Devir Games has bolstered its ongoing North American expansion by bringing in longtime The Op executive Pat Marino as its first director of sales and marketing for the region.

Marino joins Devir in the newly-created role after nine years at The Op Games, including the last four as director of hobby games, where he helped oversee releases such as Gnome Hollow, Tea Witches, Fountains, and upcoming releases Evenglow and Oasis: New Life on a Distant World.

While there he saw annual revenue at the company double to a projected $4m this year, on the back of mass-market retail placement of The Op’s hobby titles, according to his LinkedIn page.

He joined The Op in 2017 as his first role within the board game industry, working as a game designer on Court of the Dead: Mourners Call before transitioning into areas such as inventor relations and product development.

The hire continues Devir’s expansion in North America, as the company looks to keep growing beyond its roots in Portugal, Spain and Latin America.

Devir began life as a Brazilian comic book distributor in 1987, launched its own board game operation as a Spanish publisher in 2000 before gradually expanding the business out to Latin America.

The publisher began bringing English language versions of its games to the US in 2017, and has since grown its global operation to about 400 people.

Matt Hyland, managing partner at Devir Americas, told BoardGameWire he hoped Marino would help the company “expand our contacts within the industry, bring in new perspectives based on what he learned at the Op, and provide valuable feedback on new products and initiatives”.

He said, “Aside from that, he’s a really smart and motivated guy, so I’m confident he can help take the business to a new level.”

Marino said, “Throughout my career, I’ve been passionate about connecting great games with players, retailers, and the broader hobby community.

“Devir’s incredible catalog, commitment to quality, and ambitious vision for the future made this an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.

“I’m beyond excited to join the team and help expand Devir’s presence across North America. I look forward to meeting with retailers, partners, and fans as we begin this next chapter together.”

Marino is set to start the new role on July 13, and will make his first public appearance with the company at Gen Con, where Devir is launching titles including One Round?, 7th Seal and Rock Hard 1977 expansion Ear Candy.

The company’s releases scheduled for later in the year include Dani Garcia design Gaudí, which Devir has slated as a key Essen launch, and push your luck party game Risky Mixes, while early 2027 should see the retail release of miniatures title Claustrophobia 1692, the company’s first ever crowdfunding project.

Early last year Devir Games agreed to buy Spanish board game publisher Maldito Games, adding the company’s portfolio of ‘expert-level’ localisations including Terraforming Mars, Ark Nova and Brass Birmingham to its catalogue.

Devir has continued to publish games under the Maldito brand following the acquisition, as well as transferring some of its own ‘expert’ games to the arm, adding at the time of the deal that it had been looking for a way to better categorise its catalogue “for some time”.

The post Devir hires longtime The Op hobby games director Pat Marino to lead North American sales and marketing first appeared on .

Editor’s note: GAMA is one of the sponsors of the BoardGameWire newsletter

Tabletop gaming industry association GAMA has hired Kevin Ronnebaum as its senior marketing and communications director – making him the trade body’s sixth communications lead since mid-2020.

Ronnebaum joins GAMA after almost three decades working across creative, marketing and communications roles, most recently at non-profits including Girl Scouts of Ohio’s Heartland, Make-A-Wish, A Kid Again and Maryhaven.

His hire comes at a pivotal time for GAMA, which has followed several years of booming post-Covid growth by implementing a plan to become the “epicenter” of the global tabletop gaming industry.

The past 12 months has not been without challenges for the association, however, including losing long-serving executive director John Stacy last October, contending with the fallout from Donald Trump’s volatile tariff policy, and falling foul of a series of incidents which have caused dents to its reputation.

Speaking to BoardGameWire in May, newly-elected GAMA president Meredith Placko said putting proactive structures in place to keep GAMA from “stepping in the mud all the time” was one of her priorities – adding that being on top of communication was essential to that process.

That focus on communication was echoed by GAMA’s interim executive director and COO Melinda Prickett, who reached out to Ronnebaum after having previously hired him while she was COO of Girl Scouts of Ohio Heartland.

She told BoardGameWire Ronnebaum stood out from a strong pool of candidates due to his “rare combination of strategic vision and operational excellence”, adding that GAMA was excited about “his ability to strengthen our communications strategy and amplify the value we deliver to our members and the broader community”.

Prickett added, “GAMA is currently in an important foundation-building chapter, and our communications priorities reflect that. We are focused on increasing both the consistency and effectiveness of our communications across all audiences.

