The future of the Royal Opera House in Valletta has been debated ever since its bombing and destruction during World War II, with many wondering if it should be completely restored.

Now a Maltese student has recreated the building using an editor feature in the video game Far Cry 5 in the hopes of taking people on a virtual tour of what it looked like in its glory days. 

Matthew Pace, who studies marine biology in Glasgow, has already built the exterior of the building and some of the corridors inside.

In a Facebook post, he wrote, “I've always been interested in what it might have been like to visit the Royal Opera House in its heyday, but the handful of photos that exist only hint at what the building must have been like.

“To get a better idea of the interior layout and opulence of the opera house, I gathered whatever photos and floor plans I could find and began the process of recreating the building as it might have been circa 1935 using the fairly sophisticated editor in the Far Cry 5 video game.”

Photo: Matthew Pace

Mr Pace's design might not be perfect, but it is as close as he could get using the information available on the building and the décor inside. 

“The problem is that the references that I have are quite fragmented and some parts of the building are pure guess-work,” he said, “There's plenty I still need to learn about this building.”

Photo: Matthew Pace

Matthew Pace has said that the auditorium is still a work in progress but that he would post pictures of the completed version. His idea is to be able to have a virtual tour of what the Royal Opera House would have looked like when still standing. 

Photo: Matthew Pace

The original building was designed by the English architect Edward Middleton Barry and completed in 1866. It was damaged in a fire but restored by 1877. 

In 1942 the theatre received a direct aerial bombing hit during the Second World War. All plans of restoration were abandoned until architect Renzo Piano redesigned the ruins and in 2013 it started functioning as the Royal Theatre Piazza, an open air performance venue. 

In the recent Budget for 2020, the government announced they would be asking the public whether there should be a roof erected over the open-air theatre.