First steps in the use of a game engine for historical roads and paths research

Abstract

Game engines are developing fast and are used in several scientific disciplines. In the domain of cultural heritage, they have been applied mostly for dynamic visualization. On the other hand, GISs are employed to address research questions with a spatial component. In an ideal situation, the visualization power and analytical strength of the two technologies should be combined in one system. With this in mind, the analytical potential of a game engine was investigated based on a comparison with GIS analysis of historical routes. The outcome demonstrates the suitability of the game engine in offering extra analytical possibilities. This analytical capacity encourages further script developments in building more historically accurate models.