Game bringing the pride of Henry VIII’s fleet back to life

Time Detectives: The Mystery Of The Mary Rose (iOS, Android, free) Verdict: The future of history

★★★★☆

GAMES are everywhere. On telly screens, in your hands and, it turns out, amid the salty environs of the Historic Dockyard in Portsmouth.

That’s where the Mary Rose, once the pride of Henry VIII’s navy, found its final berth. Its remains are preserved in one of our most extraordinary museums. The dockyard is also where a game has been launched to — almost literally — bring the Mary Rose to life. Time Detectives: The Mystery Of The Mary Rose is an AR, or augmented reality, title. Thanks to an app, you can wave your phone around and see characters from history as though they were next to you. The app can be used anywhere but it really shines inside the Mary Rose Museum.

I was treated to a preview and it wasn’t just sights and sounds but smells. A backpack squirts the aroma of gunpowder or beer into your nostrils as you hunt for clues. There’s not much gameplay here: actors in britches play out their scenes and you’re left to guess what actually happened to the Mary Rose at the end.

But as an experience it’s exquisite. It’s meant for children, but it will be wowing for adults, too. So, as the tourist board might put it, consider a trip to Portsmouth during the summer hols. To see our past… and the future.