Keeping up with the constant flow of hires, promotions, and departures across the games sector can be a daunting task, which is why we regularly compile these updates into concise round‑ups. If you know of any noteworthy appointments or role changes within your organization, please forward the individual's name, new title, company, and previous position to newhires@gamesindustry.biz. Fandom has bolstered its senior leadership roster with three high‑profile hires and has also promoted a long‑standing veteran to a new senior role. Anita Butler joins Fandom as Senior Vice President of Design & User Research.
Butler brings a wealth of experience from her previous stints as EVP of Design and Research at Nextdoor, Vice President of Consumer Design at Twitter, and Chief Design Officer at Strava, where she oversaw large‑scale user‑experience initiatives and product design strategy. Damon Sicore steps in as Chief Technology Officer and head of Fandom Labs. Sicore’s background includes senior engineering leadership at both Wikipedia and Mozilla, where he directed the teams responsible for core web technologies such as Firefox, HTML, JavaScript, and CSS, giving him deep expertise in platform development and open‑source ecosystems. Peter Scanlon is appointed Chief Marketing Officer.
Scanlon adds to Fandom’s leadership a track record of executive marketing roles at Google, Mozilla, and Monks, where he led brand positioning, user acquisition, and cross‑channel campaigns for consumer‑facing products. In addition, Daniel Grunwell, who has been with Fandom for fifteen years, is promoted to Senior Vice President of Engineering. In his new capacity he will oversee the entire engineering and infrastructure organization, guiding the technical roadmap that powers Fandom’s massive fan‑generated content platforms.
"Fandom sits on an extraordinary foundation—millions of passionate fans who have spent years curating knowledge and building communities around the subjects they love," said CEO Jay Sullivan. "Our mission is to expand on that foundation, giving fans even more ways to connect, discover, and engage. Daniel’s deep tenure gives us continuity and insight into what makes our communities thrive, while Damon, Peter and Anita bring fresh perspectives and deep consumer‑platform expertise. Together we have the right leadership to shape the next generation of Fandom." Other notable moves in September include Jonathan Knight’s appointment as Chief Games Officer at The New York Times.
Knight previously served as Senior Vice President and head of games for the Times, where he oversaw the acquisition and integration of the wildly popular Wordle puzzle. Chase Shi returns to Scopely as Vice President and Head of Game Product. Shi originally left Scopely in 2020 after serving as Senior Product Manager, later held a director role at Jam City, and then moved to Blizzard Entertainment where he directed product management for Diablo before rejoining Scopely. Jonathan Marcelino is named Director of Product at Scopely after founding and serving as CEO of the hybrid‑casual studio Ritmo Games, where he led the creation and launch of several successful mobile titles.
Berkay Özer takes the helm as Head of Studio at Fomo Games. Özer first joined Fomo in 2022 as a product specialist and later led the product team before a brief stint at Loom Games as a product manager in 2025. Peter Sydow becomes Head of Production at Arrowhead Game Studios, bringing senior production experience from Massive Entertainment and PlayerUnknown Productions.
Ryan Ngoon is promoted to Game Designer at Blizzard Entertainment after joining the company in 2023 as a quest design intern and advancing to Associate Game Designer in 2024. Sarah Johnson joins Epic Games as an Art Producer.
Johnson’s résumé includes production roles at Bungie, Secret Dimension, Hangar 13, and Telltale Games, giving her a broad perspective on art pipelines across multiple genres. Brian Trunk is appointed Senior Vice President of Route to Market for the Americas at Asmodee.
Trunk, a partner at Asmodee for over a decade, previously spent 17 years at Wizards of the Coast in senior commercial and digital‑games leadership positions, overseeing the Wizards Play Network and regional operations across EMEA, LATAM, and APAC. "My years at Wizards shaped me into the leader I am today," Trunk said. "I’ve always believed that great businesses are built on people, relationships, trust, and community. At Asmodee those values intersect with my lifelong love of games, making this move deeply personal." Rovio promotes Wille Miljas to Director of Product Marketing.
Miljas, who joined Rovio in 2024 as Marketing Lead, previously headed marketing at Good Shepherd Entertainment and Redhill Games, and served as Senior Marketing Manager for planning and strategy at Next Games. Behaviour Interactive adds Jameson Durall as Senior Design Director on the upcoming title Blight: Survival. Durall’s prior experience includes a senior game‑design role at Insomniac Games, where he contributed to Marvel’s Spider‑Man 2. Matt Dobill is elevated to Director of Applied AI at Epic Games, where he will also act as Senior Counsel on technology and tools, guiding the integration of artificial‑intelligence solutions across Epic’s product suite.
