[2022] Community Focus - BonaFideHiro

Happy Friday, Guardians! Welcome back to one of our favorite segments on Bungie.net, this week’s Community Focus!   
I know I tend to say this almost every time I write something here, but it still blows my mind that (for those of us reading this) we all have found each other because of this game. We have our “in real life” moments: graduating high school, moving out for the first time, finding a partner, or even having children. And there is something special about the fact that a lot of these moments are also shared in-game with our fireteam, clan, and community. So, thank you once again for sharing these stories with us, and please continue to do so because we really love writing them. 
Okay, enough cheesiness for now. This week we are hanging out over in the UK with an Aussie you may know!  
Hello and welcome! First, let's start with your name, pronouns, and a little bit about you.  

G’day! I am BonaFideHiro, he/him, but everyone calls me Bona or Hiro, but never Fide… Hmmmm? 

I’m an Aussie who has moved back and forth from the UK since I was 19, and as of March 2020, we are in the south of England. 

That sounds like quite an adventure! So, what got you into gaming and content creation? 

Quite simply, my love for gaming came about like many other kids, coming home from school to my original PlayStation and Xbox where my brother and I would sit for hours escaping the heat of the Australian Outback. It was a great escape for a “weird” kid avoiding hot temps. 

My first form of content creation was recording game nights in Halo custom games, where skill did not matter, but your ability to be wild and have fun did. Using that, I would upload quick clips and screenshots to social media profiles. 

Then 2020 came along, and during the pandemic I started streaming on Twitch as a free and easy way to record longer content and capture funny moments in Destiny 2. I initially never had any intention of doing anything more than that. 

Oh my gosh, I think a lot of us can relate to posting team wipes or 360-no-scopes back in the day. So many giggles and late nights trying to stay quiet, but it was so hard when you were so stoked. 😊   So, you started with Halo, but what brought you to Destiny? 

I remember seeing Destiny first at E3 in 2013, and as a lifelong Halo fan, I was so eager to see the next thing from Bungie after Halo: Reach. Following that, I put my pre-order in and got involved with the Destiny open beta in 2014, and thus I became the world’s worst teammate in any activity. I was super casual to the game and really had no idea what I was doing most of the time. 

Fast forward to 2017 for the launch of Destiny 2, and my mindset had changed, my skills had improved, and over the years I found my feet as a community leader and PvE guide. 

Destiny is one of my favorites for that reason. You can hop into it not knowing what you’re “supposed to do,” and you can still complete things, have a blast, and learn how to improve just by playing the game and meeting other Guardians in the wild.  

When someone comes to your stream, what type of content should they expect? 

I mostly like to focus on endgame PvE activities like raids, dungeons, and Grandmaster Nightfalls. I love to get busy with the grind, but for most of the Season, I like to spend my time either guiding Guardians through Grandmasters, helping them get their base or gilded Conqueror Seal, or helping them when the next raid or dungeon comes out. There is nothing more awesome than helping show people that they can complete the activities they want to complete. 

Heck yes! As a Guardian who still tends to start off their conversations with “I am sorry, I am bad, but can you help?” This brings a smile to my heart.  
Alright, I must ask, what do you main and your favorite Exotic?  

I have always been very much a Titan-minded individual, running and gunning without a second thought. I have felt pretty legendary as a Titan since Void and Solar 3.0. 

I can often be quoted saying, “Dammit, I forgot I wasn’t wearing Lion Rampants.” Or, “I feel naked without my Rampants.” 😊  

Oh goodness, I feel like that might be a glimpse into your channel right there. How would you describe the vibe of your content? 

I can easily sum it up in a few words: goofy, semi-comedic, helpful, and welcoming. 

Whether you have been hanging out for a while or just started, you can easily feel at home here. I pride myself on my first impressions, interacting with my audience through a variety of ways while I am live on Twitch, and my daily impact. Hearing that someone has been able to escape for the day and smile—even if it was because they made me swap to a Rocket Launcher and blew up my Guardian—is something that means more to me than I can express.  

That is really neat, Hiro, and I love that you not only entertain chat but you actively interact with them. What is something you make sure to tell Kinderguardians as they join the game?  

The biggest thing I have come to learn over time is that Destiny is not a linear game. There is not one way to play the game, and everyone will have different experiences playing and will play for different reasons. 

You can play the way you want to play, and do it in a positive way, and everyone wins. 

Yes! That’s one of the things I like to point out too. You can be anything you want in Destiny if you’re kind to others. 😊   Outside of Destiny, what do you do?  

Outside of Destiny and gaming, I am a new dad to a kickass little fella, codename: “Nugget.” 

I spend my time outside of streaming as a broadcast consultant, helping creators and businesses become professionals in their own broadcast journeys. 

Anything fun coming up or any events you are particularly excited for?  

I hope to run and kick some butt in my own month-long series of charity streams in October for the  the National Breast Cancer Foundation in Australia. More specifically to a foundation that helps support families and individuals that have to be away from home due to treatment. Very precise, I know, but it’s something I have always wanted to give back to. 

And then, other than waiting to apply for Twitch partnership again, I am continuing to play through the Seasonal content, helping peeps out and waiting for our next day-one raid day! 

Anything else you want to add?   

Thank you so much for the chat, Sam, and please give my thanks to the other community managers, the devs, and all other teams that make the world of Destiny happen. You all continue to support, me and so many others from every background and walk of life and you’ve given us a place to meet, love, laugh, and cry together. I would not be who I am without Destiny and the friends that I have met through it. 

Done and done. Thank you for taking the time to hang out with us today. And finally, where can people find you? 

Every weekday from 1 PM BST (4 AM PST), you can find me live on Twitch. I am  on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok as well. 

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*insert jazz hands here*  
There we have it! Please make sure you go check out Hiro’s socials and stream when you get a chance. And if you haven’t checked out our latest Community Focus with Pijinnn, you can go do that now!  
Don’t forget to keep sharing your favorite humans on socials. We love meeting new (to us) Guardians and sharing their stories. We hope you all have a great rest of your week, and we will see you next time! 
Stay crafty, Guardians 
Sam