Creating a sense of place with a deliberately constrained virtual environment

This study explores the premise that a high degree of realism is not a necessary condition for a 'sense of place' in mediated experiences. We report on the usefulness of an intentionally low fidelity virtual environment which relies on the metaphor of the 'tourist gaze' and the power of imagination to create a sense of place. This application was a non-immersive representation of Edinburgh. In evaluation, participants reported experiencing a sense of place rather than a mere collection of images. We discuss the results in the light of weak and strong cognitive representation and indicate potential applications.