Expansion of Architectural Heritage Conservation through Digital Interactions and Gamification: A Case Study of Singapore Thian Hock Keng

Abstract. The research aims to overcome the limitations of physical conservations of architectural heritage using digital interactions and gamification. Physical conservation is limited by practical factors like materials availability or durability of the originally used materials. On the other hand, digital 3D interactive models do not face all these constraints. Therefore, this project demonstrates how an ancient heritage temple, the Thian Hock Keng in Singapore, benefits from this expanded version of digital interactions and gamification. Digital Heritage (DH) methods, such as the generation of 3d point clouds and construction of 3D polygonal models, are used to create a hyper realistic scan of the heritage site. On top of a 3d walkthrough of the heritage space, classical narrative storytelling technique is used to keep the player engaged in the gameplay with a 3-act structured story plot. The outcome not only covers wider perspectives of the history of this space, but it also gains the advantage in its presentation through gaming, where the audience is fully immersed in the virtual temple space as a first-person player. The gamification of the 3D Thian Hock Keng temple serves as a case study to support further research on expansions of digital heritage conservations through interactions.