Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and promotions in the games sector can be a real challenge. That’s why we publish periodic round‑ups that capture the most noteworthy personnel moves. If you know of a change that belongs in this list—new appointments, internal shifts, or departures—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 heavy‑hitter whose reputation and technical authority speak for themselves," said CodeDev Group founder Myke Parrot. "He understands game development from every angle – from coding engine scripts to managing developer relations for the world’s biggest platforms and engines.
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 signals a renewed focus on artistic direction within the Pokémon franchise.
Billy King has been named Lead Concept Artist at Respawn Entertainment. King previously held the same senior role at ZeniMax Online Studios and served as Senior Concept Artist for Amazon Games, bringing a wealth of experience in high‑profile franchise visual development.
Sam Duncombe steps into the role of Brand Marketing Manager at Team17 after a stint as Product Manager – Games and Film at Warner Bros. Discovery.
His background in both interactive and cinematic content is expected to strengthen Team17’s brand outreach. Cansu Karahan Can joins Loom Games as People and Culture Manager, having previously performed the same function at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion). Her expertise in talent development and workplace culture will support Loom’s growing studio.
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 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 collaboration, before moving to the tabletop giant. Alvaro Menéndez takes on the role of International Social Lead at Mojang Studios.
Before this, he was Senior Marketing Manager for Epic Games in Madrid, where he oversaw global community initiatives. Linus Johnsson has been elevated 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. At Epic, his most recent position was 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.
Previously she led Media, Social & Analytics for Kia America and spent over six years at Prime Video and Amazon Studios, heading 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 explained. Lorna Antoniazzi becomes Art Producer at Studio MDHR, after serving as Producer at Roarty Digital where she contributed to Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite. Aysu Kutbay takes the Product Manager position at Grand Games, having previously managed products at Rollic.
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 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 is appointed Account Director, US Operations at Second Stage after serving as COO and Head of PR at Vicariously and V Publishing. Tim Coombs becomes Head of Brand Marketing for Amazon Luna. He previously directed brand management at Xbox (2020‑2026) 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.
His prior experience includes senior producer roles at Netflix (Squid Game: Unleashed, Selling Sunset) and five years at Riot Games on League of Legends creative development. Andrey Odintsov is named Head of Marketing at Battlestate Games, after user‑acquisition work at Multicast Games and consulting for indie titles. Dan Lazarides takes the CMO role at Frontier Developments, coming from a Senior Vice President of Marketing position at Sega Europe.
Frontier CEO Jo Cooke praised his experience with major IPs and his player‑first focus. Karen Ionescu becomes Digital Sales Manager at Kalypso Media UK, after sales roles at Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games.
Managing Director Andrew Johnson highlighted her extensive retail and digital channel relationships. Hannah Barrett is promoted to Senior Account Executive at esports and gaming communications agency Swipe Right, having started 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 work at Motorica and a VP role at Xsolla for the Americas. Olivia Lee is hired as Internal Events Producer at Riot Games, following a similar associate producer role for internal programs. 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 for EA in 2019, and now looks forward to supporting iconic franchises across Bethesda and Xbox. Maddie Richter is appointed Social Media Marketing Manager at Nintendo of America, after a stint as Social Media Manager for 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, formerly Producer/Animator/Artist at 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 and raised $3.5 million from Google and other investors. Sathvik Sudireddy becomes Marketing Manager, Live Services at Rockstar Games, after product management on Call of Duty at Activision and a business‑development internship at Rockstar.
Joe Chard is appointed Lead Product Manager at Netflix Games, after serving as VP, Studio General Manager, and Head of Product at Jam City, with earlier senior roles at Disney and Warner Bros.