Keeping up with the constant flow of personnel changes in the video‑game sector can be a daunting task, which is why we publish periodic round‑ups of the most noteworthy moves. If your organization has announced new hires or internal shifts that belong in this list, please forward the name, new title, company, and previous role 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, later becoming 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 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 scripts to managing developer relations for 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." 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 released its debut title, The Plucky Squire, in September 2024. His return marks a homecoming to the brand he helped shape for over a decade.
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, bringing a wealth of experience in high‑budget franchise visual development. Sam Duncombe steps into the role of brand marketing manager at Team17 after a stint as product manager for games and film at Warner Bros. Discovery.
His background in both interactive entertainment and cinematic content is expected to strengthen Team17’s cross‑media branding. Cansu Karahan Can joins Loom Games as people and culture manager, having previously held the same title at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion).
Her expertise in talent development and workplace culture will support Loom’s growing indie portfolio. Christopher Wulf receives a promotion to senior business development manager at Fellow Traveller.
Wulf, who entered the company in 2021, previously worked for The Triple‑i Initiative as senior business and event manager, giving him a solid foundation in partnership cultivation. Julie Derhak is appointed producer for Dungeons & Dragons at Wizards of the Coast.
Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, contributing to Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego‑Fortnite collaboration, experience that should translate well to tabletop‑gaming production pipelines. Alvaro Menéndez becomes international social lead at Mojang Studios. Before this, he was senior marketing manager for Epic Games in Madrid, where he oversaw global community initiatives for titles such as Fortnite and Rocket League.
Linus Johnsson advances to senior audio designer at Frontier Developments. Johnsson originally joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer and has since risen through the sound‑design ranks, contributing to the studio’s acclaimed atmospheric scores. Nate Nanzer departs Epic Games after a seven‑year tenure to assume the role of EVP, head of commercial & marketing at Paramount Games. At Epic, Nanzer most recently served as SVP of partnerships and monetisation.
"The scale of the ambition and vision here for what's next is incredibly exciting," Nanzer said. "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 takes the helm as 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. "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," she noted.
Lorna Antoniazzi is appointed art producer at Studio MDHR, after producing at Roarty Digital where she contributed to Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite. Her visual production experience aligns with MDHR’s distinctive artistic style. Aysu Kutbay becomes product manager at Grand Games, following a product‑management role at Rollic where she oversaw mobile‑first titles and live‑ops strategies.
David Bailey returns to Games Workshop as lead commercial manager – licensing. Bailey originally joined Games Workshop in 2019 as senior licensing manager, left in 2021 for 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." Liana Murphy steps into the position of account director, US operations at Second Stage, after concurrently serving as COO and head of public relations at Vicariously and V Publishing. Tim Coombs is named head of brand marketing for Amazon Luna.
Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox until July 2026 and held product‑marketing roles for Amazon Lumberyard and Amazon Game Tech, giving him deep insight into both console and cloud‑gaming branding. Erik Mogensen exits Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast after three years as senior director of business development for digital gaming.
Prior to that, he spent 23 years at Games Workshop, most recently as head of business development and consumer‑product licensing. "It's not lost on me how special it's been to have worked on, and for, my favourite brands," Mogensen reflected. Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment 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 working on creative development for the League of Legends IP. Andrey Odintsov becomes head of marketing at Battlestate Games after serving as user‑acquisition manager at Multicast Games and operating as an independent growth consultant for game studios. Dan Lazarides is appointed chief marketing officer at Frontier Developments. Lazarides formerly held the senior vice‑president of marketing role at Sega Europe and replaces Jo Cooke, who moved to Frontier’s CEO post in January.
"His leadership in this genre will continue Frontier's upward momentum," CEO Jo Cooke said. Karen Ionescu takes on the role of digital sales manager at Kalypso Media UK, after sales‑manager positions at Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games. Managing director Andrew Johnson praised her extensive retail and digital channel experience. Hannah Barrett is promoted to senior account executive at esports and gaming communications agency Swipe Right, having joined as an account executive in December 2025.
Supercell appoints Anni Pyy as contract manager; Pyy previously held the same title at Metacore for four years. Nathan Solbrandt becomes SVP of business development at fintech platform ZBD, after senior account executive work at Motorica and a vice‑president role at Xsolla for the Americas. Olivia Lee is hired as internal events producer at Riot Games, where she previously coordinated internal programs and events.
Ciarah Pritchard joins Xsolla as account coordinator, after serving as account performance manager at Playback Rewards. Tracey Thompson returns to Bethesda as VP of communications. Thompson originally joined Bethesda in 2009, left in 2019 for EA, and now says, "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." Maddie Richter becomes social media marketing manager at Nintendo of America, after a stint as social media manager for Alaska Airlines. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as a narrative designer, following senior narrative design 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, formerly producer, animator, and artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, and instructor 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.
"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," Holm explained. Sathvik Sudireddy becomes marketing manager, live services at Rockstar Games, after product‑management work on Call of Duty at Activision and a business‑development internship at Rockstar. Joe Chard is appointed lead product manager at Netflix Games, following 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.