Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and role changes across the games sector can be a real challenge. To make it easier for readers and industry insiders, we publish periodic round‑ups that capture the most notable personnel shifts. If you know of a recent appointment or transition that belongs 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 announced his departure from 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 several senior posts, 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 in his statement. "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 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 Prime Video and Amazon Studios, where she oversaw 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 Art Producer.
Antoniazzi comes from Roarty Digital, where she produced work on high‑profile titles such as Fortnite Battle Royale and the Lego Fortnite crossover. Aysu Kutbay has taken on the role of Product Manager at Grand Games, after serving in the same capacity at Rollic, where she helped steer several successful mobile releases.
David Bailey is back at Games Workshop, now serving 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 has now returned to help drive new licensing initiatives across the Warhammer portfolio. "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 it's great to be back in the fold working alongside great people." Liana Murphy has been named Account Director for US Operations at Second Stage. Murphy previously held the dual roles of COO and Head of Public Relations at Vicariously and V Publishing, bringing extensive agency experience to her new position. Tim Coombs steps into the role of Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna.
Coombs previously worked at Xbox as Director of Brand Management until July 2026, having joined 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 departs Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming. Prior to that, Mogensen 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," 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 a Senior Producer. Rubin previously served as Senior Producer at Netflix, where he helped launch 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. Before this, Odintsov worked as User Acquisition Manager at Multicast Games and currently operates as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for various game studios. Dan Lazarides becomes Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments.
Lazarides previously held the Senior Vice President of Marketing role at Sega Europe and steps into the CMO slot following Jo Cooke’s promotion to CEO earlier this year. "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 takes the Digital Sales Manager post at Kalypso Media UK. Ionescu previously managed sales at Numskull Games and has held 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 spent four years in the same capacity at Metacore before moving to the Finnish mobile giant. Nathan Solbrandt becomes Senior Vice President of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD. He previously worked as Senior Account Executive at Motorica and served as Vice President of Business Development for the Americas at Xsolla.
Olivia Lee joins Riot Games as Internal Events Producer, after previously serving as Associate Producer for internal events and programs within the same studio. Ciarah Pritchard is now Account Coordinator at Xsolla, following a stint 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. She left in 2019 for a role as Head of Product and Studio Integrated Communications at Electronic Arts. "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 named Social Media Marketing Manager for Nintendo of America, after previously managing social channels for Alaska Airlines. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as Narrative Designer. Duffield previously held the Senior Narrative Designer title at Series Entertainment, where she helped shape storylines for several indie titles. Yogscast Games, the UK‑based publisher, announces three new hires: Charlotte Willis, Robin Mawhinney, and Charlotte Pang.
Willis steps in as PR and Influencer Manager, having previously worked at Diva Agency as Creator and Community Director. Mawhinney becomes Production Coordinator after a junior producer role at Atelier 11, while Pang joins as Publishing Coordinator, bringing experience as a 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.
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 Jars AI, an interactive AI platform, in 2023 and secured $3.5 million in funding from Google and other investors. "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," Holm remarked. Sathvik Sudireddy becomes Marketing Manager, Live Services at Rockstar Games. He previously worked as Product Manager on Call of Duty at Activision and started his career with a business‑development internship at Rockstar.
Joe Chard has been appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games. Chard brings a wealth of 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 games industry, where talent moves across studios, publishers, and tech firms, bringing fresh perspectives and expertise to new challenges.
The cross‑pollination of experience—from AAA console publishers to mobile‑first studios, from streaming platforms to AI research—continues to drive innovation and shape the future of interactive entertainment.