Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and promotions in the games sector can be a real challenge, which is why we publish periodic round‑ups that capture the most notable movements. If you know of any new appointments or role changes that belong in this list, please forward the name, new position, company, and previous role to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Former Epic Games executive Ben Board has been installed as chief executive officer of The Performance Guys, the optimisation arm of CodeDev Group.
Board joined Epic in 2017 as a developer support manager, later taking on the role of business development director for the Epic Game Store and Unreal Engine. His résumé also includes senior leadership positions at Bullfrog Productions, Lionhead Studios, and BossAlien. "Ben is a true industry heavy‑hitter whose reputation and technical authority speak for themselves," said CodeDev Group founder Myke Parrot. "He understands game development from every angle – from writing 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." James Turner has rejoined The Pokémon Company International, this time as creative director of Pokémon Art and Design. Turner left Game Freak in 2022 to co‑found All Possible Futures with Jonathan Biddle; the studio released its debut title, The Plucky Squire, in September 2024. His return marks a homecoming to the brand he helped shape for years.
Billy King steps into the role of lead concept artist at Respawn Entertainment. King previously led concept teams at ZeniMax Online Studios and served as senior concept artist for Amazon Games, bringing a wealth of experience in visual development for large‑scale titles. Sam Duncombe is now brand marketing manager at Team17, after a stint as product manager for games and film at Warner Bros. Discovery.
In his new position, Duncombe will oversee brand strategy and marketing initiatives across Team17’s diverse portfolio. Cansu Karahan Can joins Loom Games as people and culture manager, having previously held the same title at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion).
She will be responsible for talent development, workplace culture, and employee engagement. Christopher Wulf has been promoted to senior business development manager at Fellow Traveller. Wulf, who entered the company in 2021, previously worked for The Triple‑i Initiative as senior business and event manager. Julie Derhak becomes a producer for Dungeons & Dragons at Wizards of the Coast.
Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, contributing to Fortnite Tech Art and Lego Fortnite, before moving to the tabletop giant. Alvaro Menéndez takes on the role of international social lead at Mojang Studios. Before this, he was senior marketing manager for Epic Games in Madrid, where he oversaw global social campaigns.
Linus Johnsson is promoted to senior audio designer at Frontier Developments. Johnsson joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer and has progressed to a senior position, shaping the soundscapes of upcoming titles. Nate Nanzer departs Epic Games after a seven‑year tenure to become executive vice‑president, head of commercial & marketing at Paramount Games. At Epic, Nanzer most recently served 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." Julia Gutnik is appointed head of media at Amazon Gaming. Gutnik previously led media, social, and analytics for Kia America and spent over six years at Prime Video and Amazon Studios, heading 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," she explained.
Lorna Antoniazzi becomes art producer at Studio MDHR, after producing at Roarty Digital where she worked on Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite. Aysu Kutbay is named product manager at Grand Games, having previously held the same title at Rollic. David Bailey returns to Games Workshop as lead commercial manager – licensing.
Bailey first joined Games Workshop in 2019 as senior licensing manager, left in 2021 for a director role at Sumo Digital, and now comes back to help drive new licensing opportunities across 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 said. Liana Murphy takes the post of account director, US operations at Second Stage, after serving as COO and head of public relations at Vicariously and V Publishing. Tim Coombs becomes head of brand marketing for Amazon Luna.
Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox until July 2026 and held product marketing roles 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.
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. Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment as senior producer. Rubin previously produced two shipped mobile titles at 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 is appointed head of marketing at Battlestate Games. He previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now works as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant.
Dan Lazarides becomes chief marketing officer at Frontier Developments, after serving as senior vice‑president of marketing at Sega Europe. He replaces Jo Cooke, who moved to Frontier’s CEO role in January. "We are delighted to welcome Dan to Frontier, who brings a wealth of experience on some of the industry's largest IP," said CEO Jo Cooke.
Karen Ionescu is named digital sales manager at Kalypso Media UK, bringing prior experience from Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games. Managing director Andrew Johnson praised her extensive commercial background.
Hannah Barrett is 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 previously held the same role at Metacore for four years.
Nathan Solbrandt becomes senior vice‑president of business development at fintech platform ZBD, after senior roles at Motorica and Xsolla. Olivia Lee is hired as internal events producer at Riot Games, having earlier worked as associate producer for internal events and programs.
Ciarah Pritchard joins Xsolla as account coordinator, after serving as account performance manager at Playback Rewards. Tracey Thompson returns to Bethesda as vice‑president of communications. Thompson originally joined Bethesda in 2009, left in 2019 for EA, and now comes back to support iconic franchises across Bethesda and Xbox.
Maddie Richter is appointed social media marketing manager at Nintendo of America, after a stint as social media manager for Alaska Airlines. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as narrative designer, following a senior narrative designer role 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 (previously producer, animator, and artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, and instructor at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone).
Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger join 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. "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 said.
Sathvik Sudireddy becomes marketing manager, live services at Rockstar Games, after product management work on Call of Duty at Activision and a business development internship at Rockstar. Joe Chard is appointed lead product manager at Netflix Games, following senior leadership positions at Jam City, The Walt Disney Company, and Warner Bros.
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