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 appointments or role changes that belong in this list, please forward the individual's name, new position, new employer, and previous role 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, later advancing to business development director for the Epic Game Store and Unreal Engine. His résumé also includes senior leadership stints at Bullfrog Productions, Lionhead Studios, and BossAlien, giving him a breadth of experience across both classic and modern development pipelines. "Ben is a genuine heavyweight in the industry; his reputation and technical credibility speak for themselves," said Myke Parrot, CEO of CodeDev Group. "He has seen game creation from every angle – from writing engine scripts to shepherding developer relations on the world’s largest platforms.
Appointing Ben as CEO sends a crystal‑clear signal: if a title suffers from performance issues on any engine, we have the most capable team on the planet to resolve them." In other news, James Turner has rejoined 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; the studio launched its debut title, The Plucky Squire, in September 2024. His return marks a homecoming to the franchise that helped launch his career.
Billy King has been named Lead Concept Artist at Respawn Entertainment. King previously held the same title at ZeniMax Online Studios and served as Senior Concept Artist for Amazon Games, bringing a wealth of experience in high‑profile IP visual development.
Team17 welcomes Sam Duncombe as Brand Marketing Manager. Duncombe comes from Warner Bros.
Discovery, where he managed product initiatives across games and film, adding a cross‑media perspective to Team17’s branding efforts. Loom Games adds Cansu Karahan Can as People and Culture Manager. Can’s prior role was People and Culture Manager at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion), giving her a solid background in fostering inclusive studio environments. At Fellow Traveler, Christopher Wulf has been promoted to Senior Business Development Manager.
Since joining the firm in 2021, Wulf has built on his earlier experience as Senior Business and Event Manager for The Triple‑i Initiative. Wizards of the Coast appoints Julie Derhak as a Producer for Dungeons & Dragons.
Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, contributing to Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego Fortnite collaboration, before moving into tabletop RPG production. Mojang Studios announces Alvaro Menéndez as International Social Lead.
Menéndez previously served as Senior Marketing Manager for Epic Games in Madrid, where he oversaw global community initiatives. Frontier Developments promotes Linus Johnsson to Senior Audio Designer.
Johnsson joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer and has since risen through the ranks, now shaping the soundscape for the studio’s upcoming titles. After seven years at Epic Games, Nate Nanzer departs to become EVP, Head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games.
Nanzer’s most recent Epic role was SVP of Partnerships and Monetisation. "The ambition and vision for what comes next at Paramount are incredibly exciting," he said, adding that his career has always sat at the intersection of games, entertainment, and fandom. Amazon Gaming names Julia Gutnik Head of Media. 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 AdTech Media.
"Returning to my entertainment roots feels like the natural next step after two years in the auto sector," she remarked. Studio MDHR brings on Lorna Antoniazzi as Art Producer. Antoniazzi’s background includes a producer role at Roarty Digital, where she contributed to Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite projects. Grand Games appoints Aysu Kutbay as Product Manager, following her tenure at Rollic where she managed multiple mobile titles.
Games Workshop welcomes 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 drive new licensing opportunities across the Warhammer universe.
Second Stage adds Liana Murphy as Account Director for US Operations. Murphy previously held simultaneous COO and Head of PR positions at Vicariously and V Publishing. Amazon Luna announces Tim Coombs as Head of Brand Marketing.
Coombs most recently served as Director of Brand Management at Xbox, after joining the console maker in 2020 as Senior Manager for Brand Strategy. Earlier, he led product marketing 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. His 23‑year career at Games Workshop culminated as Head of Business Development and Consumer Product Licensing, working on flagship brands such as Warhammer, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, and Transformers. Blizzard Entertainment hires Ryan Rubin 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 developing creative content for the League of Legends franchise. Battlestate Games names Andrey Odintsov Head of Marketing.
Odintsov previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now works as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant. Frontier Developments appoints 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. "Dan brings a wealth of experience on some of the industry's largest IPs, and his leadership will reinforce our player‑first strategy," said CEO Jo Cooke.
Kalypso Media UK adds Karen Ionescu as Digital Sales Manager. Ionescu’s résumé includes sales leadership roles at Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games. Managing Director Andrew Johnson praised her extensive commercial network.
Swipe Right promotes Hannah Barrett to Senior Account Executive. Barrett joined the esports and gaming communications agency in December 2025 as an Account Executive before earning the promotion.
Supercell selects Anni Pyy as Contract Manager. Pyy previously spent four years in the same capacity at Metacore, overseeing contractual negotiations for mobile titles. Fintech platform ZBD appoints Nathan Solbrandt as SVP of Business Development. Solbrandt’s background includes senior account work at Motorica and a Vice‑President role for Xsolla’s Americas business development.
Riot Games adds Olivia Lee as Internal Events Producer, after serving as Associate Producer for internal programs and events. Xsolla welcomes Ciarah Pritchard as Account Coordinator. Pritchard previously worked as an Account Performance Manager at Playback Rewards.
Bethesda reinstates Tracey Thompson as VP of Communications. Thompson originally joined Bethesda in 2009, rose to Associate VP of Communications, left for EA in 2019, and now returns to help shape messaging for the studio’s iconic franchises. Nintendo of America hires Maddie Richter as Social Media Marketing Manager.
Richter previously managed social channels for Alaska Airlines, bringing a fresh perspective to Nintendo’s community outreach. Yotta Games adds narrative talent Dana Duffield as Narrative Designer. Duffield’s most recent role was Senior Narrative Designer 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 (with prior experience as producer, animator, and educator at Team Gramps, Queensguard, and Submarine Art School).
Roblox’s Foundation AI team expands with Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger, who co‑founded Jars AI in 2023 and raised $3.5 million from Google and other investors. Their mission is to advance Roblox’s mobile‑first AI creation tool, Build, in New Zealand.
Rockstar Games welcomes Sathvik Sudireddy as Marketing Manager for Live Services. Sudireddy previously managed product responsibilities for Call of Duty at Activision after an internship in business development at Rockstar. Netflix Games appoints Joe Chard as Lead Product Manager. Chard brings a robust background, having served as VP, Studio General Manager, and Head of Product at Jam City, as well as senior roles at The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros.
Entertainment.