Team Executive Board Lars Janssen Chairman of the Executive Board About Lars (he/him) Lars is the CEO at Deck13 Interactive, one of the leading game development studios in Germany, part of PULLUP ENTERTAINMENT. Before taking on this position, he was Vice President, Worldwide Studios & Talent at PLAION, a leading developer, marketer and publishing partner for Europe and the rest of the world headquartered in Munich, since November 2019.[show more]There he was responsible for the coordination and cooperation of internal and external development studios as well as the global People & Culture initiatives. Prior to that, he spent nine years at Travian Games, one of the largest online games companies in Germany, in various positions and served as CEO since 2015. Julia Pfiffer Deputy Chairwoman of the Executive Board About Julia (she/her) Julia has been Co-Managing Director of astragon Entertainment GmbH since 2017. [show more]She started her career in the games industry in 2004 at Koch Media as Label & Sales Manager. She worked for rondomedia as Sales Manager from 2010 to 2013. From 2014, Julia was Head of Sales & Marketing and Deputy Managing Director at astragon Sales & Services and subsequently at astragon Entertainment. As Co-Managing Director of astragon Entertainment, Julia was instrumental in supporting the merger of the two astragon Group companies and the sale to Team 17 PLC in January 2022. Johanna Janiszewski game Executive Board member About Johanna (she/her) Johanna is the founder and CEO of Tiny Crocodile Studios, which won the German Computer Game Award 2018 in the category “Best Children’s Game” with “Monkey Swag”, among others. [show more]In addition, she has previously worked as a game designer at various development studios, is active in the field of game design on a freelance basis and holds workshops on game development. Christian Kluckner game Executive Board member About Christian (he/him) Christian is Co-Founder and Managing Director of Chimera Entertainment, a developer studio that has published more than 25 games for various platforms since its foundation in 2006. [show more]Chimera Entertainment is one of the largest owner-managed game developers in Germany and was awarded the German Computer Game Prize (DCP) in the category “Best Mobile Game” in 2013 with their game “Word Wonders: The Tower of Babel”. Christian supports the game with his many years of experience as Founder, Operations Director and Managing Director. Ralf Wirsing game Executive Board member About Ralf (he/him) Ralf has been Managing Director Europe at Ubisoft since 2022. [show more]Previously, he was responsible for Ubisoft’s business in Germany, Austria and Switzerland for around 15 years as Managing Director of the German branch in Düsseldorf. In 1997, he started at Ubisoft in product management and then moved to PR. From 2000, he worked in business development and was involved in the integration of Gamebusters Salzburg into the Ubisoft Group. Since 2003, he has been in charge of software development at Blue Byte GmbH as Development Director and was also responsible for business development and IT at Ubisoft. Office Felix Falk Managing DirectorPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 0 E-Mail About Felix (he/him) Felix has been Managing Director of game since 1 February 2018. In January 2017, he was appointed Managing Director of BIU, the German Games Industry Association. [show more]He oversaw the merger of the two associations BIU and GAME into game – the German Games Industry Association and assumed the position of Managing Director of the joint association for the German games sector. Prior to this role, Felix Falk was the Managing Director of Germany’s Entertainment Software Self-Regulation Body (USK) from 2009 to 2016. As vice-chairman of the International Age Rating Coalition (IARC) during this period, he was jointly responsible among other things for the global rating standard for online games and apps. From 2004 to 2009, he served as the Head of Office for Monika Griefahn, Chairwoman of the Committee on Cultural and Media Affairs within the German Bundestag. In this capacity, Felix Falk was also responsible for the topic of computer games, and oversaw, among other things, the creation of the Deutsche Computerspielpreis, the most important german computer games award, which were passed by the Bundestag in 2008 and were presented for the first time in 2009. Samantha Brock Junior Legal CounselTelefon: +49 30 240 87 79 22 E-Mail Über Samantha (she/her) Sammy is part of the Legal and Regulatory Department and, as a Junior Legal Counsel, she oversees the legal affairs and all legal matters of the association. [mehr]During her bachelor’s studies in business law, she discovered her interest in media law, which she further deepened in the subsequent master’s degree in media law and media economics at TH Köln. Alongside her studies, Sammy worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers in the field of auditing and was able to gain experience in legal projects with media law issues. Ina Göring Director of Membership & FundingPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 19 E-Mail About Ina (she/her) Having graduated as a film and television producer at Film University Babelsberg, Ina started her career as a production manager, producer and director in the film, television and animation industry. [show more]Afterwards she joined the media team (film and games) of ILB (Investitionsbank des Landes Brandenburg) the investment and business promotion bank of the federal state of Brandenburg. Most recently, Ina worked as a consultant for Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg – the media funding institution for Germany’s capital region. She was responsible for the funding programs ‘Innovative Audiovisual Content’ (Games, VR, AR) and ‘Media Development’ (events). Ina is Head of Membership at game and the association’s contact for all questions regarding funding-related topics and supports the regional agencies in their work. Ines Harmuth Manager Membership & Serious GamesPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 16 E-Mail About Ines (she/her) Since 2020 Ines works as Manager in the department “Membership” at game and is also responsible for Serious Games. [show more]Previously, she worked in the Campaigns and Events department of WWF Germany and then joined the Webedia Group as Customer Success Manager, where she was mainly responsible for gaming projects. She graduated in “Media and Political Communication” at the Free