Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and promotions across the games sector can be a real challenge. That’s why we put together periodic round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy personnel shifts. If you know of a move that belongs in this list, feel free to email the details—name, new title, new company, and previous role—to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Nate Nanzer departs 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. "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 appointed 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 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," she explained. 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. Aysu Kutbay steps into the role of Product Manager at Grand Games, after serving in the same capacity at Rollic, where she helped launch several successful mobile titles. David Bailey makes a comeback to Games Workshop, this time as Lead Commercial Manager – Licensing. Bailey originally joined the company in 2019 as Senior Licensing Manager, left in 2021 for a director role 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 remarked. "It's an incredible opportunity and it's great to be back in the fold working alongside great people." Liana Murphy is now Account Director for U.S.
Operations at Second Stage. Prior to this, Murphy held dual responsibilities as COO and Head of Public Relations at Vicariously and V Publishing, where she oversaw agency‑wide strategy and client communications. Tim Coombs takes the reins 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 earlier roles as Senior Manager for Brand Strategy and Product Marketing Manager for Amazon Lumberyard and Amazon Game Tech. Erik Mogensen exits Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming. Mogensen previously devoted 23 years to Games Workshop, culminating in the position 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.
"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 background includes senior production work on Netflix mobile titles such as Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset, as well as five years at Riot Games where he contributed to creative development for the League of Legends franchise.
Andrey Odintsov is appointed Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games. He 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, succeeding Jo Cooke after her promotion to CEO. Lazarides arrived from Sega Europe, where he was Senior Vice President of Marketing. Frontier CEO Jo Cooke praised his arrival: "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." Karen Ionescu steps into the role of Digital Sales Manager at Kalypso Media UK.
Ionescu's résumé includes sales leadership positions at Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games. Managing Director Andrew Johnson said, "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 receives a promotion to Senior Account Executive at esports and gaming communications agency Swipe Right, having joined 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 is named Senior Vice President of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD.
He comes from Motorica, where he was Senior Account Executive, and earlier served as Vice President of Business Development for the Americas at Xsolla. Olivia Lee becomes Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, building on her prior experience as Associate Producer for internal events and programs.
Ciarah Pritchard takes on the role of Account Coordinator at Xsolla, after working as an 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 for EA in 2019. She says, "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 is appointed Social Media Marketing Manager at Nintendo of America, transitioning from a Social Media Manager role at Alaska Airlines where she honed cross‑platform community engagement skills.
Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as Narrative Designer, after serving as Senior Narrative Designer at Series Entertainment, where she crafted storylines for multiple 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 game design 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.
Holm noted, "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 a stint as Product Manager on Call of Duty at Activision and an earlier internship in business development at Rockstar. Joe Chard is appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games. Chard brings extensive 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 dynamic nature of the gaming ecosystem, where talent moves fluidly between studios, publishers, and tech companies, continually reshaping the industry’s creative and commercial landscape.