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About Explore
EXPLORE, developed under the CREA-CULT-2005 COOP call, aims to explore the intersections of design, technology, and user experience in gamification. Through extensive research and creative experimentation, the transnational partnership seeks to address key challenges in tourism and heritage management and launch value-driven heritage games. It reflects the joint commitment to innovative thinking and practical application, showcasing how design can solve real-world problems.
Key Features
Cocreative Design
Focused on usability and engagement.
Sustainable Practices
Incorporating the twin green and digital transition
Technological Integration
Utilizing game-changing solutions to foster the technology-intense experience
Development Process
Throughout this project, we follow a structured approach
Research and Documentation
Stating heritage significance as per the international treaties and conventions (UNESCO, Burra Charter) identifies why a place or object matters. Recent systematic reviews of heritage gamification confirm this is the field's central design problem: ICOMOS's 2008 Charter for the Interpretation and Presentation of Cultural Heritage and the Burra Charter both frame significance as the aesthetic, historic, scientific, social, or spiritual value of a place to past, present or future generations, spanning tangible and intangible attributes — texture, layout, use, associations, meanings, records, and related places. The EXPLORE game design task is to translate each of those value categories into the game mechanics that let a player encounter them rather than just be told about them.
Training
Prior to sketching concepts and creating prototypes, the free of charge EXPLORE Training Programme in cultural gamification and digital storytelling takes place. Upon completion trainees receive on Open Digital Badge. The aim is to train cultural and creative operators in methodologies and tools for gamification applied to cultural heritage. Through the Pool of Learners EXPLORE envisions creating a community of practice in cultural gamification and promote exchange of skills and professional networking across the EU.
Ideation and Testing
EXPLORE's game design process follows a five-stage loop anchored in heritage significance research. It begins with establishing the Statement of Significance for a site — the documented historic, aesthetic, scientific, social, or spiritual values that justify interpretation. This step is then compressed into a single narrative hook: a defined premise capable of carrying the significance forward into a playable experience. From there, we move to ideation by matching a game mechanic to the type of value being communicated, so that the chosen format is not arbitrary but structurally suited to the significance category it serves. This is followed by prototyping — producing fast, low-cost artifacts that test whether the mechanic actually functions, rather than committing to a full production build.
Experimentation
This phase includes the development of participatory methodologies for cultural heritage enhancement through gamification.
The aim is to create a creative experimentation environment that integrates skills from different professional categories. Partners and the community of practice are working together to develop prototypes of gamified solutions for local cultural heritage and foster collaboration among heritage professionals, artists, experts, and communities. The EXPLORE games are a first-class opportunity experiment with new forms of cultural heritage interpretation through artistic and playful languages.
Implementation
The transnational partnership implements gamification solutions developed in the partner territories to engage audiences and collect data on the impact generated. Through a jointly developed, highly transferable model of cultural gamification based on knowledge acquisition and user insights EXPLORE facilitates the transfer of experience across the EU.
Evaluation
Gathering feedback through user testing sessions to optimize the final outcome to evaluate the effectiveness of solutions in terms of audience engagement and heritage enhancement. Finally, the transnational partnership, the community of practice, and the interested parties are bringing the project to life with the final games offered to the public.
WORKS IN PROGRESS!!!