Keeping up with the constant flow of personnel changes in the video‑game sector can be a real challenge, which is why we publish periodic round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy moves. If your studio has recent hires, promotions, or departures that belong in this list, please forward the individual's name, new title, and company, as well as their previous role and employer, 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 joined Epic in 2017 as a developer support manager before advancing to 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. "Ben is a genuine heavyweight in our field; his reputation and technical credibility speak for themselves," said CodeDev Group founder and CEO Myke Parrot. "He understands game creation from the low‑level engine code to high‑level developer relations on the world’s biggest platforms. Appointing Ben as CEO sends a clear market signal: whenever a title suffers a performance bottleneck on any engine, the most capable team on the planet is ready 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 released its debut title, The Plucky Squire, in September 2024. Billy King steps into the role of Lead Concept Artist at Respawn Entertainment. King previously held the same title at ZeniMax Online Studios and was Senior Concept Artist at Amazon Games, bringing a wealth of experience in crafting visual direction for large‑scale projects.
Sam Duncombe has been named Brand Marketing Manager at Team 17. Before joining the UK‑based publisher, Duncombe served as Product Manager for games and film at Warner Bros.
Discovery. Cansu Karahan Can joins Loom Games as People and Culture Manager after serving in an identical capacity at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion).
Her background in talent development and organisational health will support Loom’s growing indie studio. Christopher Wulf earned a promotion 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. Julie Derhak is now a Producer for Dungeons & Dragons at Wizards of the Coast.
She spent seven years at Epic Games, contributing to Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego‑Fortnite crossover. Alvaro Menéndez takes on the role of International Social Lead at Mojang Studios. Menéndez comes from Epic Games Madrid, where he was Senior Marketing Manager.
Linus Johnsson has been promoted to Senior Audio Designer at Frontier Developments. He originally joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer and has since progressed through the sound team.
Nate Nanzer departs Epic Games after a seven‑year tenure to become Executive Vice President, Head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games. Nanzer most recently held the title of SVP of Partnerships and Monetisation at Epic.
"The scale of ambition and vision for what comes next is incredibly exciting," Nanzer said. "I have spent my career at the intersection of games, entertainment, and fandom, and the chance to help shape Paramount's future was simply too compelling to pass up." Julia Gutnik is appointed Head of Media at Amazon Gaming.
Prior to this, she led media, social, and analytics for Kia America and spent over six years at Prime Video and Amazon Studios, where she oversaw digital and ad‑tech media. Lorna Antoniazzi becomes Art Producer at Studio MDHR, after previously producing at Roarty Digital on projects such as Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite. Aysu Kutbay is named Product Manager at Grand Games, following a stint as Product Manager at Rollic. 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 steer licensing for the Warhammer franchise. Liana Murphy takes the post of Account Director, US Operations at Second Stage.
She most recently acted as COO and Head of Public Relations at Vicariously and V Publishing. Tim Coombs has been appointed Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox (2020‑2026) and held product marketing leadership positions 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. Earlier, he spent 23 years at Games Workshop, culminating as Head of Business Development and Consumer Product Licensing. Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment as Senior Producer.
Rubin’s prior experience includes senior production roles at Netflix (where he shipped mobile titles Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset) and a five‑year tenure at Riot Games working on League of Legends creative development. Andrey Odintsov is now Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games.
He previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and currently works as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant. Dan Lazarides becomes Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments, succeeding Jo Cooke after her promotion to CEO. Lazarides formerly served as Senior Vice President of Marketing at Sega Europe. Karen Ionescu is appointed Digital Sales Manager at Kalypso Media UK, bringing prior sales leadership from Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games.
Hannah Barrett has been 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 previously held the same role at Metacore for four years. Nathan Solbrandt steps into the role of SVP of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD, after senior account work at Motorica and a VP position at Xsolla for the Americas.
Olivia Lee becomes Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, having earlier served as Associate Producer for internal events and programs. Ciarah Pritchard is appointed Account Coordinator at Xsolla, after working as Account Performance Manager at Playback Rewards.
Tracey Thompson returns to Bethesda as Vice President of Communications. Thompson originally joined Bethesda in 2009, left for EA in 2019, and now resumes her role overseeing communications for some of the industry’s most iconic franchises. Maddie Richter takes the role of Social Media Marketing Manager at Nintendo of America, after a stint as Social Media Manager at Alaska Airlines. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as Narrative Designer, following senior narrative work 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, former Producer/Animator/Artist at Team Gramps and Queensguard, and educator at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone). Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger have joined 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.
Sathvik Sudireddy becomes Marketing Manager, Live Services at Rockstar Games, after product management work on Call of Duty at Activision. Joe Chard is appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games, following senior leadership roles at Jam City, The Walt Disney Company, and Warner Bros. Entertainment.