AI helped scientists create a video game that lets users walk through the past. And the tech could help change the way students learn in the future.

The experts have no background in game development but AI helped them create a demo that lets users explore a Neolithic stone monument in Denmark in the past and the present.

The idea behind this experiment, creating an interactive history lesson, was brought to life by archaeologists using AI and simple game tools, showing that it doesn’t take an expert to create interactive 3D games set in real archaeological sites.

In this scenario, players explore the landscape and speak freely with two AI-powered characters. One is a modern archaeologist who explains the science behind the site and the other is a Neolithic woman who shares a spiritual, lived perspective of ancient life with the user. There are no preset answers or scripts, just flowing, natural conversation.

So, rather than memorizing dates and facts, players can learn through their own curiosity. They can ask questions about the purpose of the building of the monument, how the people lived and what they believed, and the AI will adapt responses in real time. Because there are no scripts, each conversation is different and every playthrough feels personal, encouraging active exploration rather than passive learning.

Users showed strong interest during testing, especially for museum and classroom settings. The researchers see clear potential for further immersive, inquiry-based education, yet stress the importance of ethical safeguards.

Perhaps most notably, this approach is cost effective and accessible as it uses mostly free software and standard computers.

“Oral conversation can now be created by beginners with free software such as Unreal Engine, Reality Capture and ConvAI,” the University of Copenhagen research team reports. So, archaeologists and educators can create their own precise and interactive encounters without depending on costly commercial developers.

The paper, published by the Society for American Archaeology, suggests that “Museum curators, educators and researchers can also grasp this opportunity to become more active in defining this new dissemination space to ensure that fun, but fact-based content (clearly labeled as such) is widely available alongside purely imaginative reconstructions.”

While it’s still early, this step indicates learning history in the future might mean stepping inside it and exploring the past for yourself.

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