Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, departures, and promotions in the video‑game sector can be a daunting task, which is why we publish regular round‑ups that capture the most notable movements. If you know of a change that belongs in this list, please forward the name, new title, new company, and previous role to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Ben Board, a veteran of Epic Games, has been installed as chief executive officer of The Performance Guys, the optimisation arm of CodeDev Group.
Board’s résumé includes a stint as business development director for the Epic Game Store and Unreal Engine, a role he assumed after joining Epic in 2017 as a developer support manager. Earlier in his career he held senior positions at classic studios such as Bullfrog Productions, Lionhead Studios, and BossAlien, giving him a broad perspective on both legacy and modern development pipelines. “Myriad achievements and deep technical credibility make Ben a true heavyweight in our industry,” said Myke Parrot, CEO of CodeDev Group.
“He has seen game creation from the ground up – from writing engine scripts to steering developer relations for the world’s biggest platforms. Appointing Ben as CEO sends a crystal‑clear signal: whenever a title suffers from performance bottlenecks on any engine, our team is the best‑equipped to resolve them.” In other news, James Turner has rejoined 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’s debut, The Plucky Squire, launched in September 2024 and earned praise for its inventive mechanics and charming visuals. His return to the Pokémon franchise is being welcomed as a boost to the brand’s artistic direction.
Billy King has been promoted to lead concept artist at Respawn Entertainment. King previously headed concept art at ZeniMax Online Studios and served as senior concept artist for Amazon Games, where he contributed to several high‑profile projects. His expertise in character and environment design is expected to enrich Respawn’s upcoming titles.
Sam Duncombe steps into the role of brand‑marketing manager at Team 17, after a tenure as product manager for games and film at Warner Bros. Discovery. In his new position, Duncombe will oversee brand strategy and cross‑media initiatives for the publisher’s diverse portfolio. Cansu Karahan Can joins Loom Games as people‑and‑culture manager, bringing experience from a similar role at Stoikk (formerly Kompanion).
She will be responsible for talent development, workplace culture, and employee engagement across the studio. Christopher Wulf has been elevated to senior business‑development manager at Fellow Traveller.
Wulf, who arrived at Fellow Traveller in 2021, previously worked for The Triple‑i Initiative as senior business and event manager, and will now focus on expanding the company’s partnership network. 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 collaboration, giving her a strong background in large‑scale live‑service production.
Alvaro Menéndez takes on the role of international social lead at Mojang Studios. Menéndez formerly served as senior marketing manager for Epic Games in Madrid, where he oversaw global social campaigns and community engagement. Linus Johnsson has been promoted to senior audio designer at Frontier Developments. Having joined Frontier in 2022 as a graduate audio designer, Johnsson’s work on adaptive soundscapes and interactive music systems earned him this advancement.
After seven years at Epic Games, Nate Nanzer departs to become executive vice‑president, head of commercial & marketing at Paramount Games. Nanzer’s most recent Epic role was senior vice‑president of partnerships and monetisation. He remarked, “The scale of ambition here is incredibly exciting.
I’ve spent my career at the crossroads of games, entertainment, and fandom, and the chance to help shape what comes next at Paramount was simply too compelling to pass up.” Julia Gutnik is appointed 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, where she managed digital and ad‑tech media operations. She said, “After two years in the auto sector, I’m returning to my entertainment roots and to the place that shaped me into a global marketing leader.” Lorna Antoniazzi becomes art producer at Studio MDHR, after producing at Roarty Digital on titles such as Fortnite Battle Royale and Lego Fortnite.
Her responsibilities will include overseeing art pipelines and coordinating between creative leads. Aysu Kutbay joins Grand Games as product manager, coming from a similar role at Rollic where she helped launch several mobile hits. 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 licensing business.” Liana Murphy is named account director for US operations at Second Stage. Murphy previously held the dual positions of COO and head of public relations at Vicariously and V Publishing, giving her a strong background in agency‑client relations.
Tim Coombs becomes head of brand marketing for Amazon Luna. Coombs previously directed brand management at Xbox (2020‑2026) and held product‑marketing leadership 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. Mogensen’s prior 23‑year tenure at Games Workshop culminated in heading business development and consumer‑product licensing. He reflected, “It’s not lost on me how special it’s been to work on my favourite brands – Warhammer, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, Transformers – and I look forward to my next chapter.” Ryan Rubin joins Blizzard Entertainment as senior producer. Rubin’s previous experience includes senior producer roles at Netflix (where he helped ship Squid Game: Unleashed and Selling Sunset mobile games) and a five‑year stint at Riot Games working on creative development for the League of Legends IP.
Andrey Odintsov is appointed head of marketing at Battlestate Games. He previously managed user acquisition at Multicast Games and now works as an independent growth and go‑to‑market consultant for the gaming sector. Dan Lazarides takes the chief marketing officer position at Frontier Developments. Lazarides previously served as senior vice‑president of marketing at Sega Europe and succeeded Jo Cooke after her promotion to CEO of Frontier.
Cooke praised him, noting his experience with major IPs and his focus on a player‑first strategy. Karen Ionescu becomes digital sales manager at Kalypso Media UK. Ionescu brings experience from sales roles at Numskull Games, Nintendo, and Rising Star Games.
Managing director Andrew Johnson said, “She brings a wealth of commercial experience and long‑standing relationships across both retail and digital channels.” Hannah Barrett is promoted to senior account executive at esports and gaming communications agency Swipe Right, after joining 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 senior vice‑president 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, 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 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 is named social media marketing manager at Nintendo of America, after previously managing social media for Alaska Airlines. Dana Duffield joins Yotta Games as a narrative designer, having been 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 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. Holm commented, “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.” Sathvik Sudireddy becomes marketing manager for live services at Rockstar Games.
He previously managed product for Call of Duty at Activision following a business‑development internship at the developer. Joe Chard is appointed lead product manager at Netflix Games, after serving as vice‑president, studio general manager, and head of product at Jam City for six years, and holding senior positions at Disney and Warner Bros.