Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and role changes across the games sector can be a real challenge. That’s why we publish periodic round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy moves in one convenient place. If you know of a colleague who has taken on a new position or a company that has reshuffled its leadership, feel free to forward the details – name, new title, new employer, plus the previous role and organization – to newhires@gamesindustry.biz.
Nate Nanzer is leaving 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 rose through the ranks, most recently serving as Senior Vice President of Partnerships and Monetisation, where he oversaw strategic alliances and revenue‑generation initiatives for flagship titles. "The scale of the ambition and vision here for what's next is incredibly exciting," Nanzer said in his announcement.
"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 also expressed gratitude toward his former colleagues, stating, "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." In a parallel move, Julia Gutnik has been appointed 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 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," Gutnik remarked, underscoring her enthusiasm for re‑engaging with the gaming community.
Studio MDHR announced the addition of Lorna Antoniazzi as Art Producer. Antoniazzi comes from Roarty Digital, where she produced work on high‑profile projects such as Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite, bringing valuable experience in large‑scale live‑service pipelines. Grand Games welcomed Aysu Kutbay as Product Manager. Kutbay previously held a similar product‑management role at Rollic, where she helped steer mobile titles from concept through launch and post‑launch optimisation.
David Bailey has made a comeback to Games Workshop, re‑joining as Lead Commercial Manager – Licensing. Bailey originally entered Games Workshop in 2019 as Senior Licensing Manager, departed 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 taken the post of Account Director for U.S. Operations at Second Stage. Prior to this, Murphy simultaneously served as COO and Head of Public Relations at Vicariously and V Publishing, giving her a broad perspective on agency‑client dynamics. Amazon Luna named Tim Coombs as Head of Brand Marketing.
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 announced his departure from Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming. Mogensen spent 23 years at Games Workshop, most recently as Head of Business Development and Consumer Product Licensing.
Reflecting on his career, he said, "It's not lost on me how special it's been to have worked on, and for, my favourite brands. 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." Blizzard Entertainment added Ryan Rubin as Senior Producer. Rubin previously produced senior‑level projects at Netflix, overseeing mobile adaptations of Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset, and spent five years at Riot Games working on creative development for the League of Legends franchise.
Battlestate Games appointed Andrey Odintsov as Head of Marketing. Odintsov's background includes a stint as User Acquisition Manager at Multicast Games and current work as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for various gaming titles. Frontier Developments announced Dan Lazarides as its new Chief Marketing Officer. Lazarides formerly served as Senior Vice President of Marketing at Sega Europe and succeeded Jo Cooke after she moved into the CEO role in January.
Cooke praised the hire, noting, "We are delighted to welcome Dan to Frontier, who brings with him a wealth of experience on some of the industry's largest IP. 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. This strategy is paramount to our position as a genre‑leading creative management simulation studio and ensures that we continue to create incredible games." Kalypso Media UK welcomed Karen Ionescu as Digital Sales Manager.
Ionescu previously managed sales at Numskull Games and held 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." Swipe Right, an esports and gaming communications agency, promoted Hannah Barrett to Senior Account Executive after she joined as an Account Executive in December 2025.
Supercell named Anni Pyy as Contract Manager; Pyy previously spent four years in the same capacity at Metacore. Fintech platform ZBD appointed Nathan Solbrandt as Senior Vice President of Business Development.
Solbrandt's prior experience includes senior account work at Motorica and a Vice President role for Business Development covering the Americas at Xsolla. Riot Games added Olivia Lee as Internal Events Producer, building on her earlier role as Associate Producer for internal events and programs. Xsolla hired Ciarah Pritchard as Account Coordinator.
Pritchard previously worked as an Account Performance Manager at Playback Rewards. Bethesda welcomed back Tracey Thompson 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 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." Nintendo of America appointed Maddie Richter as Social Media Marketing Manager; Richter's background includes a Social Media Manager role at Alaska Airlines.
Yotta Games announced Dana Duffield as Narrative Designer. Duffield previously served as Senior Narrative Designer at Series Entertainment. Yogscast Games revealed three new hires: Charlotte Willis (PR and Influencer Manager, formerly Creator and Community Director at Diva Agency), Robin Mawhinney (Production Coordinator, previously Junior Producer at Atelier 11) and Charlotte Pang (Publishing Coordinator, with past experience as Producer, Animator, and Artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, as well as teaching game design, animation, and coding at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone). Roblox's Foundation AI team expanded with Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger, who will help advance the platform's 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 explained, "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." Rockstar Games hired Sathvik Sudireddy as Marketing Manager, Live Services. Sudireddy previously managed product responsibilities on Call of Duty at Activision after an internship in business development at Rockstar. Netflix Games appointed Joe Chard as Lead Product Manager.
Chard brings a wealth of experience from 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 appointments illustrate the dynamic nature of talent movement within the interactive entertainment industry, highlighting both the cross‑pollination of expertise between gaming and adjacent sectors and the continued growth of companies seeking fresh perspectives to drive their next phases of development.