Jobs roundup: October 2025 | Kokku announces changes to executive leadership team

It can be difficult keeping track of the various comings and goings in the games industry, which is why we compile them in semi-regular round-ups.

If you have new appointments or transitions in your company that belong here, please send the names of appointees, new role and company, and prior role and company to newhires@gamesindustry.biz.

Carol Lara and João Moraes join Kokku’s executive leadership team

Co-development studio Kokku has announced changes to its executive leadership, appointing Carol Lara as COO and João Moraes as CFO.

Lara is the first woman to join Kokku’s executive team. She was previously head of production for a year and a half, and will oversee Kokku’s operational departments in her new role.

“It makes me look back with gratitude and forward with responsibility,” said Lara. “I think a lot about the women building their careers in this industry who sometimes still wonder if there’s room for them.

“What I hope is that my presence here can be one more proof that the answer is yes, and that this space must be claimed with competence, courage, and purpose.”

Lara has also been appointed VP of delivery operations at Kokku’s parent company OV Entertainment to “coordinate integration across studios.”

João Moraes will take over from Gerson Lima as CFO. Lima will move to focusing on financial operations as CFO of OV Entertainment.

Moraes has more than two decades of experience in executive leadership roles. He will “focus on strengthening financial governance, supporting sustainable growth, and aligning financial operations with the group’s global strategy”. He will also serve as VP of finance at OV Entertainment.

“We implemented several changes that allowed Kokku to once again reach a record-breaking revenue milestone,” said Kokku CEO Thiago de Freitas.

“This was only possible because we turned our attention inward, recognizing and valuing the talent already within our team.”

Laurent Pawlowski | Director of platform and store relations, Xsolla

Xsolla has appointed Laurent Pawlowski as director of platform store relations.

Prior to joining Xsolla, Pawlowski worked at Korean app store One Store Corp. as director/team leader of its global business and operation team.

He started at the company in 2022 as deputy general manager of business strategy.

Pawlowski also worked at Unity in South Korea as UDP store partnership success senior manager.

Prior to these roles, Pawlowski was at Samsung Electronics for over a decade, with his last role being games portfolio lead for its Galaxy Store.

“I’m genuinely excited to continue supporting alternative app stores and platform partners, helping them reach more players and giving game developers access to the tools they love most,” said Pawlowski.

Matt Walsh | Talent acquisition partner, Epic Games

Matt Walsh has joined Epic Games as a talent acquisition partner.

Walsh was previously an interim recruiter at Larian Studios, where he supported “hiring across multiple locations for Larian’s unannounced next project.”

He joined the industry in 2021 at Sharkmob’s London studio as a talent acquisition partner. Walsh held this role for three years up until the cancellation of an unannounced project in November 2024, which resulted in layoffs.

During his time at Sharkmob, Walsh “built and scaled the London studio’s talent function” and helped grow the studio to a total of 116 team members.

Walsh also worked at Trailmix Games as a talent acquisition partner from January to April 2025.

Jerreau Henry | Community manager, Laced

Jerreau Henry has been appointed community manager at Laced.

Before joining the video game soundtrack record label, Henry was marketing manager at Electric Square and Lively Studio.

He continues to be a content creator and community manager at BAME in Games, which he began in June 2020. Henry also worked at Gerdoo Games as a content creator and community manager.

Henry was part of Games London’s Ensemble cohort in 2024, which GamesIndustry.biz covered here.

David Stelzer | Chief strategy officer, Appcharge

Appcharge has appointed former Xsolla president and chief business officer David Stelzer as its chief strategy officer.

Stelzer has over two decades of experience in the industry, including roles at Epic Games, the Creative Arts Agency (CAA), and Sega.

In his new role, Stelzer will “set strategy, strike partnerships, and push Appcharge into new markets.”

Stelzer’s appointment follows a recent $58 million Series B investment, which brought its total funding to $89 million.

“I’m thrilled to join Maor, Roei, and the team to help scale this incredible business and support publishers in building stronger, more profitable relationships with their players,” said Stelzer.

Appcharge CEO and co-founder Maor Sason: “David’s track record in scaling global gaming businesses and forging industry-defining partnerships is second to none.”

“Adding David to our team underscores Appcharge’s growing strength and signals a major shift in the competitive landscape of global gaming payments,” he continued.

“His experience and vision will help accelerate our growth and further strengthen our position as the go-to DTC platform in the industry.”

