HISTORIC PRESERVATION GAME
YORKVILLE, NYC

Friends Of The Upper East Side and The Go Game joined forces to produce an interactive urban history hunt for tourists and locals to explore the rich history of Yorkville.

Yorkville - a neighborhood that covers the area from East 72nd Street to East 96th Street, from Lexington Avenue to the East River - was once an enclave for many immigrant groups in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including German, Hungarian, Czech, and Irish. Though it has changed now, much evidence of this historic fabric remains in the built environment. Some of these remnants are not obvious to the regular passerby, thus making it the prime location for an interactive game. In a game that combined cutting-edge technology with archival footage, players had to find clues from the past hidden in plain sight, interact with actors dressed as historical figures, and engage with local shopkeepers to unlock neighborhood secrets. During the game, teams discovered more about how the diverse communities of Yorkville lived, worked, worshiped, played, as well as how they retained their culture through food, music, and language. 

The game was supported by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and Council Member Benjamin Kallos.