Little Manila: A Digital Recreation

Abstract

Little Manila was once a vibrant Filipino community in Stockton, California, decimated by a freeway construction project that began in the 1960s and took nearly three decades to complete. This paper describes our initial efforts to digitally recreate Little Manila as it appeared during the mid-twentieth century. Our game-like environment was developed primarily by an interdisciplinary team of undergraduate students who worked on the project during a five week summer fellowship. The team included two history majors, two graphic design majors, a computer science major, and a geological science major. The team managed itself using the Scrum methodology for software development, which included daily stand-up meetings that served to enhance communication and facilitate collaboration among team members. The current version of the software allows users to interact with non-player characters (NPCs) and explore many of the buildings near the intersection of El Dorado and Lafayette Streets, the center of Little Manila, to learn more about life for Filipino immigrants during the time period of the recreation. At the conclusion of the fellowship a "Big Reveal" event was held to demonstrate the software to members of the community. Nearly 120 people attended the event, with reactions from audience members ranging from tears to cries of recognition.