Amy White | Communications vice president EMEA, Aristocrat

Amy White has joined gaming content and technology publisher Aristocrat as communications vice president, EMEA.

In the newly created role, White will oversee internal and external communications across the EMEA region, “supporting the business strategies of both Aristocrat Interactive” and its gaming divisions.

White previously led international communications and global gaming initiatives at Twitch, and oversaw international communications at Meta’s Reality Labs for AI, AR, and VR.

She also held senior communications roles at Square Enix, 2K, and Sega.

Lisa Kneidl | PR manager, Larian Studios

Lisa Kneidl has joined Larian Studios as PR manager.

Kneidl worked with Laria for three years on the agency side via ICO. She joined ICO in 2018 as communications manager, becoming senior communications manager in 2023.

“I can’t wait to work together with the team to support them on the publishing front and to bring to players what they (we) have been working on,” Kneidl said.

“Once we can share more I’m sure to yell from the rooftops, so watch this space.”

Summer Tang | Operations director, Yrs Truly

Yrs Truly has appointed Summer Tang as operations director.

Tang joined the games marketing agency in 2022 as creative project manager. She became senior project manager a year later, then head of operations in 2024.

Prior to Yrs Truly, Tang was creative project manager at digital marketing agency Founders Makers (previously The Clerkenwell Brothers).

“The past three years at Yrs Truly have been an incredible journey – it’s been amazing to watch the team expand and take on more exciting and complex projects,” said Tang.

“None of this would have been possible without the trust and support everyone has given me to help refine how we do things. This only works when people are willing to try new approaches, even when it means changing the status quo.”

She continued: “I’m genuinely excited about what’s ahead for Yrs Truly. I think we’ve built something truly special here, not just in the work we deliver, but also in how we work together as a team. I am very grateful to be part of it and can’t wait to see what’s next.”

Joost van Dreunen | Strategic advisor, ELO

Gaming and esports community agency ELO has named Joost van Druenen as strategic advisor.

In this role, Van Druenen will “support ELO in developing insights to help game studios understand the impact of community empowerment.”

Van Druenen is a games industry economist, featuring in Bloomberg, The New York Times, and Forbes.

He is also an author, having published One Up: Creativity, Competition, and the Global Business of Video Games.

Van Druenen recently co-founded data intelligence firm Aldora.io – and was previously co-founder and CEO of games market research firm SuperData Research.

“We are thrilled to have Joost on board as a strategic advisor,” said ELO co-founder Wouter Sleijffers.

“Few people in the industry have such a fundamental, data-driven, micro- and macro-understanding of games and the games industry. We are keen to learn from and collaborate with Joost in community empowerment.”

Van Dreunen added: “I’m excited about ELO’s mission and am keen to contribute my perspective on data and economics to support their vision.”

Hamza Yuşa Delipoyraz | Junior QA specialist, IO Interactive

Hamza Yuşa Delipoyraz has been promoted to junior QA specialist at IO Interactive.

Delipoyraz joined IO Interactive in 2024 as a part-time QA student assistant, before moving to full-time in his current role.

He started his career in the games industry 2024 as a quality assurance intern at Crytek for three months, working on game testing and quality assurance.

During this time, he was also studying Game and Interactive Media Design at Bahcesehir University.

Dan McCreadie | Lead game designer, AstroNomad Studios

Dan McCreadie has joined AstroNomad Studios as lead game designer.

McCreadie was a game director at Outright Games, having joined in 2022 as senior game designer on titles including Bluey: The Videogame and DC Justice League: Cosmic Chaos.

He made his start in the industry at Sony Computer Entertainment Europe in 2004 as a quality assurance functionality tester. He was also a technical requirement checklist (TRC) auditor before leaving in 2007.

McCreadie moved to THQ as a junior designer/level scripter for almost two years. He then joined TT Games in 2008 as a games designer/level director, then a game director/design consultant and assistant game director.

He also worked at Firesprite Games as a senior designer.

Sól Rós Hlynsdóttir | Associate Brand Manager, IO Interactive

Sól Rós Hlynsdóttir has been promoted to associate brand manager at IO Interactive.

Hlynsdóttir joined the developer in 2023 as global marketing strategist, and was promoted to her current role earlier this year.

Prior to joining IO Interactive, Hlynsdóttir was a copywriter for Esports Coaching Academy based in Reykjavík, Iceland.

Hlynsdóttir began her career as an intern for CCP on its EVE Online brand team in 2020. She then became associate marketing specialist in 2021, and held that position for over two years.