From Archaeological to Digital Playable Data: Some Preliminary Reflections on the Development of a Serious Game Project for Users’ Engagement

Abstract

Over the last decades, video games have become a pervasive part of society and one of the biggest sectors in the entertainment industry. Moreover, in recent years, they have proven to have clear potential in supporting the experience of cultural heritage (CH) for the general public, complementing current tools and practices based on tangible goods such as museums, exhibitions and archaeological sites. Serious games – video games designed for educational objectives – appear to be an effective tool for learning cultural content in an engaging way, attracting new publics and enhancing knowledge, awareness and cultural tourism. In this paper, I will illustrate an ongoing project concerning the presentation of the Poggio Imperiale Archaeological and Technological Park and Fortress in Poggibonsi (Siena, Italy), where the scientific rigour of the archaeological data, together with the application of innovative tools, technologies and new dissemination ‘languages’, has been the essential core of every action, from the creation of the archaeological park to the building of the open-air museum which pursues an in-progress, full-scale reconstruction of the 17 structures found during the excavation of the Carolingian Age village. Moreover, I will underline how and why the design of a serious game for this specific site is to be considered the latest fragment of a very long and precise project, aimed at enforcing a multi-level public outreach and heritage enhancement strategy on the site.