Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions, and departures in the video‑game sector can be a daunting task, which is why we publish periodic round‑ups that gather all the notable moves in one place. If you know of any recent appointments or role changes that belong in this list, please forward the name, new title, new employer, and previous position and company 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 first joined Epic in 2017 as a developer support manager before moving into business development for the Epic Game Store and Unreal Engine. Earlier in his career he held senior leadership posts at Bullfrog Productions, Lionhead Studios and BossAlien, giving him a broad perspective on both classic and modern game development pipelines.
"Ben is a true industry heavy‑hitter whose reputation and technical authority speak for themselves," said CodeDev Group founder and CEO 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 re‑joined The Pokémon Company International, this time as Creative Director of Pokémon Art and Design.
Turner originally left Game Freak in 2022 to co‑found All Possible Futures with Jonathan Biddle; the studio’s debut title, The Plucky Squire, launched in September 2024 and earned praise for its whimsical art direction. His return to the Pokémon umbrella signals a renewed focus on visual storytelling across the brand’s expanding media portfolio.
Billy King has been named Lead Concept Artist at Respawn Entertainment. King previously headed concept art at ZeniMax Online Studios and served as senior concept artist for Amazon Games, where he contributed to several high‑profile titles. His experience in both AAA and live‑service environments should bolster Respawn’s creative pipeline as the studio prepares new installments for its flagship franchises. Sam Duncombe moves into the role of Brand Marketing Manager at Team17, after a stint as Product Manager – Games and Film at Warner Bros.
Discovery. In his new position, Duncombe will oversee the promotion of Team17’s diverse catalogue, ranging from indie hits to established series, and help shape the company’s brand narrative across multiple channels.
Cansu Karahan Can joins Loom Games as People and Culture Manager. Can previously performed the same function at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion), where she helped build inclusive workplace practices and talent development programs.
At Loom, she will focus on scaling the studio’s culture as it expands its roster of narrative‑driven titles. Christopher Wulf has been promoted to Senior Business Development Manager at Fellow Traveller. Wulf, who entered the firm in 2021, previously worked for The Triple‑i Initiative as Senior Business and Event Manager, bringing a wealth of partnership experience to his new responsibilities. Julie Derhak is now a Producer for Dungeons & Dragons at Wizards of the Coast.
Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, most recently on Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego Fortnite collaboration, before moving into tabletop RPG production. Her background in large‑scale live‑service games will inform the development of new D&D experiences across digital and tabletop formats.
Alvaro Menéndez takes on the role of International Social Lead at Mojang Studios. Menéndez formerly served as Senior Marketing Manager for Epic Games in Madrid, where he oversaw community initiatives for multiple global launches. At Mojang, he will steer social strategy for the Minecraft franchise across regions.
Linus Johnsson has been promoted to Senior Audio Designer at Frontier Developments. Johnsson joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer and has since contributed to the soundscapes of several of the studio’s simulation titles. His promotion reflects his growing influence on the auditory identity of Frontier’s games.
Nate Nanzer departs Epic Games after a seven‑year tenure to become Executive Vice President, Head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games. Nanzer’s most recent Epic role was SVP 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, where she managed digital and ad‑tech media strategies.
"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 previously worked at Roarty Digital, contributing to Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite, and will now help shepherd the visual production of MDHR’s upcoming projects. Aysu Kutbay becomes Product Manager at Grand Games, after serving in the same capacity at Rollic.
Kutbay will oversee the lifecycle of Grand Games’ mobile portfolio, focusing on user acquisition and retention strategies. 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 now comes back to help expand the Warhammer licensing 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 is appointed Account Director, US Operations at Second Stage. Murphy previously held simultaneous COO and Head of PR roles at Vicariously and V Publishing, bringing extensive operational and communications expertise to her new post. Tim Coombs becomes Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna.
Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox until July 2026, after joining the console maker in 2020 as Senior Manager for Brand Strategy. Earlier, he led product marketing for Amazon Lumberyard (2017) and Amazon Game Tech (until 2020). Erik Mogensen exits Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as Senior Director of Business Development for Digital Gaming.
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.
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 IP.
Andrey Odintsov is appointed Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games. Odintsov previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now operates as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for the gaming sector. Dan Lazarides steps into the role of Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments.
Lazarides formerly served as Senior Vice President of Marketing at Sega Europe and succeeded Jo Cooke after her promotion to Frontier CEO in January. "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," Cooke said. Karen Ionescu becomes Digital Sales Manager at Kalypso Media UK. Ionescu previously managed sales at Numskull Games and has held positions at Nintendo and Rising Star Games.
"We're delighted to welcome Karen to Kalypso Media UK," said Managing Director Andrew Johnson. 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 names Anni Pyy as Contract Manager.
Pyy spent four years in the same role at Metacore before moving to the Finnish developer. Nathan Solbrandt becomes SVP of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD. Solbrandt previously worked as Senior Account Executive at Motorica and served as Vice President of Business Development for the Americas at Xsolla. Olivia Lee is hired as Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, after previously serving as Associate Producer for internal events and programs.
Ciarah Pritchard joins Xsolla as Account Coordinator, having earlier worked as 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 in 2019 for EA, and now comes back to support the studio’s flagship franchises. Maddie Richter becomes 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 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 (previously Junior Producer at Atelier 11), and Charlotte Pang as Publishing Coordinator (formerly Producer, Animator and Artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, and instructor 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. "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 joins Rockstar Games as Marketing Manager, Live Services, after serving as Product Manager on Call of Duty at Activision and completing a business‑development internship at Rockstar. Joe Chard is appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games.
Chard previously held senior roles at Jam City (VP, Studio GM, Head of Product), The Walt Disney Company, and Warner Bros. Entertainment, bringing extensive product leadership to Netflix’s gaming division.
These movements illustrate the dynamic nature of talent flow across the industry, with seasoned veterans shifting between major publishers, studios, and emerging platforms, while fresh faces take on leadership roles that will shape the next generation of interactive entertainment.