We are thrilled to share that the LoGaCulture team presented its latest research at the ACM Creativity & Cognition 2025 conference, held online this June. The paper — Designing a Digital Game for Natureculture Heritage Encounters — was authored by Valentina Nisi, Marta Ferreira, Pedro Galvão-Ferreira, Beste Syobilge, Mathilde Gouin, and Nuno Jardim Nunes, marking another important milestone in our exploration of how digital storytelling and game design can deepen public engagement with natural and cultural heritage.
The paper introduces the Natureculture Heritage (NCH) Game, a participatory and reflective game experience developed through a Research through Design (RtD) approach. Originally conceived as a board game and later transformed into a digital prototype, the NCH Game aims to foster meaningful interactions with Madeira’s rich natureculture heritage.
Bridging Nature and Culture Through Play
While heritage games have become an important area of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), many still fall short in inclusivity and in embracing posthuman perspectives that see heritage as a continuum of nature and culture. The NCH Game addresses this by integrating speculative storytelling, character embodiment, and the Hero’s Journey narrative structure to invite players into immersive and multi-perspective experiences.
Through a series of iterative design and playtesting cycles, the team observed how the game supported more inclusive, accessible, and imaginative engagement with heritage—both human and more-than-human. From deepening local connections to encouraging alternative historical narratives, the game demonstrated the power of interactive storytelling to enrich our understanding of heritage and place.
Looking Ahead: From Speculation to Sustainability
The presentation also outlined a clear roadmap for future development: integrating historical and ecological content to complement speculative play; introducing historical and archetypal characters to deepen narrative layers; amplifying diverse voices and nonhuman entities for inclusive storytelling; and leveraging AI to tailor narratives to local ecological and cultural contexts.
As the NCH Game continues to evolve (including in its online version — Version 5 — currently being piloted), it aspires to become a powerful tool for speculative heritage engagement — one that not only reflects emerging research in HCI, but also supports sustainable and community-based practices grounded in both the human and more-than-human world.
This project is a core output of the LoGaCulture initiative, which explores how playful, participatory technologies can support local heritage and environmental stewardship. We are proud to see our work contribute to international conversations around design, storytelling, sustainability, and posthuman heritage.
Stay tuned as we continue to expand and share the NCH Game in new formats, contexts, and communities!