Studies of the effectiveness of multimedia cartography products may include mini-map design for navigation. In this study, we have touched upon designing gameplay to indicate the impact of the mini-map on the time effectiveness of a player that can walk or teleport himself/herself along marked out points in virtual topographic space. The eye-tracking examination of gamers’ effectiveness in a non-complex game of collecting coins in a reconstructed stronghold on the holm provided us with a new perspective on the role of mini-maps. The more time gamers took to examine the mini-map, the more time they needed to finish the game, thus decreasing their effectiveness. The teleporting gamers had significantly higher time effectiveness than walking gamers, however, the data obtained showed only a minor difference between the proportions of the mini-map examination time to the total game time for walking and teleportation.

The main focus of this article is to examine the interpretation of twelve cartographic symbols on the map in Valheim. The authors set the research goal: to investigate how players and non-players interpret the symbols. The Valheim video game, which was released in 2021, is a survival game set in an open world. The authors noticed that game developers did not provide a direct explanation of the map symbols used, which could result in a different interpretation and experience of the game. The authors adopted a survey on the LimeSurvey platform as research methodology. This survey tool was used to gather information on experiences and interpretations of map symbols among a diverse group of respondents. Using online forums allowed one to disseminate the survey to a large audience of players from all over the world. Then, using the categorisation method for individual questions, a large database of respondents’ answers was created. Through the analysis, the authors checked the interpretation of symbols and presented the results in the form of graphs. Then, using statistical tests, they analysed the relationship between individual symbols. The study reveals that there are intergroup differences in responses to symbols directly related to the game. With more complicated symbols that did not emphasise an unambiguous answer, both groups of respondents had a problem with indicating the meaning of the symbol. For future research, it is worth continuing research on the interpretation of various map symbols not only in games, but also in all cartographic products.

In this study, we have touched upon a problem in evaluating the method of immersion in specific historico-geographical virtual space constructed on the basis of traditional cartographic and graphic materials. We have obtained opinions from two groups of users on the perception of cultural objects reconstructed in a virtual reality previously unknown to them. To achieve our objective and answer the questions, we have adopted four main stages of research: to pinpoint concepts adopted by researchers by discussing two types of approach, to create a virtual reality application according to the scheme based on knowledge from analog sources and digital actions in several workspaces, to prepare and conduct a survey among experts and gamers,and to graphically juxtapose the results of the survey. The evaluation by experts in medieval strongholds and serious story game users of the specific ways of immersion in the VR of reconstructed buildings in the current area provides researchers with an extended view of its effectiveness and attractiveness as well as with suggestions for further design processes.

Technological advancement of the last decades allowed one to develop the process of documentation and popularize the cultural heritage in the form of spatial objects and structures by means of reality modelling. The main goal of the article was to develop a methodology based on the compilation of activities in the field of acquisition (UAV), processing (Metashape and SkechUp), and publication (YouTube) of the data for the purpose of documentation and promotion of topographic cultural heritage objects recorded on nineteenth century maps (pre-industrial landscape). The research was carried out on a windmill located in Kamionka (Poland). It is located in the region of Wielkopolska (Witkowo borough), the cultural landscape of which, despite the progressive industrialization in the nineteenth century, has been shaped mainly by the agricultural land use. The most important results obtained at subsequent stages of the work were finally presented in the form of a short film. This type of presentation based on the use of multimedia is a comprehensive form of sharing research results. YouTube, as the leading medium for publishing audiovisual content, is one of the best places to share research results related to the promotion of cultural heritage.

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