Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions and departures in the games sector can be a real challenge, which is why we gather the most notable movements in periodic round‑ups. If you know of a transition that belongs in this list, please forward the name, new title, new company and previous role to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Nate Nanzer has departed Epic Games after a seven‑year tenure to assume the role of Executive Vice President, Head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games.
During his time at Epic, Nanzer held several senior positions, most recently serving as Senior Vice President of Partnerships and Monetisation, where he oversaw global partnership strategies and revenue‑generation initiatives. "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 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 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 spent more than six years at Prime Video and Amazon Studios, where she directed 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 remarked. Lorna Antoniazzi joins Studio MDHR as Art Producer. Antoniazzi comes from Roarty Digital, where she contributed to high‑profile projects such as Fortnite Battle Royale and the Lego Fortnite crossover, gaining experience in large‑scale art pipelines and collaborative production environments. 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 and refined her expertise in user acquisition, live‑ops, and data‑driven product iteration.
David Bailey returns to Games Workshop 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 comes back 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 is appointed Account Director for US Operations at Second Stage. Murphy previously held dual responsibilities as COO and Head of Public Relations at Vicariously and V Publishing, where she oversaw operational scaling and media strategy for multiple indie publishers. Tim Coombs steps into the position of Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. Prior to this, Coombs spent six years at Xbox, most recently as Director of Brand Management, after joining the console maker in 2020 as Senior Manager for Brand Strategy.
He also held product marketing roles for Amazon Lumberyard (2017) and Amazon Game Tech (until April 2020), giving him a deep background in both gaming infrastructure and consumer‑facing branding. Erik Mogensen departs Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming. Before that, Mogensen 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," he reflected, naming Warhammer, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering and Transformers as highlights.
He hinted that his next chapter is still unwritten. Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment as Senior Producer. Rubin previously served as Senior Producer at Netflix, where he helped ship two mobile titles based on popular IPs: 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 becomes Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games. Odintsov’s background includes a stint as User Acquisition Manager at Multicast Games and ongoing work as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for various gaming projects. Dan Lazarides is announced as Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments.
Lazarides previously held the Senior Vice President of Marketing role at Sega Europe and succeeded Jo Cooke, who moved to the CEO position at Frontier in January. Cooke praised his appointment, noting that his experience with major IPs will reinforce Frontier’s player‑first strategy and community focus. Karen Ionescu takes the role of Digital Sales Manager at Kalypso Media UK. Ionescu’s résumé includes sales leadership at Numskull Games as well as positions at Nintendo and Rising Star Games, giving her a broad perspective on both retail and digital distribution channels.
Managing Director Andrew Johnson welcomed her, emphasizing her long‑standing industry relationships. Hannah Barrett is promoted to Senior Account Executive at esports and gaming communications agency Swipe Right, after joining as an Account Executive in December 2025 and demonstrating strong client‑service capabilities. Supercell appoints Anni Pyy as Contract Manager. Pyy previously spent four years in the same capacity at Metacore, where she managed external agreements and licensing deals for mobile titles.
Nathan Solbrandt becomes Senior Vice President of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD. Solbrandt’s prior experience includes senior account work at Motorica and a Vice President role for Business Development covering the Americas at Xsolla.
Olivia Lee is hired as Internal Events Producer at Riot Games. Lee previously served as Associate Producer for internal events and programs, coordinating large‑scale employee engagement initiatives.
Ciarah Pritchard joins Xsolla as Account Coordinator, after working as an Account Performance Manager at Playback Rewards, where she focused on optimizing publisher relationships and revenue reporting. 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 for EA in 2019.
She expressed enthusiasm about re‑joining the team to support iconic franchises across Bethesda and Xbox. Maddie Richter is appointed Social Media Marketing Manager at Nintendo of America, moving from a Social Media Manager role at Alaska Airlines where she led consumer engagement campaigns.
Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as Narrative Designer, after serving as Senior Narrative Designer at Series Entertainment, where she crafted storylines for several indie titles. 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 (previously Junior Producer at Atelier 11), and Charlotte Pang as Publishing Coordinator (with a background in production, animation and teaching at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone).
Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger become part of Roblox’s Foundation AI team, focusing on 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, and have extensive experience in AI‑driven interactive content.
Sathvik Sudireddy joins Rockstar Games as Marketing Manager for Live Services. Sudireddy previously worked as Product Manager on Call of Duty at Activision and completed an internship in business development at Rockstar. Joe Chard is named Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games.
Chard brings a wealth of senior leadership experience, having served as Vice President, Studio General Manager and Head of Product at Jam City for six years, as well as senior roles at The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros. Entertainment.
These appointments reflect the ongoing dynamism of the gaming ecosystem, where talent moves across studios, publishers and tech platforms, bringing fresh perspectives to ever‑evolving audiences and markets.