University of Berlin and wrote her master’s thesis on serious games. During her studies, Ines worked in PR in the publishing business and as a TV production assistant in Ireland. Dr. Christian-Henner Hentsch Director Legal & Regulatory AffairsPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 22 E-Mail About Henner (he/him) Henner Hentsch works as Legal Counsel for game since January 2016. Before he represented VG Media, a collecting society for broadcasters and press publishers and he also was working at the German Bundestag. Additionally he is a professor for copyright and media law at TH Köln. Lea Sophia Hepp Manager Public Affairs & EsportPhone: +49 30 240 8779 21 E-Mail About Lea (she/her) Lea obtained her master’s degree in global communication with an emphasize on political communication in Erfurt and Tartu (Estonia). [show more]She gained practical experience in political communication at the VDA in Brussels, on the agency side in Berlin and last but not least in university politics during her bachelor studies at KU Eichstätt. Lea uses this experience to support game as a manager for Public Affairs & Esports. Jannik Linder Manager Digital Marketing gamescomPhone: +49 030 240 8779 14 E-Mail About Jannik (he/him) Jannik studied advertising and market communication in Stuttgart and most recently coordinated the digital marketing of the Berliner Stadtreinigung (BSR) and the Deutsche Aidshilfe. [show more]During his studies, Jannik already dealt intensively with advertising in video games as part of his final thesis. At game, he is part of the gamescom & events team and supports the digital marketing of gamescom. Marcel Meister Office Assistance ITPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 18 E-Mail About Marcel (he/him) After his bachelor’s degree in print and media technology, Marcel worked in the digital team at Messe Berlin. [show more]He was able to deepen the skills he acquired there in the area of live events and content management in his master’s degree in print and media technology with a focus on project management. Afterwards, Marcel supervised live and on-demand video productions, was a reviewer for the Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle (Entertainment Software Self-Regulation, abbreviated USK) and is responsible for IT and applications at game. Jan Menzel Event Manager gamescomTelefon: +49 30 240 87 79 0 E-Mail About Jan (he/him) Jan has eight years of experience in event management. [show more]He is a trained event manager and looked after national and international clients on the agency side in project management for events and trade fair appearances. As Event Manager gamescom, he takes responsibility for the game’s joint stand and brings his skills and experience to gamescom and other events. Martin Puppe Director of PRPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 20 E-Mail About Martin (he/him) Directly after completing his degree in political science, Martin began a PR traineeship in the media department at Bitkom, Germany’s digital association / the German Federal Association for Information Technology. [show more]As a trainee and subsequently as a consultant, he was responsible among other things for games, consumer electronics and apps. At game, he is responsible for public relations. Maren Raabe Director of PAPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 15 E-Mail About Maren (she/her) As of October 2017 Maren holds the game’s position of Head of PA. Preceding that she held a communications role at the TV and radio trade association VAUNET, where she arrived after stopovers at a business law firm, a real estate trade association and the radio group REGIOCAST. [show more]Apart from her studies in law and PR traineeship, Maren was able to gather political experience on a federal and state level. Velyana Richter Public Relations ManagerTelefon: +49 30 240 87 79 12 E-Mail About Velyana (she/her) After graduating in media and communication studies at the Free University of Berlin, Velyana was able to gain in-depth experience as a PR consultant in numerous sectors such as technology, education and e-commerce at various communication agencies. [show more]At game, she joins the press and public relations team as PR manager. Isabel Schmutz Project Manager MembersPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 11 E-Mail About Isabel (she/her) Isabel completed her bachelor’s degree in communication psychology with a focus on multimedia communication where she already worked with video games. [show more]Alongside her studies, she began working in the games industry as a student trainee in the field of game design and quality assurance. After graduating, she started as a junior game designer. At the game association, Isabel is responsible for membership project management. Marten Stübing Digital Communcations ManagerPhone: +49 30 240 87 79 26 E-Mail About Marten (he/him) Marten studied digital media culture at Film University Babelsberg and worked parallel as a freelance student assistant at rbb Fernsehen. [show more]He then worked in digital communications for Coca-Cola Germany. At game, Marten is part of the press and public relations team and is primarily responsible for the website, newsletter and social media channels. Markus Wille Senior Market Research ManagerTelefon: +49 30 240 87 79 0 E-Mail About Markus (he/him) Markus studied political science with a focus on political culture and communication in Duisburg. [show more]He first worked for a market research institute after his graduation and then worked as a research analyst for a German direct insurance company. At game, Markus takes care of everything to do with market research. Alexander Wolf Team AssistanceTelefon: +49 30 240 87 79 0 Kontaktaufnahme per E-Mail About Alexander (he/him) Alexander worked in the hotel industry for over six years, including as an event manager, in accounting and as a Rooms Division Supervisor in one of the largest hotels in Germany. [show more]At game, Alexander takes on the position of Team Assistant. Denise Zimmermann Office ManagerTelefon: +49 30 240 87 79 0 E-Mail About Denise (she/her) During her training as a media clerk at Axel Springer SE, Denise was responsible for various areas of the media and event industry. [show more]She gained further experience as a junior marketing manager at an educational publishing house and as an office and feel-good manager at a company in the real estate industry. At game, she supports the team as office manager in all matters of accounting and administration.
