Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions and departures in the games sector can be a real challenge, which is why we publish periodic round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy moves. If you know of a staffing change that belongs in this list, please forward the name, new title, new 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 and engines. Appointing Ben as CEO sends a clear signal: if your title is suffering performance issues on any engine, we have the best team on the planet to fix it." James Turner has re‑joined The Pokémon Company International, this time 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 steps into the role of Lead Concept Artist at Respawn Entertainment. King previously led concept teams at ZeniMax Online Studios and served as senior concept artist for Amazon Games, bringing a wealth of experience in crafting visual direction for large‑scale live‑service titles. Sam Duncombe is now Brand Marketing Manager at Team 17, after a stint as Product Manager – Games and Film at Warner Bros. Discovery.
In his new position he will oversee brand strategy across the publisher’s diverse portfolio of indie and AAA releases. Cansu Karahan Can joins Loom Games as People and Culture Manager, having previously held the same title at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion). She will be responsible for talent acquisition, employee development and fostering an inclusive studio environment. Christopher Wulf has been promoted to Senior Business Development Manager at Fellow Traveller.
Wulf, who entered the company in 2021, previously worked as senior business and event manager for The Triple‑i Initiative. Julie Derhak becomes a Producer for Dungeons & Dragons at Wizards of the Coast. Derhak spent seven years at Epic Games, where she contributed to Fortnite Tech Art and the Lego‑Fortnite crossover, before moving to tabletop gaming.
Alvaro Menéndez takes on the role of International Social Lead at Mojang Studios. He formerly served as Senior Marketing Manager for Epic Games in Madrid, where he oversaw global community initiatives.
Linus Johnsson is promoted to Senior Audio Designer at Frontier Developments. Johnsson joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer and has since progressed to lead the studio’s sound design for upcoming titles.
Nate Nanzer departs Epic Games after a seven‑year tenure to become Executive Vice President, Head of Commercial & Marketing at Paramount Games. At Epic his most recent titles were 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 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, heading digital and ad‑tech media operations. "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 becomes Art Producer at Studio MDHR, after producing at Roarty Digital where she worked on Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite. Aysu Kutbay is named Product Manager at Grand Games, following a product‑management role at Rollic.
David Bailey returns to Games Workshop as Lead Commercial Manager – Licensing. Bailey first joined Games Workshop in 2019 as Senior Licensing Manager, left in 2021 for a director role at 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 takes the post of Account Director, US Operations at Second Stage, after serving simultaneously as COO and Head of PR at Vicariously and V Publishing. Tim Coombs is appointed Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. He previously directed brand management at Xbox until July 2026 and held product‑marketing roles 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. 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," he reflected. Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment as Senior Producer. Rubin’s background includes senior production roles at Netflix (Squid Game: Unleashed, Selling Sunset) and five years at Riot Games, where he worked on creative development for the League of Legends IP. Andrey Odintsov becomes Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games.
He previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now consults independently on growth and go‑to‑market strategies for games. Dan Lazarides is named Chief Marketing Officer at Frontier Developments, succeeding Jo Cooke who moved to the CEO role. Lazarides previously served as Senior Vice President of Marketing at Sega Europe. "His leadership in this genre will continue Frontier's upward momentum," Cooke said, emphasizing a player‑first strategy.
Karen Ionescu takes on the role of Digital Sales Manager at Kalypso Media UK, after sales 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 position at Metacore for four years.
Nathan Solbrandt becomes Senior Vice President of Business Development at fintech platform ZBD, after senior roles at Motorica and Xsolla (VP of Business Development for the Americas). Olivia Lee is hired as Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, following an associate producer role for internal events and programs.
Ciarah Pritchard joins Xsolla as Account Coordinator, after serving 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 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 at Alaska Airlines.
Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as Narrative Designer, previously senior narrative designer 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 and artist for Team Gramps and Queensguard, and instructor at Submarine Art School and The Code Zone).
Steffen Holm and Chris Kruger are added to 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. "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 said.
Sathvik Sudireddy joins Rockstar Games as Marketing Manager, Live Services, after product‑management work on Call of Duty at Activision and an internship in business development at Rockstar. Joe Chard is appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games. Chard previously held senior positions at Jam City (VP, Studio GM, Head of Product), The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros. Entertainment.
These movements illustrate the dynamic nature of talent across the interactive entertainment industry, with seasoned veterans shifting between major publishers, indie studios and emerging tech ventures, each bringing a blend of creative, technical and commercial expertise to their new roles.