Encounters in wartime: interactive technology and storytelling for digital heritage

The city archives of ‘s-Hertogenbosch (the Netherlands) hold extensive World War II heritage, including diaries, letters, and photographs. To bring these stories to life an interactive exhibit was developed entitled ‘Encounters in Wartime’. This mobile, interactive exhibit, uses speech recognition technology to enable visitors to engage with three WWII-era characters through interactive dialogues. Using the four-stage conceptual model of virtual heritage preservation for visitor experience as a framework, this case study describes the design and development process of the exhibit, highlighting the challenges of applying storytelling tools and interactive technology to intangible heritage. We report on a pilot version of the exhibit, which was tested with visitors to a public event in ‘s-Hertogenbosch. The findings indicate high visitor engagement and emotional connection with the characters as a result of the digital presentation. The study concludes with practical implications for integrating interactive technology and storytelling in the context of intangible heritage.