If we were to talk about the organization dedicated to promoting the investigation and preservation of historical sites and cultural heritage in Zuoying Old Town, it is indispensable to mention Kaohsiung Cultural Association, which has been deeply rooted in Zuoying for over 20 years. Since its establishment in 1999 until today, Kaohsiung Cultural Association, in addition to conducting historical research, has been committed to promoting the cultural and historical richness of Zuoying Old Town. Its uniquely themed cultural and historical guided tours have been well-received by both adults and children. However, with the changing times and the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on society, some individuals have begun rethinking the limitations of traditional cultural and historical guided tours. Yang Chong-You, who joined Kaohsiung Cultural Association approximately four years ago, rode the wave of change to Zuoying at the other end of Cuihua Road.
Chong-Yu is actually a Zuoying native, residing near Xin Zhuang Zi to the east of the Hanshin Arena. Prior to joining the association, Chung-You, who possessed expertise in photography (having even established a studio), frequently traveled throughout Taiwan, leading elementary and middle school students in producing documentaries about their hometowns. With limited familiarity with Old Zuoying in the past, Chong-You initially joined the association to participate in its "Old City Wave" projects. At the outset of his involvement, Chong-You perceived himself as simply engaging in photography and documentary filmmaking. However, gradually, he developed a deep connection with Old Zuoying and sought to further understand the place. Simultaneously, Chong-You was surprised to discover his personal ties to Old Zuoying: his mother was originally from Zuoying, and their family home was near the current location of Kaohsiung Cultural Association. Later on, due to redevelopment, their family had to leave Zuoying.
Due to these circumstances, Chong-You began pondering whether he could contribute something to the place he called home in Zuoying. For Chong-You, the idea of restoring "pride" to Zuoying seemed too lofty, especially since not everyone in Zuoying is necessarily familiar with the area. The crucial goal, in his opinion, was to help people in Zuoying rediscover and actively engage with their own community.
With this in mind, Chong-You initiated the promotion of "digitization" within Kaohsiung Cultural Association. In addition to digitizing archival cultural and historical documents, he started exploring collaborations with external resources to create an app covering heritage preservation, cultural and historical knowledge, and augmented reality puzzle-solving—an app that would digitize the process of "getting to know Zuoying."
Chong-You believes that digitization is an irreversible trend in this era. Building upon the association's mission of promoting local culture and protecting local historical sites in Zuoying, Chong-You aspires to achieve digital preservation, translation, and representation of local cultural and historical content through the app. Leveraging the rich local cultural and historical knowledge established byKaohsiung Cultural Association, Chong-You began with local historical sites, gradually using VR, XR, and other technologies to "reconstruct" the historical buildings of Zuoying within the app. Furthermore, he incorporated the popular trend of augmented reality puzzle games, allowing users to interact with and understand these historical buildings from unique perspectives.
Choosing augmented reality puzzles through an app as a means of "digitization," Chong-You certainly had another layer of consideration. While he acknowledged the meaningful nature of the guided tours conducted by the association in the past, he believed that they often struggled to break out of the "echo chamber." People who attended these tours in Zuoying were mostly already interested in or even had researched cultural and historical topics. However, Chong-You felt that for the association and the Zuoying area to sustainably thrive, there was a need to attract a more diverse audience beyond the confines of a specific interest group.
Through augmented reality puzzles, Chong-You aimed to inspire more young individuals to explore Zuoying, experiencing and understanding the local culture and history. He believed that as more people engaged deeply with Zuoying, there would be an opportunity to generate a crowd of consumers, providing the impetus for tangible changes in the community.
However, change is always challenging. Chong-You expressed deep gratitude for the association's robust support, allowing him to pursue the project without undue concerns. Yet, he admitted that getting people in Zuoying to willingly start recognizing their own locality, especially through the novel approach of "digitization," posed a long and arduous journey. In Chong-You's plan, the initial step involves getting local students to use the app, simultaneously promoting the concept through fundraising to establish an initial user base. In the mid-term plan, he aspires to expand from local students to residents, attracting more young people to experience Zuoying. Once a solid user base is established, and persuasive data can be collected from user activities in solving augmented reality puzzles, the next step would involve integrating local businesses into the app, creating a mutually beneficial local business model.
Although Chng-You hopes to see some results within two to three years, promoting digitization in a traditional community, particularly involving residents downloading an app, poses certain challenges. Additionally, in the medium to long-term plan, dealing with local communities and businesses requires numerous negotiations and discussions. Given the local conditions in Zuoying, it might indeed be a slow and uncertain journey, potentially taking more than five years.
Nevertheless, Chong-You remains undeterred. Starting with this app, he envisions creating a "Virtual Old Town" for Zuoying in the future, breaking all boundaries with the boundless reach of the digital world. He welcomes everyone to freely join "Zuoying," becoming a "Zuoying resident" to explore this historically rich city. Through engaging in augmented reality puzzle games in Zuoying, he hopes people can truly connect with and contribute to Zuoying, creating more opportunities for change. In the more distant future, Chong-You dreams of expanding this "Zuoying experience" to various parts of Taiwan, connecting cultural and historical groups across the country to construct "Virtual Cities" in different regions. Ultimately, he envisions the creation of a "Virtual Taiwan," allowing Taiwanese people to rediscover every corner of their land.
Claiming to have over a decade of gaming experience and being meticulous about every detail in the app, Chong-You's eyes light up as he speaks these words, as if he has already immersed himself in the virtual world he is constructing. However, since it is an augmented reality puzzle game, isn't the game world the real world? We anticipate more opportunities in the future to join Chung-Yu in bringing this dream world to life.
