Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions, and departures across the gaming sector can be a real challenge. That’s why we put together periodic round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy personnel moves. If you know of any recent appointments or transitions that belong in this list, please forward the name, new title, new organization, as well as the previous role and employer to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Tim Coombs has been named the head of brand marketing for Amazon Luna.
Coombs spent the last several years at Microsoft’s Xbox division, where he was director of brand management until July 2026, after joining the console maker in 2020 as senior manager for brand strategy. Prior to his Xbox tenure, he helped launch Amazon’s Lumberyard engine in 2017 as product marketing manager and later led the Amazon Game Tech team as senior product marketing manager and team lead until April 2020. Erik Mogensen is exiting Hasbro and its subsidiary Wizards of the Coast after a three‑year stint as senior director of business development for digital gaming.
Before that, Mogensen devoted 23 years to Games Workshop, culminating in the role of head of business development and consumer product licensing. "It’s not lost on me how special it’s been to have worked on, and for, my favourite brands," Mogensen reflected.
"From the original Warhammer to recent work on Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, Transformers… the list goes on. I’m eager to see what the next chapter holds, wherever it may lead." Ryan Rubin has joined Blizzard Entertainment as a senior producer. Rubin’s most recent experience was at Netflix, where he produced two mobile titles—Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset.
Earlier in his career he spent five years at Riot Games, contributing to creative development across the League of Legends franchise. Andrey Odintsov has been promoted to head of marketing at Battlestate Games.
He previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now works as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for various gaming projects. Dan Lazarides steps into the chief marketing officer role at Frontier Developments. Lazarides comes from Sega Europe, where he served as senior vice president of marketing. He replaces Jo Cooke, who moved into the CEO position at Frontier in January.
"We are delighted to welcome Dan to Frontier, who brings with him a wealth of experience on some of the industry's largest IP," Frontier CEO Jo Cooke said. "His leadership will sustain our upward momentum, and his focus on community‑first publishing will ensure we keep championing player creativity and celebrating the many ways our audience engages with our games." Karen Ionescu has been appointed digital sales manager for Kalypso Media UK. Ionescu’s background includes a sales manager role at Numskull Games as well as positions at Nintendo and Rising Star Games. Managing Director Andrew Johnson commented, "Karen brings a deep commercial acumen and long‑standing relationships across both retail and digital channels, making her a fantastic addition to the team." Hannah Barrett earned a promotion to senior account executive at esports and gaming communications agency Swipe Right.
Barrett originally joined the firm in December 2025 as an account executive and has quickly proven her value. Supercell announced the hiring of Anni Pyy as contract manager.
Pyy spent four years in a similar capacity at Metacore before moving to the Finnish giant. Nathan Solbrandt has been named senior vice‑president of business development at fintech platform ZBD.
Solbrandt previously worked as a senior account executive at Motorica and served as vice president of business development for the Americas at Xsolla. Olivia Lee is now internal events producer at Riot Games, having previously held the associate producer title for internal events and programs.
Ciarah Pritchard joins Xsolla as an account coordinator after serving as account performance manager at Playback Rewards. Tracey Thompson returns to Bethesda as vice president of communications. Thompson first arrived at Bethesda in 2009 as director of publications, later becoming associate VP of communications.
She left in 2019 for Electronic Arts, where she led product and studio integrated communications. "I’m excited to partner with the talented teams across Bethesda and Xbox, supporting the creators behind some of the most iconic franchises and helping bring their vision to players worldwide," Thompson said. Maddie Richter has taken on the role of social media marketing manager at Nintendo of America. Before joining Nintendo, she managed social media for Alaska Airlines, where she honed her community‑building skills.
Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as a narrative designer, after serving as senior narrative designer at Series Entertainment. The UK‑based publisher Yogscast Games revealed three new hires: Charlotte Willis, Robin Mawhinney, and Charlotte Pang. Willis becomes PR and influencer manager, coming from Diva Agency where she was creator and community director. Mawhinney is appointed production coordinator after a junior producer stint at Atelier 11, while Pang joins as publishing coordinator, bringing experience as a producer, animator, and artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, as well as teaching game design and coding at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone.
Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger have been added to Roblox’s Foundation AI team to help develop the platform’s mobile‑first AI creation tool, Build, in New Zealand. The duo co‑founded the AI interactive platform Jars AI in 2023, securing $3.5 million in funding from Google and other investors. "At Jars AI we saw hundreds of thousands of creators use AI to shape weird new worlds and stories, and we’re excited to keep pushing the boundaries of AI entertainment in our new roles," Holm explained.
Sathvik Sudireddy joins Rockstar Games as marketing manager for live services. Sudireddy previously worked as a product manager on Call of Duty at Activision, after an internship in business development at the same studio. Joe Chard has been appointed lead product manager at Netflix Games. Chard’s background includes six years as vice president, studio general manager, and head of product at Jam City, as well as senior roles at The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros.
Entertainment. These appointments, departures, and promotions illustrate the fluid nature of talent within the gaming industry, where experienced professionals frequently move between major publishers, indie studios, and emerging tech firms. Such mobility not only reshapes company cultures but also spreads expertise across the ecosystem, fostering innovation and cross‑pollination of ideas. As new platforms like Amazon Luna and Roblox’s AI tools continue to evolve, the demand for seasoned marketers, producers, and developers remains high, ensuring that the industry will keep attracting top talent and delivering fresh experiences to players worldwide.