Industry Moves: August 2026 – Paramount Games Names Nate Nanzer EVP of Commercial & Marketing

Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and promotions in the video‑game sector can be a challenge, which is why we publish periodic round‑ups of the most noteworthy personnel changes. If you know of a move that belongs in this list, please forward the name, new title, new company, and previous role to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Nate Nanzer is leaving Epic Games after a seven‑year stint to become Executive Vice President and head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games.

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 that he is deeply grateful to his colleagues at Epic and proud of the work they accomplished together, promising to cheer the team from the sidelines.

Julia Gutnik has been named Head of Media for Amazon Gaming. Gutnik previously led media, social, and analytics for Kia America, and before that spent more than six years at Prime Video and Amazon Studios, where she headed 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 produced work on Fortnite Battle Royale and the Lego‑Fortnite crossover. Aysu Kutbay is now Product Manager at Grand Games, after serving in the same capacity at Rollic.

David Bailey returns to Games Workshop as Lead Commercial Manager – Licensing. Bailey first joined the company in 2019 as Senior Licensing Manager, left in 2021 for a director role at Sumo Digital, and is now back to help steer licensing for the expansive 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 been appointed 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 takes over as Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. Coombs previously worked at Xbox, where he was Director of Brand Management until July 2026 after joining as Senior Manager for Brand Strategy in 2020. He also held product marketing roles for Amazon Lumberyard and Amazon Game Tech.

Erik Mogensen departs Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming. Before that, he 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," Mogensen reflected, naming Warhammer, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, and Transformers among his highlights.

He expressed excitement for the next chapter, wherever it may lead. Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment as Senior Producer.

Rubin previously produced two mobile titles for Netflix—Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset—and spent five years at Riot Games working on creative development for the League of Legends franchise. Andrey Odintsov becomes 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 games. Dan Lazarides is appointed Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments, succeeding Jo Cooke, who moved to the CEO role in January.

Lazarides formerly served as Senior Vice President of Marketing for Sega Europe. Frontier CEO Jo Cooke praised his arrival, noting that his experience with major IPs will sustain the studio's upward momentum and reinforce its player‑first strategy.

Karen Ionescu takes 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 welcomed her, highlighting her extensive retail and digital channel relationships. 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 adds Anni Pyy as Contract Manager; Pyy previously held the same title at Metacore for four years.

Nathan Solbrandt becomes Senior Vice President of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD, following senior account work at Motorica and a vice‑presidential stint at Xsolla for the Americas. Olivia Lee is now Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, after serving as Associate Producer for internal events and programs.

Ciarah Pritchard joins Xsolla as Account Coordinator, having been Account Performance Manager at Playback Rewards. Tracey Thompson returns to Bethesda as Vice President of Communications. Thompson originally joined Bethesda in 2009, rose to Associate VP of Communications, left for EA in 2019, and now looks forward to supporting iconic franchises alongside Bethesda and Xbox teams.

Maddie Richter becomes Social Media Marketing Manager for Nintendo of America, after a tenure as Social Media Manager at Alaska Airlines. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as Narrative Designer, previously senior narrative designer at Series Entertainment. 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 (formerly Junior Producer at Atelier 11), and Charlotte Pang as Publishing Coordinator (with past roles 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 been added to Roblox's Foundation AI team to support the mobile‑first AI creation tool Build in New Zealand.

The duo co‑founded Jars AI in 2023 and raised $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 product management work on Call of Duty at Activision and an internship in business development at Rockstar. Joe Chard is appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games.

Chard previously spent six years at Jam City as Vice President, Studio General Manager, and Head of Product, and also held senior gaming positions at The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros. Entertainment.