Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions, and departures in the video‑game sector can be a daunting task. To make it easier for readers and industry insiders, we publish periodic round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy personnel moves each month. If you know of a change that belongs in this list—whether it’s a new appointment, a transition to a different role, or a notable exit—please email the relevant details (name, new position, new company, and previous role/company) to newhires@gamesindustry.biz.
One of the headline announcements this month is the appointment of Ben Board as chief executive officer of The Performance Guys, the optimisation arm of CodeDev Group. Board is a veteran of the industry with a résumé that reads like a history of modern game development. He first joined Epic Games in 2017 as a developer support manager, later advancing to business development director for the Epic Game Store and Unreal Engine. Prior to his Epic tenure, Board held senior leadership positions at classic studios such as Bullfrog Productions, Lionhead Studios, and BossAlien, giving him a well‑rounded perspective on both legacy and cutting‑edge technology.
"Ben is a true industry heavy‑hitter whose reputation and technical authority speak for themselves," said CodeDev Group CEO Myke Parrot. "He understands game development from every angle – from coding engine scripts to managing developer relations for the world’s biggest platforms and engines. Bringing Ben in as CEO of The Performance Guys sends an unmistakable message to the market: if your game has a performance problem on any engine, we have the best team on the planet to fix it." In other news, James Turner has re‑joined The Pokémon Company International as Creative Director of Pokémon Art and Design. Turner originally left Game Freak in 2022 to co‑found All Possible Futures with Jonathan Biddle, a studio that released its debut title, The Plucky Squire, in September 2024.
His return signals a renewed focus on artistic direction for the franchise’s future releases. Respawn Entertainment announced that Billy King will take over as lead concept artist. King arrives from ZeniMax Online Studios, where he served as lead concept artist, and previously held a senior concept artist role at Amazon Games. His experience across multiple high‑profile publishers is expected to enrich Respawn’s visual development pipeline.
Team17 welcomed Sam Duncombe as brand marketing manager. Duncombe moves from Warner Bros.
Discovery, where he was product manager for games and film, and will now oversee Team17’s brand strategy and market positioning. Loom Games added Cansu Karahan Can as people and culture manager. Can transitions from a similar role at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion), bringing expertise in talent development and workplace culture to the indie studio. Fellow Traveller promoted Christopher Wulf to senior business development manager.
Wulf, who joined the company in 2021, previously worked for The Triple‑i Initiative as senior business and event manager, and his promotion reflects the firm’s growth ambitions. Wizards of the Coast appointed Julie Derhak as a producer for the Dungeons & Dragons line.
Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, contributing to Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego‑Fortnite collaboration, before moving to tabletop role‑playing games. Mojang Studios named Alvaro Menéndez its international social lead. Menéndez previously served as senior marketing manager for Epic Games in Madrid, giving him a strong background in global community engagement. Frontier Developments promoted Linus Johnsson to senior audio designer.
Johnsson, who joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer, has now progressed to a senior role, underscoring the studio’s commitment to high‑quality sound design. After a seven‑year stint at Epic Games, Nate Nanzer departed to become executive vice‑president and head of commercial & marketing at Paramount Games.
Nanzer’s most recent Epic role was SVP of partnerships and monetisation. He commented, "The scale of the ambition and vision here for what's next is incredibly exciting.
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." Amazon Gaming announced Julia Gutnik as head of media. Gutnik returns to Amazon after two years in the automotive sector, having previously overseen media, social, and analytics at Kia America and held senior digital and ad‑tech positions at Prime Video and Amazon Studios. Studio MDHR hired Lorna Antoniazzi as art producer.
Antoniazzi comes from Roarty Digital, where she produced work on Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite, bringing valuable experience in large‑scale live‑service titles. Grand Games added Aysu Kutbay as product manager, after a tenure at Rollic where she managed product pipelines for mobile games. Games Workshop welcomed back David Bailey as lead commercial manager – licensing.
Bailey originally joined the company in 2019, left in 2021 for a director role at Sumo Digital, and now returns to help steer licensing for the Warhammer universe. Second Stage appointed Liana Murphy as account director for US operations.
Murphy previously juggled the COO and head‑of‑PR roles at Vicariously and V Publishing, giving her a strong operational background. Amazon Luna named Tim Coombs head of brand marketing. Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox until July 2026 and held product marketing positions for Amazon Lumberyard and Amazon Game Tech. Erik Mogensen exited Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as senior director of business development for digital gaming.
Mogensen’s earlier 23‑year career at Games Workshop included heading business development and consumer product licensing. Blizzard Entertainment added Ryan Rubin as senior producer. Rubin’s prior experience includes senior production on Netflix mobile titles Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset, as well as five years at Riot Games working on League of Legends creative development. Battlestate Games appointed Andrey Odintsov as head of marketing.
Odintsov previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now operates as an independent growth consultant. Frontier Developments announced Dan Lazarides as chief marketing officer, succeeding Jo Cooke after her promotion to CEO. Lazarides formerly served as senior vice‑president of marketing at Sega Europe and will lead Frontier’s player‑first marketing strategy. Kalypso Media UK hired Karen Ionescu as digital sales manager.
Ionescu’s background includes sales leadership at Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games. Swipe Right promoted Hannah Barrett to senior account executive. Barrett joined the esports and gaming communications agency in December 2025 and has quickly advanced within the firm.
Supercell named Anni Pyy as contract manager, after four years in the same capacity at Metacore. Fintech platform ZBD appointed Nathan Solbrandt as senior vice‑president of business development. Solbrandt previously worked at Motorica and Xsolla, where he was VP of business development for the Americas.
Riot Games added Olivia Lee as internal events producer, following her role as associate producer for internal programs. Xsolla hired Ciarah Pritchard as account coordinator; she 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, left for EA in 2019, and now returns to oversee communications for the studio’s flagship franchises. Nintendo of America appointed Maddie Richter as social media marketing manager.
Richter transitions from a social media manager role at Alaska Airlines. Yotta Games brought on Dana Duffield as narrative designer after a senior stint at Series Entertainment. Yogscast Games announced 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 educator at Team Gramps, Queensguard, and Submarine Art School).
Roblox’s Foundation AI team added Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger 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.
Rockstar Games hired Sathvik Sudireddy as marketing manager for live services. Sudireddy previously managed product for Call of Duty at Activision after an internship in business development.
Netflix Games appointed Joe Chard as lead product manager. Chard’s background includes senior leadership roles at Jam City, The Walt Disney Company, and Warner Bros. Entertainment. These appointments, promotions, and departures illustrate the dynamic nature of the games industry, where talent moves swiftly between studios, publishers, and related entertainment sectors, shaping the future of interactive media.