Bernadette Lirio aka Badette — Dynamic Artist Blending Creative Vision and Adventurous Spirit as our Lead Environment Artist.
What inspired your career?
I always wanted to be an artist even when I was young; but what inspired me to be a game artist is when I was introduced to a game called “The Sims”. It’s one of my favorite games and I wanted to be a part of it.
There were few game outsourcing companies in the Philippines (where I’m originally from) when I graduated from University. Luckily I found a company that works for different AAA games that got me more inspired to be an environment artist.
What’s the most interesting project you’ve worked on besides Instinction?
The most interesting projects for me are Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Blood & Truth and The Last of Us franchise because I love discovering the creative and technical process of creating different types of 3D assets and learning from it.
What’s your passion outside of work?
I do love travel, food travel and espresso making. I enjoy trying new restaurants and visiting new places with friends and family. I find it as a good way to spend time and experience new things with them.
What’s your favorite music genre?
I love listening to pop-punk, alternative rock and soul. Paramore and Honne are my two favorite bands.
What accomplishment are you most proud of, personally or professionally?
Personally, I’m most proud of when I was able to collaborate and finish a game project with my colleague on a game jam. It was great to witness the accumulated experience of my friends in the industry.
Link here.
Professionally, it’s knowing that the artists I have mentored and worked with, are successfully thriving on their career paths.
What’s something you hope to achieve in the future?
Professionally, I hope to discover more about the different processes of creating an environment for games.
What’s something surprising people may not know about you?
That I know how to play billiards. It was funny when my co-workers were so surprised that I knew how to play billiards. But that’s because when I was a kid, my brothers and I always got to practice and play it at our home.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
Make time to experience traveling while we’re still young and able.
What’s something you wish you had more time for?
To have time to improve my health and fitness.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned in your career so far?
With the ever changing workflows and lots of different resources/ways to develop a game, we have to find a balance between which approach we are comfortable doing and adapting to new approaches for practical solutions.
What are some notable projects/companies you’ve worked with?
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider
- Blood and Truth
- The Last of Us Part 2
- The Last of Us Part 1
- As Dusk Falls
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Blood and Wine
- Instinction 😉
Where did you grow up and where do you live now?
I grew up in the Philippines and currently living in New Zealand.
What’s your favorite travel destination and why?
Philippines — for the warm beaches
Wanaka and Japan — It’s both beautiful and I feel like there’s still so much to explore and of course the snow!
Do you have any pets, and can you tell us about them?
Unfortunately I don’t have pets yet. But I do plan to have a dog when I get the chance!
What’s an interesting fact or hobby about you?
That I am getting into learning espresso coffee making. Latte art is still hit and miss but it’s getting there!
What’s your favorite film or TV show, and why?
The Office series. I enjoy their humor and I love each character’s development throughout the series.
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
I wanted to be an animator at Pixar.
What’s a career highlight of yours?
When I had the opportunity to lead a couple of very talented artists for The Last of Us 2 project at my previous company.
What was a big hurdle you had to overcome in your career?
It is when going out of my comfort zone to prioritize my self-growth skill wise both personally and professionally.
What are your favorite video games?
- The Sims
- Uncharted Franchise
- Red Dead Redemption Franchise
- Borderlands Franchise
- The Last of Us
If you could be any dinosaur, which would you be and why?
Pterosaur for the reason that I want to be able to fly!
What is it like working for Hasbane?
I’ve been working for Hashbane for around 6 months now. I can say that it has a very flexible working environment and ideas on our own craft are always welcome. Every task is a fun challenge that boosts my passion for 3D environment art but with a lot of support from the team.
