We're back with another Meet the Team! Take a peek inside the studio, learn more about the many careers and paths that led our collaborators to join Amplitude!
If you want to know more about us, or your niece wants to learn more about the career path of a game developer, or if you're just curious, read on.
He is our resident cook and he likes to punch people, meet Ronan, aka Nanore!
Who are you and what is your job at Amplitude?
I am Ronan Berlese, concept artist at Amplitude for a few years now. My job is to design everything that will appear in-game, from environments to characters, through monsters, buildings, vehicles, ships... I work closely with our writers, our art director and our creative director to turn what is at the start only a collection of references, ideas and text, into a real thing, all the while making sure the result will fit within the universe and follow the game's art direction.
What were you doing before you joined the studio?
I worked in a few other game studios, mostly on 2D stuff, and I even made some pixel art at the start of my career, for mobile games, from the time before smartphones were a thing.
What do you like the most at Amplitude?
The kitchen. Cooking is my second passion, and it's the first company where I have a fully-equipped kitchen at my disposal! [NdE: Ronan cooks for a group a select few every day, the very influential "groupe midi"]
What have you worked on that you're super proud of?
I'd be hard-pressed to say I'm proud of what I make, as I'm very critical of my work, but I hope players enjoy it. I enjoyed creating the character design for Dungeon of the Endless, where every character has a very defined personality. Even if the onscreen result is only a few pixels high, working on the concepts was fun.
What are you currently working on?
Secret things, and more secret things. Things I hope players will enjoy.
What's your favorite game of all time?
It would be difficult to pick one, there are many that left their mark on me, as I played so many games as soon as I got access to a gaming system. On my old Amiga, I loved Flashback. Later, I got a Megadrive and Sonic 2 was my favorite game. I could go on like this for each platform and generation, but let's just say that lately, I have spent a lot of time on The Witcher 3. It's a rare moment when you work in the industry and you know "how the sausage is made," and you find a game that is just so good you forget about the technical analysis and you just let the game carry you. I also play a lot of Arma 3, for the almost limitless possibilities of the game in terms of content creation. I must clock in at about 1500h of gameplay.
What’s the game you dream of creating?
If we were to start working on a game with the scope and the guts of The Witcher here at Amplitude, I would be in heaven.
Is there anywhere on the Internet where I can see more of your stuff?
My ArtStation, but I need to update it.
What's your favorite race or character in our games?
The Endless, but you'll never see them. They're really cool.
Is there a funny story that happened to you at Amplitude?
Earlier this week the new head of Sega of Europe, Chris, was visiting the studio, and when we were cooking during our lunch break, he offered that we cook one of his favorite recipes one day for the team to try. I was a bit confused by the recipe, which seemed to require ironing to make a stew (?). I later learned it was an Iranian stew, and I'd just heard him wrong. It made more sense that way. Also, there is a cook character in Dungeon of the Endless, called Nanor...
What's the most played song in your music library?
I'd say Agnes Obel's Familiar, because I really like that singer. Otherwise, probably a track from the album Peeping Tom, or a Tool song.
What obscure movie would you recommend watching?
I watch few movies, but I read a lot, so instead I'll recommend "Cold Skin" from Albert Sánchez Piñol, that I read recently. Don't spoil it for yourself, just get the book without reading the back cover. If you really want a movie rec, I'd say the Cremasters series from Matthew Barney, or his Drawing Restreint. I am not that into modern art, but his work speaks to me.
What are your hobbies in life?
I already mentioned cooking, but I also practice French boxing not too far from the studio. I try to bring in people from the studio, but this year there are few volunteers... [NdE: to get an idea of what sparring with Ronan is like, imagine getting punched by a brick wall. It's like that, only the wall is smiling at you the whole time]
What's the dish you cook to impress people?
A French pastry, cannelés bordelais. They're not very complicated to make, but it takes a lot of time. Here is a recipe.
That's it for Ronan! We hope you found this interesting. Comments or additional questions, feel free to comment!
If there's a question you would like us to ask the interviewees, let us know!
