Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions, and departures across the games sector can be a real challenge. That’s why we publish periodic round‑ups that gather all the noteworthy moves in one place.
If you know of a new appointment or a transition that belongs in this list, please forward the name, new title, new company, plus the previous role and employer to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. One of the headline changes 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 first joined Epic in 2017 as a developer support manager, later becoming 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.
"Ben is a true industry heavyweight whose reputation and technical authority speak for themselves," said CodeDev Group founder Myke Parrot. "He understands game development from every angle – from writing engine code to managing developer relations on the world’s biggest platforms. 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; the studio’s debut title, The Plucky Squire, launched in September 2024.
His return signals a renewed focus on artistic direction within the Pokémon brand. Respawn Entertainment announced the promotion of Billy King to lead concept artist. King previously headed concept art at ZeniMax Online Studios and served as senior concept artist for Amazon Games, bringing a wealth of experience in crafting visual identities for large‑scale titles. Team17 added Sam Duncombe as brand marketing manager.
Duncombe comes from Warner Bros. Discovery, where he managed product initiatives spanning games and film, and will now steer Team17’s brand strategy. Loom Games welcomed Cansu Karahan Can as people and culture manager.
Can’s prior role was a similar position at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion), where she oversaw talent development and organisational culture. Fellow Traveler promoted Christopher Wulf to senior business development manager. Wulf joined the company in 2021 after serving as senior business and event manager for The Triple‑i Initiative.
Wizards of the Coast named Julie Derhak a producer for Dungeons & Dragons. Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, contributing to Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego Fortnite collaboration, before moving to the tabletop giant.
Mojang Studios appointed Alvaro Menéndez as international social lead. Menéndez previously worked 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 began his Frontier career in 2022 as a graduate audio designer and has since progressed to a senior role, shaping the soundscapes of the studio’s upcoming releases.
After seven years at Epic Games, Nate Nanzer departed to become executive vice‑president, head of commercial & marketing at Paramount Games. Nanzer’s most recent Epic role was senior vice‑president of partnerships and monetisation. He praised his time at Epic and expressed excitement about helping Paramount define its next‑generation entertainment strategy.
Amazon Gaming announced Julia Gutnik as head of media. 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 functions.
She described her move back to entertainment as a return to her roots. Studio MDHR added 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.
Grand Games hired Aysu Kutbay as product manager; Kutbay previously managed products at Rollic. David Bailey returned to Games Workshop as lead commercial manager – licensing.
Bailey originally joined Games Workshop in 2019, left in 2021 for a director role at Sumo Digital, and now looks forward to supporting the expansive Warhammer franchise. Second Stage named Liana Murphy account director for US operations.
Murphy most recently held dual roles as COO and head of public relations at Vicariously and V Publishing. Amazon Luna appointed Tim Coombs as head of brand marketing. Coombs moved from Xbox, where he served as director of brand management until July 2026, and previously 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. He spent 23 years at Games Workshop, most recently overseeing business development and consumer product licensing, and reflected on his work with iconic brands such as Warhammer, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, and Transformers.
Blizzard Entertainment welcomed Ryan Rubin as senior producer. Rubin’s prior experience includes senior producer roles at Netflix (where he oversaw mobile titles Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset) and five years at Riot Games on League of Legends creative development.
Battlestate Games named Andrey Odintsov head of marketing. Odintsov previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now operates as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant. Frontier Developments promoted Dan Lazarides to chief marketing officer.
Lazarides comes from Sega Europe, where he was senior vice‑president of marketing, and replaces Jo Cooke, who became Frontier’s CEO in January. Cooke praised Lazarides for his deep IP experience and his focus on a player‑first strategy.
Kalypso Media UK hired Karen Ionescu as digital sales manager. Ionescu’s résumé includes sales leadership at Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games, and she will now drive Kalypso’s digital distribution efforts. Swipe Right promoted Hannah Barrett to senior account executive. Barrett joined the esports and gaming communications agency in December 2025 as an account executive and has quickly moved up the ranks.
Supercell appointed Anni Pyy as contract manager, after four years in the same capacity at Metacore. Fintech platform ZBD named Nathan Solbrandt senior vice‑president of business development.
Solbrandt previously worked as senior account executive at Motorica and vice‑president of business development for the Americas at Xsolla. Riot Games added Olivia Lee as internal events producer; Lee previously coordinated internal programs and events for the studio. Xsolla hired Ciarah Pritchard as account coordinator. Pritchard’s earlier role was account performance manager at Playback Rewards.
Bethesda welcomed back Tracey Thompson as vice‑president of communications. Thompson originally joined Bethesda in 2009, left in 2019 for EA, and now returns to support the studio’s flagship franchises.
Nintendo of America appointed Maddie Richter as social media marketing manager. Richter previously managed social media for Alaska Airlines.
Yotta Games added Dana Duffield as narrative designer; Duffield’s most recent position was senior narrative designer 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 prior experience as producer, animator and artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, and as an instructor at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone).
Roblox’s Foundation AI team welcomed Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger to support the mobile‑first AI creation tool Build in New Zealand. Holm and Kruger co‑founded Jars AI in 2023, raising $3.5 million from Google and other investors, and now aim to push AI‑driven entertainment forward at Roblox. 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 at Rockstar.
Netflix Games appointed Joe Chard as lead product manager. Chard’s background includes a six‑year tenure as vice‑president, studio general manager, and head of product at Jam City, as well as senior roles at Disney and Warner Bros. The breadth of experience across these appointments underscores the dynamic nature of talent movement within the interactive entertainment industry.