Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions, and departures in the video‑game sector can be a real challenge. That’s why we publish periodic round‑ups that gather all the noteworthy personnel moves in one place.
If your studio has recent appointments or internal shifts that belong in this list, please forward the name, new title, new company, and previous role/company to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. One of the headline announcements this month is the appointment of former Epic Games executive Ben Board as chief executive officer of The Performance Guys, the optimisation arm of CodeDev Group. Board’s résumé includes a stint as business‑development director for the Epic Game Store and Unreal Engine, a role he stepped into after joining Epic in 2017 as a developer‑support manager. Earlier in his career he held senior positions 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 heavyweight whose reputation and technical authority speak for themselves," said Myke Parrot, CEO of CodeDev Group. "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." In other news, James Turner has re‑joined The Pokémon Company International 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’s debut title, The Plucky Squire, launched in September 2024 and earned praise for its inventive storytelling and hand‑drawn aesthetic. His return to Pokémon signals a renewed focus on artistic direction and brand consistency across the franchise’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 a range of high‑profile titles. His experience in crafting compelling visual narratives will bolster Respawn’s upcoming projects, which are expected to push the boundaries of sci‑fi and action‑adventure design. Team17 welcomes Sam Duncombe as Brand Marketing Manager. Duncombe arrives from Warner Bros.
Discovery, where he oversaw product‑management for both games and film properties. His cross‑media expertise is expected to enhance Team17’s brand positioning as it expands into new platforms and publishing ventures. Loom Games has added Cansu Karahan Can as People and Culture Manager.
Can previously performed the same function at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion), where she helped shape employee experience programs and diversity initiatives. At Loom, she will be tasked with scaling the studio’s talent strategy as the company grows its indie portfolio. Christopher Wulf has been promoted to Senior Business Development Manager at Fellow Traveler.
Wulf, who joined 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 role. Julie Derhak moves to Wizards of the Coast as a Producer for Dungeons & Dragons.
Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, contributing to Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego Fortnite collaboration, and now brings her production chops to the tabletop‑gaming giant. Alvaro Menéndez takes on the role of International Social Lead at Mojang Studios. Menéndez previously served as Senior Marketing Manager for Epic Games in Madrid, where he oversaw global community campaigns for titles such as Fortnite and Rocket League. Frontier Developments promotes Linus Johnsson to Senior Audio Designer.
Johnsson, who joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer, has since become a key voice in the studio’s sound‑design pipeline, working on atmospheric scores and interactive audio systems. After a seven‑year tenure at Epic Games, Nate Nanzer departs to become Executive Vice President, Head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games. Nanzer’s most recent Epic role was SVP of Partnerships and Monetisation.
He remarked, "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." 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 as head of digital and ad‑tech media. She said, "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." Lorna Antoniazzi joins Studio MDHR as Art Producer. Antoniazzi came from Roarty Digital, where she contributed to Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite, bringing valuable experience in managing art pipelines for large‑scale live‑service games. Aysu Kutbay becomes Product Manager at Grand Games, after previously holding the same title at Rollic.
Her background in mobile‑game product strategy will help Grand Games expand its portfolio of casual titles. 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 says, "It's a privilege to return to the vast and evergreen Warhammer universes to help spearhead new business for licensing here. It's an incredible opportunity and it's great to be back in the fold working alongside great people." Liana Murphy is named Account Director, US Operations at Second Stage. Murphy most recently served as COO and Head of PR at Vicariously and V Publishing, where she oversaw multi‑channel communications for a range of indie developers.
Tim Coombs takes the helm as Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox until July 2026, after joining Microsoft in 2020 as Senior Manager for brand strategy.
Earlier, he was product marketing manager for Amazon Lumberyard (2017) and senior product marketing manager for 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’s prior 23‑year stint at Games Workshop culminated in the role of Head of Business Development and Consumer Product Licensing.
He reflected, "It's not lost on me how special it's been to have worked on, and for, my favourite brands. 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 Senior Producer. Rubin previously produced two shipped mobile titles for Netflix—Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset—and spent five years at Riot Games developing creative content for the League of Legends IP. Andrey Odintsov becomes Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games.
Odintsov previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now works as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for various studios. Dan Lazarides is appointed Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments. Lazarides formerly held the SVP of Marketing role at Sega Europe and succeeds Jo Cooke, who moved to Frontier’s CEO position in January.
Cooke praised him, stating, "We are delighted to welcome Dan to Frontier, who brings with him a wealth of experience on some of the industry's largest IP. 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 joins Kalypso Media UK as Digital Sales Manager. Ionescu previously worked as Sales Manager at Numskull Games and has held roles at Nintendo and Rising Star Games. Managing Director Andrew Johnson commented, "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 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 capacity at Metacore before moving to the Finnish giant.
Nathan Solbrandt becomes SVP of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD. Solbrandt previously worked as Senior Account Executive at Motorica and was Vice President of Business Development for the Americas at Xsolla. Olivia Lee is appointed Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, following a role 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 as Director of Publications, later becoming Associate VP of Communications before leaving in 2019 for EA. She said, "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." Maddie Richter becomes Social Media Marketing Manager at Nintendo of America, after previously managing social media for Alaska Airlines. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as Narrative Designer, coming from a senior narrative designer role at Series Entertainment. Yogscast Games announces 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, who has experience as a producer, animator, and artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, and has taught game design, animation, and coding 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, raising $3.5 million from Google and other investors. Holm explained, "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 becomes Marketing Manager, Live Services at Rockstar Games. Sudireddy previously served as Product Manager on Call of Duty at Activision after an internship in business development at the developer.
Joe Chard is appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games. Chard previously held the titles of Vice President, Studio General Manager, and Head of Product at Jam City for six years, and also occupied senior roles at The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros. Entertainment.
These appointments, promotions, and departures illustrate the fluid nature of talent movement within the gaming ecosystem, where experience across platforms, engines, and media formats continues to shape the industry's evolution.