Hello! Baby Robot Games devs here again!
Last week we kicked off a blog series introducing you to the members of Baby Robot Games working on Ereban: Shadow Legacy - you met the Design, Narrative and Production teams and learned how they contribute to the project and what part of the game they’re most looking forward to.
Today we’re very happy to continue the series by introducing you to the Art team! Meet Juanlu, Brian, Alex, Elena, and Emma!
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Juanlu Pinto - Art Director
Hello there! I’m Juanlu, co-founder and Art Director of Baby Robot Games.
Like many of you, I grew up playing the classics: Sonic, Paperboy, Alex the Kidd and Golden Axe. I don´t know how many hours I’ve spent playing Final Fantasy VII with my neighbor, evening after evening just sitting in front of the tv and having fun. Video games and art have always been part of my life, but it was only after I started studying History that I got super interested in drawing; watching youtube videos and reading books about the basics of drawing. I will never forget how valuable the oil painting lessons from my Auntie were. Finally, I made the decision of my life to pursue my dreams, changing my professional career from History teacher to video games artist. As a result, I ended up working on Assassin´s Creed Valhalla (a dream come true).
Working as an Art Director on Ereban: Shadow Legacy has been an amazing experience so far. My idea behind the direction of the game was to create a world where we mix ancient structures with the sci-fi elements of the megacorporation Helios. The player will be able to explore locations from tranquil ancient ruins, to hectic industrial sci-fi settlements. Games like Destiny, Rage or Borderlands have been a huge inspiration.
My main task as the art director is to ensure that the rest of the team is on the same page and following the moodboards, references and tone for every part of the game. Finding a good balance between level design (gameplay) and aesthetic is probably the most difficult challenge I have to deal with everyday. Simple shapes (as squarish as possible), hard lights and the limitations of the engine are some of the stuff we have to keep in mind when designing new structures or props.
Something I love about our game is the variety in terms of maps we have: linear interior and exterior areas, tiny “open worlds”, cities… The best part is that each one of them will give you the opportunity to play in a different way, for example using the verticality of the streets and buildings of Kabnak city, choosing between the differents paths to reach your goal, or discovering hidden places (that will allow you to know the story of Ayana) while you explore the map. I can’t wait to see you all playing it!
Brian Ramírez - Principal Environment Artist
Hello everyone! I’m Brian, one of the founders and main Environment Artist of Ereban: Shadow Legacy.
I think it was in my teenage years when I decided to work on games. Watching the ‘making of’s my favorite games revealed a lot of creative energy that made me dream about being part of that process. Although I didn’t know in which field yet, so I decided to try different options until I reached the one that fits. Fun fact: at first I tried to learn coding, but I ended up in the art field. I quickly discovered that Math and I don’t hang out too well.
Joining the Art field has been my best choice so far. To me, working in the environments of Ereban means to put constantly into practice the idea that the setting is just like another character of the story. Alongside the art team, I try to discern, as much as possible, the purpose of the scene, researching which textures and shapes are the best for each moment, and how they work together when we create the level.
Lastly, I would like to add that I'm a graphic freak, especially on how the structures and textures are done. So I hope that anyone that loves this side as well enjoys checking out the different areas that we made for you to explore. Worth watching!
Alex Alonso - Principal Character Artist
Hi! I'm Alex, one of the founders of Baby Robot Games and Character Artist for our current project, Ereban: Shadow Legacy.
According to that primary school book where students write what they want to be when they grow up, little Alex wanted to be a comic book artist or a videogame developer. Well, we can say that this boy, who spent his classes drawing at his desk, has fulfilled what he wrote at such an early age (at least one out of the two options). By the way, nobody could beat that kid at Dragon Ball Z Budokai 3 either.
One thing that always interested me about videogames was the fact of creating a virtual space, with its rules and limitations, where you as a player entered it and developed yourself inside. Anything could happen and you lived it as "real", your actions had consequences (even if that means punching Majin Buu in the face), in a place created and measured by someone. How satisfying to create something like that.
Designing characters has always been my passion, I used to draw cute strange creatures and monsters in my school notebooks. Now my task is to create the characters for Ereban: Shadow Legacy, the whole process, from concept design to 3D modeling and texturing. For example, our main character Ayana, who descends from a special race that has the power to merge with the shadows. But many other characters will appear during the game, I can't wait to see them in action.
I am eager and curious to see how people will play and enjoy our game; what actions they will perform, what paths they will choose, what situations they will discover that we as developers wouldn't even have thought of. To me, that's the point of creating something where people can create their own adventures, where everyone will play in their own way.
Elena Gómez – Environment Artist
Hello world! I’m Elena, Environment Artist on Ereban: Shadow Legacy.
Video Games have been part of my life for a long time and it has become one of my favorite hobbies since my parents bought me a PlayStation 2 at the age of 7. I remember exploring the colorful and exciting places from the Jak and Daxter Series, the feeling of adventure in Dragon Quest VIII and spending wonderful hours with my younger sister and friends playing Mario Party and Just Dance.
However, I started to get more curious about how games were made, and thanks to attending some industry events I was able to ask questions to different indie developers. After researching the different roles in development teams I decided I wanted to focus on Art. I really like the visual impact scenes can have on people; not just in games but also in films, paintings, plays, etc. Furthermore, I think it is awesome to create a 3D piece of art, and later on see it implemented in the game.
One of my main goals working on Ereban is to model interesting 3D pieces and create interesting environments which help the player get more immersed in the story.
Working on Ereban has given me the opportunity to continue with my artistic career and I feel privileged to be able to learn from my friends and colleagues.
I can’t wait to see what your feelings are with this adventure and your favorite places to visit in Ereban: Shadow Legacy.
Emma Montserrat – Environment Artist Intern
Hi there! I’m Emma, the first intern ever (what a title, huh) at Baby Robot Games, working on Ereban: Shadow Legacy.
I have just finished my studies and Ereban: Shadow Legacy has given me the opportunity to take a look inside video game development and take part in it. My main job is making 3D objects to fill the rooms and scenarios.
For as long as I can remember, I have always been with a pencil at my side, being told off by teachers because I spent all class time drawing in my book or on the tables. I quickly developed a love of comic books which added ‘storytelling’ to my list of passions. So when I started discovering more and more the language of video games, I just fell in love.
I don't know exactly when but I decided I would become a game developer. I wasn't really sure art was my thing, but surprise! Art is not a ‘talent’, it is just hard work and practice. As soon as I realized that, nobody could take the idea of becoming an artist out of my head, even if they tried.
The games I most enjoy are those where the narrative is broken and hidden in the world, so I have to search for it. I really like games that don't explain every narrative detail literally, like Dark Souls or Rime.
So here we are, after a long studying path I was able to give a part of myself to Ereban. I just can't wait to hear how the players think and feel about the quality of the in-game environments. I remember my first thought when I saw Ereban: “How this can be an indie game?! This looks like AAA, these people are crazy".
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And now you know why Ereban looks so good! Stay tuned for the next entry in the series where we’ll introduce the Programming and Animation teams, Alberto, Pablo, Uri and Jess!
In the meantime, please consider wishlisting Ereban: Shadow Legacy on Steam and follow us on twitter @BabyRobotGames - where we’ll be posting more content about the game!
Thank you all very much and we hope you like it!
- Baby Robot Games Team