With the emergence of the first Filipino VALORANT agent in Neon, representation for our country is at an all-time high, and there’s more to be proud of as we also have a Call of Duty: Vanguard operator that traces her roots back to the Philippines.

Isabella Rosario Dulnuan Reyes is the latest operator to arrive in Call of Duty: Vanguard and she is a close-range specialist that is part of Task Force Trident. More than her name and nationality, Isabella was brought to life by Filipina Belinda Garcia.

Call of Duty: Vanguard Operator Isabella Reyes Writer – Belinda Garcia

Belinda is a narrative designer for Call of Duty: Vanguard and being of the same roots as Isabella, we can only imagine that she is the main resource person for the operator. Belinda recently spoke on Twitter about how Isabella came to be – from her name to her Arnis background – and it is quite the story.

Isabella’s intro cinematic was written by Belinda, who goes on to describe how Filipinos have a common tradition to have both parents’ surnames, which she actually has as well. To her, it was “no question” that Isabella would indeed carry on the tradition.

Talking further about the cinematic, which takes place in an old church where Isabella goes face to face with enemy soldiers, Belinda describes Isabella’s inspiration and reason for her fight, which was to avenge her father’s death. Belinda herself was influenced greatly by being Catholic, so she wanted to make sure that the importance of family and faith was well portrayed in the cinematic.

One thing many Filipino’s would immediately recognize is that Isabella is a well-trained arnis fighter, as she was trained by none other than her dad. It would be their “bonding” moment, as described by Belinda, so featuring the national martial art of the Philippines is integral to Isabella’s character.

While it may not be featured prominently in-game, Belinda then shone the spotlight on Isabella’s masterful moves in the cinematic.

Belinda also talked about the whole experience of it all, and how it was one of the most special things she has done for her job. Representation is very important and indeed, through the efforts of talented writers like Belinda, we can certainly expect more in the future.

Call of Duty: Vanguard Operator Isabella Reyes Voice Actor – Jenn Wong

To give Isabella the full-on authentic experience, Filipino voice actress Jenn Wong played an integral role as well, voicing the skilled operator.

She has more in common with Isabella than others may think because she even has as many names as the Arnis master, truly a ‘Pinoy’ trait.

Wong is famous for lending her talents to projects like Raya and the Last Dragon, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity (Great Fairy Mija), and several Yo-Kai Watch productions.

Call of Duty: Vanguard Season One is now live and playable on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series, and PC.