event on realm comes with its own unique card. The only way to get it is to be there.

  • Seeded by us. The big ones are on the map before you even think to look.
  • One card per event. Never reused, never repeated. Proof you were there.
  • Did we miss one? If a big event you're going to isn't on the map, pitch it from the app at least a week before. We'll review it, and if it's as big as you say, we'll add it, card and all.

The cards

115 cards. No checklist.

100 cards you can find anywhere, plus 15 cards for Chennai's monuments. The card index never tells you how to earn one; you find out when it lands.

Common
66
Uncommon
23
Rare
8
Legendary
3
Chennai monuments
+15
First Sip card
Common
Golden Hour Walker card
Common
New Moon card
Uncommon
Trailblazer card
Rare
Meteor Night card
Rare
Realm Walker card
Legendary

Swipe for more →

The rarer the card, the more it unlocks.

Uncommon & up

A title to wear

Every Uncommon card and up comes with a title. Pick one and it sits under your name on your profile.

Rare & up

Perks, in the app and in real life

In-app perks like a gold frame on your profile and early access to new features. Real-life perks at places and events.

Some cards share a perk, and perks don't stack: hold two cards with the same perk and you get it once.

Your showcase

Put your best eight on show.

Your profile has a showcase: pick eight cards from your collection to show off. Two headliners up top, six more below. Swap them whenever you earn something better.

  • Two headliners. Slots 01 and 02 get the spotlight.
  • Wear a title. Every Uncommon card and up comes with one. It sits under your name.
  • Tap any card to see when it was earned, and from which post.

The leaderboard

A new race every month.

Every post and every card earns points, and points climb the leaderboard. It resets at the start of each month, so whoever joins next always has a real shot at the top.

Beta season prize. When the beta season ends, the top 10 on the board each win a card.

Three ways to play

Explore it. Map it. Bring people out.

Wanderer

Capture and post. The everyday way to play: wherever you go, it counts.

Cartographer

Know a spot that's missing? Chart it from the camera. New spots are reviewed every Saturday, then they're on everyone's map.

Herald

Hosting something, or found an event that's missing? Pitch it here, whether it's a run club, a watch party or a gig. Pitches are reviewed every Saturday, so give people a reason to show up.

Privacy & security

Your whereabouts stay yours.

realm works by knowing where and when a photo was taken. That's exactly why privacy is the first thing we design for, not the last.

Nothing leaves until you post

Your photos stay on your phone until you choose to post one. Take a hundred, share one.

Sealed capture data

The time and place of every capture are locked with a key that's yours alone, and only opened when you post that photo.

Location is your call

Tag a post to a spot, or don't. A post without a tag carries no location for anyone to see.

Real people, real photos

Every shot is verified, and Chennai has its own people reviewing new places and events, so what's on the map is real.

No trackers, no selling

This website has no analytics and no ad pixels. We don't sell your data. Not now, not ever.

Why realm exists

We're not here to keep you scrolling. realm has one job: to give you a reason to step outside and turn down the street you've never walked. If it gets you out the door, it's working.

The realm team

Beta test run

Be one of the first to play.

We're opening realm to a small group first. Testers shape the game before anyone else plays it, and keep something to show for it.

  • The Day One card. Only beta testers get it.
  • A 100-point head start in Season 1.
  • Finish top 10 in the beta season and win a card.
  • A direct line to us. What you tell us changes the game.
The Day One card

Request an invite

This is how we'll contact you about the beta. We'll also glance at how much you post: we want people who post all the time and people who never do. Both are welcome. Fair's fair, here's mine: @irshath_vasur.

How explorative are you, by nature?

No wrong answer. We want every kind of person in the test run.

We only use these details for the beta. No newsletters, and we never share them.

Questions

Who can join?

Anyone with an Android phone. The test run is small, so we pick a mix of people: different neighbourhoods, different habits, people who post and people who don't.

I have an iPhone. Can I join?

Not for the beta, sorry. Testing an app on iPhone needs an Apple developer account, and that costs about ₹10,000 a year. realm is a small, self-funded project, so for now we can only afford to test on Android. When realm launches for everyone, it will come out on both iPhone and Android at the same time.

Do I have to post a lot?

No. Some of the best explorers never post anything online. realm works whether you share every walk or keep most of it to yourself, and we need both kinds of people to get it right.

Why do you ask for my Instagram?

It's how we'll reach you, and a quick look tells us whether you're more of a poster or a quiet one, so the test run gets a good mix. We never follow, tag or post anything as you. And since we're asking for yours, here's mine: @irshath_vasur.

When does it start?

Soon. We'll message the people we invite directly, with an invite code and how to get the app.

I have a question that isn't here.

Message me on Instagram at @irshath_vasur. I'm the one building realm, and I read every message.

Join the beta