Joe Gabriel joins Unity as Senior Technical Production Manager for Android XR. Gabriel previously led customer and developer success at Niantic Spatial and served as Senior Developer Relations Manager at Niantic, giving him a strong background in AR/VR ecosystems. Erik Meurk is promoted to Senior Software Engineer at King. Meurk started as a Unity development intern in August 2023, became an Associate Software Engineer in early 2024, and has since contributed to several of King’s flagship mobile titles.
Stéfanie Grandchamp‑Dubé advances to Lead UX Designer at Epic Games after joining as a Senior UX Designer in 2023, following a similar role at Behaviour Interactive. Jack Anderson becomes a VFX Artist at Rebellion, after previously holding the same position at nDreams and Interior/Night, where he specialized in real‑time visual effects for immersive experiences. David Scarborough joins Blizzard Entertainment as Senior Manager of EMEA Communications.
Scarborough’s prior roles include Senior Account Director at Brands2Life and Head of Communications at Inflexion Games, as well as senior positions at Improbable and Koch Media/Deep Silver. King appoints Esther Lopez as Principal VFX Artist.
Lopez originally joined King in 2014 as a Senior Artist, progressed to Associate Principal VFX Artist in 2020, and later spent two years at Meta focusing on real‑time VFX for VR/AR before returning to King, describing the move as a rare privilege. Magda Marcinkowska is named Production Manager, Marketing at CD Projekt Red after serving as Acting Publishing Operations Director at Techland, where she oversaw pipeline coordination for multiple high‑profile releases. Linh Lai becomes Accounting Assistant at Newzoo following a six‑month internship. Lai highlighted how the experience gave her insight into both granular accounting processes and their broader business impact, and expressed enthusiasm for taking on greater responsibility.
Tommi Virolainen joins Kokoon Games as Senior Game Programmer. Virolainen previously worked as a Tech Programmer at Metacore and held senior programming roles at Lightneer, where he helped optimize performance for mobile and console titles.
Christopher Holtorf is appointed Senior Quest Designer at CD Projekt Red, after serving as Senior Narrative Designer at Intrepid Studios, where he crafted story‑driven quest lines for large‑scale RPGs. Amir Satvat becomes a General Partner at 1Up Ventures, bringing prior experience as Business Development Director at Tencent Games and as founder of the community‑focused initiative Always Supporting the Games Community (ASGC), which assists industry professionals in finding new opportunities.
"I wanted a role where I could directly influence outcomes and help people get back to work," Satvat explained. "Working with smaller studios aligns with my passion for indie‑scale games, and I’m excited to join a team that shares my values of community and integrity." Lasse Seppänen announces his departure from Supercell after seven years, during which he progressed from Producer in 2019 to Head of Game Production Services and General Manager for Supercell London.
He plans to return to the UK and, in 2027, launch his own studio to develop new IPs. Take‑Two Interactive appoints Giles Derrington as Director of Global Affairs, UK, after serving as Head of Public Affairs, UK at TikTok, where he managed regulatory and policy engagement for the platform.
Jess Pearce is promoted to Senior People Partner at Kepler Interactive, having joined the company as a People Advisor in 2022 and moved to People Partner in 2024. Shreya Godha advances to Producer at PlaySimple Games, after previously serving as Associate Producer on the developer’s mobile titles. Epic Games names Kelly Ekins as Director of Communications.
Ekins previously held the role of Senior Director of Global PR for Unity’s Games and Made with Unity program, and before that led marketing for media and entertainment at Unity following a stint as Studio Lead for Game Marketing and Communications at Warner Brothers Games Montreal. Ilari Kuittinen, co‑founder and Managing Director of Housemarque, steps down after 31 years. Kuittinen co‑founded the studio in 1995 through the merger of Bloodhouse and Terramarque.
He praised the company’s independence over three decades and noted that Sami “Haxu” Hakala has taken over as Managing Director, ensuring continuity of Housemarque’s creative vision within the PlayStation Studios family. Tamara Feiman is appointed CEO of Lion Studios, a division of Tripledot Studios. Feiman began her career at Lion in 2020 as EMEA Business Development Lead, later becoming Publishing General Manager. She highlighted the collaborative partnership model with external studios that has driven Lion’s success.
Heather Sangria joins Sega of America as Community Manager, after contract work as a Social Strategist and Community Lead at One More Game and a Digital Strategy and Community Manager role at Undead Labs. Emily Rose Chen is promoted to Senior Product Manager for Call of Duty at Activision Blizzard, having risen from Product Manager after joining the company as a Financial Analyst in 2020. Scot McCarron moves up to Senior Director of Product Management for Call of Duty at Activision Blizzard, after serving as Director of Product Management on the franchise and originally joining the firm in 2018 as a Product Marketing Manager for emerging franchises.
These appointments, promotions, and departures illustrate the dynamic nature of talent movement within the gaming industry, reflecting both the growth of established companies and the emergence of new opportunities for seasoned professionals and rising stars alike.