Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions, and departures in the video‑game sector can be a real challenge. To make it easier for industry insiders and enthusiasts alike, we publish regular round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy personnel moves.
If your organization has recent appointments or transitions that belong in this list, please forward the name, new title, new company, and previous role 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 first 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, 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 Myke Parrot. "He understands game development from every angle – from writing engine scripts to managing developer relations for the world’s biggest platforms. Bringing Ben in as CEO sends an unmistakable message: if your game suffers from performance issues on any engine, we have the best team on the planet to fix it." 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’s debut title, The Plucky Squire, launched in September 2024 and earned praise for its inventive mechanics and charming aesthetic. His return to the Pokémon franchise signals a renewed focus on artistic direction and brand consistency across the global franchise. Respawn Entertainment has also bolstered its creative department by naming Billy King its new lead concept artist.
King previously headed concept work at ZeniMax Online Studios and served as senior concept artist for Amazon Games, where he contributed to several high‑profile live‑service projects. His experience with large‑scale world‑building is expected to enhance Respawn’s upcoming titles. Team17 welcomed Sam Duncombe as brand marketing manager. Duncombe comes from a product‑management background at Warner Bros.
Discovery, where he oversaw cross‑media initiatives that blended gaming and film properties. At Team17, he will steer brand strategy for the studio’s eclectic portfolio of indie and mid‑core releases. Loom Games announced the hiring of Cansu Karahan Can as people‑and‑culture manager. Can previously performed the same role at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion), focusing on talent development and organisational health in fast‑growing studios.
Her expertise will support Loom’s expansion plans and its commitment to a healthy workplace culture. Fellow Traveler promoted Christopher Wulf to senior business‑development manager.
Wulf, who joined the firm in 2021, previously worked for The Triple‑i Initiative as senior business and event manager, bringing a strong network of industry contacts to his new role. Wizards of the Coast named Julie Derhak as a producer for Dungeons & Dragons.
Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, where she contributed to Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego‑Fortnite collaboration, gaining valuable experience in large‑scale live‑service production. Mojang Studios appointed Alvaro Menéndez as international social lead.
Menéndez’s most recent position was senior marketing manager for Epic Games’ Madrid office, where he oversaw global community campaigns for flagship titles. Frontier Developments promoted Linus Johnsson to senior audio designer.
Johnsson began his career at Frontier as a graduate audio designer in 2022 and has since worked on sound design for several of the studio’s simulation titles, earning recognition for his immersive audio implementations. After a seven‑year tenure at Epic Games, Nate Nanzer departed to become executive vice‑president and head of commercial & marketing at Paramount Games.
Nanzer’s last role at Epic was senior vice‑president of partnerships and monetisation. He said, "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." Amazon Gaming promoted Julia Gutnik to 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 headed digital and ad‑tech media initiatives. She remarked, "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." Studio MDHR added Lorna Antoniazzi as art producer. Antoniazzi’s prior experience includes a producer role at Roarty Digital, where she contributed to Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite projects.
Grand Games hired Aysu Kutbay as product manager; Kutbay previously managed products at Rollic, focusing on mobile‑first titles. Games Workshop welcomed back David Bailey as lead commercial manager – licensing. Bailey originally joined the company in 2019 as senior licensing manager, left in 2021 for a director role at Sumo Digital, and now returns to help steer licensing for the Warhammer universe.
Second Stage appointed Liana Murphy as account director for US operations. Murphy most recently served as COO and head of public relations at Vicariously and V Publishing. Amazon Luna announced Tim Coombs as head of brand marketing.
Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox until July 2026 and held product‑marketing roles 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.
Mogensen’s prior 23‑year stint at Games Workshop culminated in a head‑of‑business‑development and consumer‑product‑licensing role. Blizzard Entertainment added Ryan Rubin as senior producer.
Rubin’s background includes senior producer positions at Netflix (where he oversaw Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset mobile titles) and five years at Riot Games working on League of Legends creative development. Battlestate Games named Andrey Odintsov head of marketing. Odintsov previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now consults independently on growth and go‑to‑market strategies for games. Frontier Developments appointed 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. Frontier CEO Jo Cooke praised his arrival, noting that his leadership will reinforce the studio’s player‑first strategy and community focus. Kalypso Media UK hired Karen Ionescu as digital sales manager. Ionescu brings experience from Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games, and will oversee both retail and digital sales channels.
Swipe Right promoted Hannah Barrett to senior account executive. Barrett joined the esports and gaming communications agency in December 2025 as an account executive. Supercell named Anni Pyy as contract manager; Pyy previously held the same role at Metacore for four years.
Fintech platform ZBD appointed Nathan Solbrandt as senior vice‑president of business development. Solbrandt’s earlier roles include 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, after serving as associate producer for internal events and programs. Xsolla hired Ciarah Pritchard as account coordinator; she previously worked as an account performance manager at Playback Rewards.
Bethesda welcomed back Tracey Thompson as vice‑president of communications. Thompson originally joined Bethesda in 2009, later moving to Electronic Arts in 2019, and now returns to help shape messaging for some of the industry’s most iconic 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 prior role 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 past 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. The duo co‑founded Jars AI in 2023 and raised $3.5 million from Google and other investors. Rockstar Games hired Sathvik Sudireddy as marketing manager for live services. Sudireddy previously served as product manager on Call of Duty at Activision.
Netflix Games appointed Joe Chard as lead product manager. Chard’s background includes senior leadership roles at Jam City, The Walt Disney Company, and Warner Bros. Entertainment.