Where do we end up when we enter the time machine that is the digital game? One axiomatic truth of historiography is that the past is the time-space that eludes human intervention. Every account that is made of the past, that becomes our history, is therefore only an approximation. But how is it that strolling among the shelves of the Great Library of Alexandria can feel so real in the virtual world? Claims of authenticity are prominent in the digital games of our time and this urges scholars and professionals alike to discuss how these games change the way the past can be experienced. What is historical authenticity and does it even matter? How can the uncertainties and what-ifs of the past be adequately represented in the game? And: What do developers do to make it all feel ‘right’ in the end?
Summit coordinators: