Puerto Rican talent in games

Originally from Puerto Rico, Coraly Rosario took a leap of faith into video games that, over the course of 10 years, led her through a wide variety of projects. Now at Niantic, she leads user experience design for its community mapping tool.

Throughout her career she’s championed Puerto Rican and Latin American game development, most notably in her role as vice president of the Puerto Rico Game Developers Association (PRGDA). We caught up with her to hear how culture and identity have shaped her career in games.

Coraly Rosario: Being Puerto Rican, your personal identity is in a state of limbo: I both am, and am not, considered Latin American… but I’m also sometimes not considered an American or even US citizen.

This has taught me to be a bridge between cultures and to act as an advocate for others... I ensure we’re always reaching out to groups for representation and hearing many voices, rather than relying on assumptions.

My culture has also taught me that diverse perspectives matter, hospitality can be extended outside of the home, humility can be a strength, and resourcefulness helps us get things done.

Since childhood I’ve played SNES and N64. But, there wasn’t a game industry in Puerto Rico at the time and a games career was unheard of. It wasn’t until I found a fondness for JRPGs and competed at Dance Dance Revolution in arcades that I realized someone had to be making these games.

I studied graphic design in Old San Juan. There, my passion for games never went away and I became determined to help educate others about their value. This led me to leave Puerto Rico, with the intention of one day giving back so others wouldn't have to make the same move.

It was a lonely time – I had no community and I was often both the only woman and only Latin American on a team. But it fueled me to join the PRGDA to bring more Puerto Ricans into games, grow the industry back home, and champion diversity and inclusion. One day I hope to play a game where I can say, “That’s us! That’s me!”

Despite my family’s assumption I’d outgrow these “jueguitos,” I’m thankful that never happened.

My biggest triumph has been seeing the impact we’ve been able to make for developers. When I see someone in our community grow, finally publish their game, or land that first in-house role…when they’ve learned so much from their mentors or found other Puerto Ricans at their job to team up with and do awesome things, I feel an immense sense of pride and excitement.

Every year we see the fruits of our labor solidified with the PR Games Showcase and the immense talent coming from our peers.

As far as challenges, it’s really been about taking care of myself. I’ve been lucky enough to rarely experience crunch periods, but I do push myself quite hard. I have to remind myself to delegate, step back, allow time for actual relaxation, or know when to ask for help.

One: Just do it. Open some tutorials, learn to make something simple, paper prototype it, join a game jam… There are so many ways to start making games, resources are so accessible (and free) now! Also, don’t limit yourself to just tech roles, studios run like any other company with needs for HR, lawyers, community managers, and everything in between.

Two: If you’re having a tough time breaking through, look for a games-adjacent role. AR and VR use the same tech and skills as games. Film, marketing, ads etc., all teach you skills that allow for lateral moves into games.

Yes, and this is for those who grew up outside of Latin America: You are enough. We often seclude ourselves from our communities thinking we don’t speak enough Spanish or haven’t been connected to our roots, or any number of excuses. The Latin American experience takes many shapes and is presented in a myriad of ways.

We all contribute to the story of what it means to be Latin American, even when you grow up somewhere else or don’t dance salsa or speak Spanish as your first language. I still fumble my words, mispronounce “murciélago” or say “helicóptero” with a hard “H.” What matters is that we exist, and we have stories to tell.