Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and role changes across the games sector can be a daunting task, which is why we gather the most noteworthy movements in a regular digest. If you know of any recent appointments or transitions that belong in this list, please forward the individual's name, new title, new company, as well as their previous role and employer to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Nate Nanzer has departed Epic Games after a seven‑year tenure to assume the position of Executive Vice President, Head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games.
During his time at Epic, Nanzer held a series of senior responsibilities, most recently serving as Senior Vice President of Partnerships and Monetisation. "The scale of the ambition and vision here for what's next is incredibly exciting," Nanzer said. "I've spent my career at the intersection of games, entertainment, and fandom, and the opportunity to help build what comes next at Paramount was simply too compelling to pass up." He added, "I'm deeply grateful to everyone at Epic and to all of the partners I've had the opportunity to work with along the way. I'll always be proud of what we accomplished together and will be cheering the team on from the sidelines." Julia Gutnik has been named Head of Media at Amazon Gaming.
Gutnik previously led media, social, and analytics for Kia America, and before that she spent more than six years at Prime Video and Amazon Studios, where she oversaw digital and ad‑tech media initiatives. "After two years navigating the auto industry, I am returning to my entertainment roots, and to the place that shaped me into a global marketing leader," Gutnik explained. Lorna Antoniazzi joins Studio MDHR as Art Producer.
Antoniazzi comes from a producer role at Roarty Digital, where she contributed to high‑profile projects such as Fortnite Battle Royale and the Lego Fortnite crossover. Aysu Kutbay has taken on the role of Product Manager at Grand Games, after previously serving in the same capacity at Rollic, where she helped launch several successful mobile titles. David Bailey is back at Games Workshop, this time as Lead Commercial Manager – Licensing.
Bailey originally entered Games Workshop in 2019 as Senior Licensing Manager, left in 2021 to become Director of Business Affairs at Sumo Digital, and now returns to the Warhammer universe. "It's a privilege to return to the vast and evergreen Warhammer universes to help spearhead new business for licensing here," he said.
"It's an incredible opportunity and it's great to be back in the fold working alongside great people." Liana Murphy has been appointed Account Director for U.S. Operations at Second Stage. Prior to this, Murphy simultaneously held the COO role and headed public relations at Vicariously and V Publishing, gaining extensive experience in agency management and client strategy.
Tim Coombs steps into the role of Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox until July 2026, after joining the console maker in 2020 as Senior Manager for Brand Strategy. Earlier in his career he served as Product Marketing Manager for Amazon Lumberyard in 2017 and later as Senior Product Marketing Manager and team lead for Amazon Game Tech until April 2020.
Erik Mogensen has exited Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming. Before that, he spent 23 years at Games Workshop, most recently as 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.
"First Warhammer, and most recently Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, Transformers… the list goes on. I'm very much looking forward to my next chapter, whatever and wherever that may be." Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment as Senior Producer. Rubin's recent experience includes senior production work at Netflix, where he helped ship two mobile titles—Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset.
He also spent five years at Riot Games, contributing to creative development across the League of Legends franchise. Andrey Odintsov has been appointed Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games. Odintsov previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and currently works as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for various gaming projects.
Dan Lazarides steps up as Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments. Lazarides formerly served as Senior Vice President of Marketing at Sega Europe and succeeded Jo Cooke after she was promoted to Frontier's CEO 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," Cooke said. "His leadership in this genre will continue Frontier's upward momentum, and his appointment to the role of CMO highlights our focus on our communities.
Dan will be at the heart of our player‑first strategy, ensuring our publishing team champions player creativity and celebrates the way in which they play our games." Karen Ionescu becomes Digital Sales Manager at Kalypso Media UK. Ionescu's background includes sales management at Numskull Games as well as roles at Nintendo and Rising Star Games. Managing Director Andrew Johnson praised her: "We're delighted to welcome Karen to Kalypso Media UK. She brings a wealth of commercial experience and long‑standing relationships across both retail and digital sales channels, making her a fantastic addition to the team." Hannah Barrett has been promoted to Senior Account Executive at esports and gaming communications agency Swipe Right, after joining as an Account Executive in December 2025.
Supercell appoints Anni Pyy as Contract Manager. Pyy previously spent four years in the same capacity at Metacore, overseeing licensing agreements and partnership contracts. Nathan Solbrandt takes the role of Senior Vice President of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD. Solbrandt's prior experience includes senior account work at Motorica and a Vice President position overseeing business development for the Americas at Xsolla.
Olivia Lee becomes Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, after serving as Associate Producer for internal events and programs, where she coordinated company‑wide celebrations and employee engagement initiatives. Ciarah Pritchard is named Account Coordinator at Xsolla, moving from a role as Account Performance Manager at Playback Rewards where she optimized client revenue streams. Tracey Thompson returns to Bethesda as Vice President of Communications. Thompson originally joined 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 looking forward to partnering with the talented people across Bethesda and Xbox, supporting the teams behind some of the most iconic franchises in entertainment, and helping bring their creativity and vision to players around the world," Thompson said. Maddie Richter has been appointed Social Media Marketing Manager at Nintendo of America, after previously managing social channels for Alaska Airlines.
Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as Narrative Designer, bringing senior narrative design experience from Series Entertainment. Yogscast Games announces three new hires: Charlotte Willis as PR and Influencer Manager (formerly Creator and Community Director at Diva Agency), Robin Mawhinney as Production Coordinator (previous junior producer at Atelier 11), and Charlotte Pang as Publishing Coordinator (former producer, animator, and artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, and former instructor at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone). Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger have been added to Roblox's Foundation AI team to support the mobile‑first AI creation tool Build in New Zealand.
The duo co‑founded Jars AI in 2023, raising $3.5 million from Google and other investors. Holm remarked, "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." Sathvik Sudireddy joins Rockstar Games as Marketing Manager for Live Services, after serving as Product Manager on Call of Duty at Activision and completing an internship in business development at Rockstar.
Joe Chard becomes Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games, following a six‑year stint 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 moves illustrate the fluid nature of talent within the interactive entertainment ecosystem, where seasoned professionals frequently shift between publishers, developers, and platform providers, bringing cross‑industry expertise that fuels innovation and growth across the sector.