A Procedural Content Generation for Conveying Historical Context of Digital Heritage Content: A Case Study of Bongsudang Jinchan-do

Abstract. Procedural content generation (PCG) is widely utilized in digital recreation of large-scale historical sites and architectures. However, few studies examine how effectively such environments convey historical context. This study explores how PCG-generated digital heritage environments influence users' interpretation of history. While archaeogaming research demonstrates that anachronistic elements can foster emergent narratives, such approaches may pose risks of historical distortion in authenticity-requiring contexts. To address the balance between historical accuracy and user experience, this study proposes a heritage procedural content generation (HPCG) framework integrating (1) a database of historically verified items, (2) a time-period-based placement algorithm, and (3) a context-driven interaction system. The framework is applied to recreate the late-Joseon Dynasty court painting Bongsudang Jinchan-do in a 3D environment. An experiment with 30 participants in three groups is conducted: Group A experiences a fixed historically accurate environment, Group B experiences a historically accurate PCG environment, and Group C explores a PCG environment with deliberately anachronistic items. Results reveal that historically accurate PCG environments effectively balance authentic historical representation with enhanced user engagement. While PCG significantly improves immersion across experimental groups, only historically accurate PCG maintains educational integrity comparable to fixed environments, with anachronistic elements substantially diminishing users' historical comprehension and narrative coherence despite increased exploratory motivation.
This Study demonstrates that carefully designed PCG environments can effectively balance historical fidelity and user experience, offering a methodological foundation for digital heritage applications.