Gamified XR simulations for architectural cultural heritage education: a systematic literature review

Gamification in Extended Reality (XR) has increasingly supported educational initiatives in Architectural Cultural Heritage (ACH) due to its immersive and interactive potential. This article presents a Systematic Literature Review of gamified XR simulations applied to ACH education, based on thirty publications indexed in Scopus and Web of Science between 2015 and 2024. The review examines the game mechanics most commonly employed in these studies, the approaches used for ACH data capture and virtual reconstruction, the software tools and programming environments adopted, the type of XR and devices implemented, the User Experience Evaluation (UXE) applied in case studies, and the contributions and challenges reported in the literature. The review followed the PRISMA protocol and was supported by the StArt software. The findings reveal notable geographic patterns, recurrent game mechanics, and frequently used UXE techniques. They also provide a classification of the software tools, devices and technological resources adopted in the reviewed studies. In addition, the study identifies both the potential and the limitations of gamified XR approaches for ACH education, particularly the lack of consistent and comprehensive descriptions of key elements required to fully understand, compare and reproduce these experiences. Finally, the review discusses four core aspects considered essential for conducting and reporting research in this field and proposes a framework to support more systematic descriptions of gamified XR experiences in ACH education.