Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and role changes across the gaming sector can be a real challenge, which is why we put together periodic round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy moves. If you know of a colleague who has taken on a new position or made a career transition that belongs in this list, please forward the individual's name, new title, new employer, as well as their previous role and company 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 the development of strategic alliances and revenue‑generation initiatives.
"The scale of the ambition and vision here for what's next is incredibly exciting," Nanzer said in a 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 also expressed gratitude toward 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 appointed Head of Media for Amazon Gaming. Prior to this, she 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 served as head of digital and ad‑tech media.
"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 explained, highlighting her enthusiasm for re‑entering the gaming space. Lorna Antoniazzi joins Studio MDHR as an Art Producer.
She previously worked as a producer at Roarty Digital, contributing to high‑profile projects such as Fortnite Battle Royale and the Lego Fortnite collaboration, where she helped coordinate artistic pipelines and cross‑functional teams. Aysu Kutbay has taken on the role of Product Manager at Grand Games, after serving in the same capacity at Rollic, where she oversaw product strategy and live‑ops for several mobile titles.
David Bailey is back at Games Workshop, this time as Lead Commercial Manager – Licensing. Bailey originally joined the company in 2019 as Senior Licensing Manager, left in 2021 to become Director of Business Affairs at Sumo Digital, and now returns to help steer 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," 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 named Account Director for U.S. Operations at Second Stage. Murphy previously held dual roles as Chief Operating Officer and Head of Public Relations at Vicariously and V Publishing, where she managed agency‑level client relationships and oversaw PR strategy for multiple gaming brands.
Tim Coombs steps into the position of Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. Before this appointment, Coombs served as Director of Brand Management at Xbox until July 2026, having joined Microsoft in 2020 as Senior Manager for Brand Strategy. Earlier in his career, he was Product Marketing Manager for Amazon Lumberyard in 2017 and later Senior Product Marketing Manager and Team Lead for Amazon Game Tech until April 2020.
Erik Mogensen has exited Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming. Prior to 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.
"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 worked at Netflix, where he served as Senior Producer on two mobile titles—Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset. He also spent five years at Riot Games, contributing to creative development for the League of Legends franchise.
Andrey Odintsov has been appointed Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games. His 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 projects.
Dan Lazarides becomes Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments. Lazarides previously held the role of Senior Vice President of Marketing at Sega Europe and succeeded Jo Cooke after she was promoted to CEO of Frontier in January. "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 has been named Digital Sales Manager for Kalypso Media UK. Ionescu's résumé includes roles as Sales Manager at Numskull Games and positions 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 earned a promotion to Senior Account Executive at esports and gaming communications agency Swipe Right, after joining as an Account Executive in December 2025. Supercell appointed Anni Pyy as Contract Manager. Pyy previously spent four years in the same capacity at Metacore, where she managed licensing agreements and third‑party contracts.
Nathan Solbrandt takes on the role of Senior Vice President of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD. His prior experience includes senior account work at Motorica and a Vice President position overseeing business development for the Americas at Xsolla. Olivia Lee becomes Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, having previously served as Associate Producer for internal events and programs, where she coordinated large‑scale employee gatherings and culture‑building initiatives.
Ciarah Pritchard joins Xsolla as Account Coordinator, after working as an Account Performance Manager at Playback Rewards, where she optimized client KPIs and 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.
She left in 2019 for Electronic Arts, where she led product and studio integrated communications. "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 appointed Social Media Marketing Manager for Nintendo of America, after serving as Social Media Manager at Alaska Airlines, where she led audience growth and content strategy. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as a Narrative Designer. Duffield previously held the title of Senior Narrative Designer at Series Entertainment, crafting storylines and character arcs for mobile and PC titles.
The UK publisher Yogscast Games announced 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 past experience as Producer, Animator, and Artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, and as an instructor at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone). Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger have joined Roblox's Foundation AI team to support the platform's mobile‑first AI creation tool, Build, in New Zealand. The duo co‑founded Jars AI in 2023, an interactive AI platform that raised $3.5 million 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 for Live Services at Rockstar Games. He previously served as Product Manager on Call of Duty at Activision after an internship in business development at the same studio.
Joe Chard has been named Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games. Chard's background includes 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, promotions, and returns illustrate the dynamic nature of talent movement within the gaming ecosystem, highlighting how experience in related industries—automotive, fintech, media, and AI—continues to flow back into game development and publishing, enriching the sector with fresh perspectives and cross‑disciplinary expertise.