Amiais in Second Life™: the use of metaverse environments to disseminate Cultural Heritage

Abstract

Amiais is a small Portuguese village located in the Aveiro district. It is also a virtual village available in Second Life™. The recreation of Amiais in the metaverse is a part of the LOCUS project, which intends to use digital platforms to promote and disseminate local cultural heritage. Thus, a playful narrative was developed to explore the virtual territory and share cultural aspects of Amiais. The research presented in this article tested the users' response to the narrative, their immersive learning about cultural heritage, and the convergence between virtual and real territories. Users engaged with the narrative, interacted with the characters and scenario elements, and got curious about knowing the real territory after the virtual experience. The results confirm that using a metaverse with playful narratives and interaction encourages learning cultural heritage.