Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures and role changes across the games sector can be a daunting task. That’s why we publish periodic round‑ups that gather the most notable personnel shifts in one place.
If you know of a move that belongs in this list, simply forward the name, new title, new company and the person’s previous position to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Nate Nanzer has announced his departure from Epic Games after a seven‑year tenure to take on the role of Executive Vice President, Head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games. During his time at Epic, Nanzer rose through the ranks, 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 chance to help shape Paramount’s future was simply too compelling to pass up.” He added a note of gratitude to his former colleagues: “I’m deeply grateful to everyone at Epic and to all of the partners I’ve had the privilege to work with. I’ll always be proud of what we achieved together and will be cheering the team on from the sidelines.” Julia Gutnik has been promoted to 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 Amazon’s own Prime Video and Amazon Studios, where she headed digital and ad‑tech media operations. “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,” she explained.
Lorna Antoniazzi joins Studio MDHR as an Art Producer. Antoniazzi’s most recent role was as a producer at Roarty Digital, where she contributed to the Fortnite Battle Royale and LEGO Fortnite collaborations.
Aysu Kutbay has been named Product Manager at Grand Games, coming from a similar position at Rollic where she oversaw product strategy and launch execution. David Bailey is back at Games Workshop, this time as Lead Commercial Manager – Licensing. Bailey originally joined 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,” Bailey said.
“It’s an incredible opportunity and great to be back in the fold working alongside great people.” Liana Murphy steps into the role of Account Director for U.S. Operations at Second Stage. Prior to this, Murphy simultaneously held the COO position and led public relations at Vicariously and V Publishing.
Tim Coombs has taken the helm as Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. Before joining Amazon, Coombs spent six years at Xbox, most recently as Director of Brand Management, after joining the platform in 2020 as Senior Manager for Brand Strategy.
Earlier in his career he served as Product Marketing Manager for Amazon Lumberyard (2017) and later as Senior Product Marketing Manager and Team Lead for Amazon Game Tech until April 2020. Erik Mogensen departs Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming. Prior to that, he spent 23 years at 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.
“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, wherever that may be.” Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment as a Senior Producer. Rubin’s recent experience includes senior production on two Netflix mobile titles – Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset – and a five‑year stint at Riot Games where he worked on creative development for the League of Legends IP.
Andrey Odintsov has been appointed Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games. Odintsov previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and currently operates as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for various gaming projects.
Dan Lazarides becomes Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments. Lazarides arrives from Sega Europe, where he was Senior Vice President of Marketing, and succeeds Jo Cooke following her promotion to Frontier’s CEO in January. Cooke praised the hire: “We are delighted to welcome Dan to Frontier, who brings a wealth of experience on some of the industry’s largest IPs.
His leadership will keep our upward momentum and reinforce our player‑first strategy, ensuring our publishing team champions player creativity and celebrates how they engage with our games.” Karen Ionescu takes on the role of Digital Sales Manager at Kalypso Media UK. Ionescu’s background includes sales leadership at Numskull Games as well as positions at Nintendo and Rising Star Games. Managing Director Andrew Johnson commented, “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.
Nathan Solbrandt becomes Senior Vice President of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD. Before this, Solbrandt was 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 worked as an Associate Producer 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 originally joined Bethesda in 2009 as Director of Publications, later becoming Associate VP of Communications, before leaving in 2019 for a head‑of‑product and studio‑integrated communications role at Electronic Arts.
She said, “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.” Maddie Richter has been named Social Media Marketing Manager at Nintendo of America, after previously handling social media for Alaska Airlines. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as a Narrative Designer, coming from a senior narrative design role at Series Entertainment.
The UK publisher Yogscast Games announced three new hires: Charlotte Willis as PR and Influencer Manager (formerly Creator and Community Director at Diva Agency), Robin Mawhinney as Production Coordinator (previously Junior Producer at Atelier 11) and Charlotte Pang as Publishing Coordinator (with a background as producer, animator and artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, plus teaching experience at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone). Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger have joined Roblox’s Foundation AI team to support the mobile‑first AI creation tool Build in New Zealand. The duo co‑founded the interactive AI platform Jars AI in 2023 and raised $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 becomes Marketing Manager, Live Services at Rockstar Games.
He previously served as Product Manager on Call of Duty at Activision after an internship in business development at Rockstar. Joe Chard is appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games. Chard’s prior experience includes a six‑year tenure 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.