“What’s working well is the passion and engagement of our members. There is tremendous enthusiasm for the work we do and the future of the tabletop gaming industry. Our opportunity is to build upon that foundation by creating greater clarity, consistency, and connection in how we communicate our mission, value, programs, and advocacy efforts.

“As we continue to grow, our focus is on developing a more strategic, integrated communications approach that strengthens member engagement, enhances transparency, and ensures stakeholders clearly understand the impact and value of GAMA throughout the year.”

Ronnebaum told BoardGameWire his initial priorities included strengthening GAMA’s overarching brand, increasing awareness of flagship events including Origins Game Fair and GAMA Expo, and more clearly communicating the value of GAMA membership and the association’s industry support services.

He said, “My goal [is] to help others connect socially and flourish through inspired creativity. It’s everywhere, all the time with this group. We have an awesome opportunity to bring value, share messaging that can build confidence in a startup, an artist, a creator, or a player.”

Ronnebaum added, “Ask a small business or startup that has worked with us, and they will tell you that we helped them immensely. Why? Because we care deeply about the industry and we have expertise that can help others thrive in an exciting and unique setting.”

He said, “At GAMA, we have a great story to tell, we just have to get better at telling it”, adding: “The industry needs GAMA, GAMA needs the industry, and we are here to help it thrive.”

Ronnebaum’s hire marks a continuation of high turnover at the top of GAMA’s comms department, with former incumbent Eric Francis having only joined the organisation 12 months ago.

His predecessor Amy Lowe spent just six months as marketing and communications manager, before a resignation which saw her accuse GAMA of “rampant gatekeeping”, “toxic leadership” and disrespecting its members.

Those hires followed the role being occupied by Mike Boseak, Rachel Blaske and Danni Loe since mid-2020, and mean the organisation has now had six comms heads in as many years.

Eric Francis, who spoke to BoardGameWire after announcing he was leaving GAMA in April, remained full of praise for the organisation – saying his own exit to join software networking company Megaport essentially came down to pay, which he described as “the Achilles heel of any nonprofit career”.

He said, “I worked at GAMA for about a year and it’s left a huge impression upon me. Tabletop nerds are my people, and like so many of us in the hobby I had thought it would be cool to work in the industry.

“Well, it turns out it was every better than I could’ve imagined. GAMA is a great organization, and one that faces significant challenges given that it’s a small team with a limited budget working all-out to serve a global industry that has to deal with logistical, manufacturing, commerce, and (increasingly) political policy challenges.

“I’m pretty sure that, with rare exceptions, our members and the broader tabletop industry have no idea how many irons GAMA’s staff has in the fire, how many balls they keep in the air, and how many hours they put in on a given day, month, or year.

“Honestly, I don’t think I’ll ever truly be done with GAMA, even if I no longer work there. Once I have my feet under me at the new job I’ll join a committee and otherwise support GAMA’s work; I’m also signed up for the convention support team at Origins 2026. There’s a lot to be done, and I intend to help in the doing.”

The post “We have a great story to tell, we just have to get better at telling it”: GAMA hires Kevin Ronnebaum as sixth comms head in as many years first appeared on .

Frosted Games, the German-language publisher of titles including Too Many Bones and Endeavor: Deep Sea, has brought in board game industry veteran Michael Kränzle to lead its marketing operations – and hired a board game podcaster as its sales head.

Kränzle has a storied history within the German tabletop market, having previously spent more than a decade working in editorial and marketing for Pegasus Spiele, followed by another five leading marketing efforts at HeidelBÄR Games.

He replaces Jörg Hopfengarten, who has left Frosted to become project director for fair management at Spiel Essen.

Frosted Games CEO Benjamin Schönheiter, who worked with Kränzle at Pegasus Spiele in the early 2010s, told BoardGameWire, “I know Michael from way back in the day at Pegasus Spiele – and I was always impressed with his ability to create a strong brand awareness both offline and online.

“I want him to bring that same drive and success to Frosted Games to help us build on our twice in a row nomination (and our previous win) at the Kennerspiel des Jahres this year.

“We are still only a small publisher, and not known to many players. And there is none better to change that.”

Frosted launched in 2015 with the announcement it would publish a board games advent calendar, with each door revealing a different small expansion for a popular hobby board or card game.

The company has since grown to become a significant publisher of German language board games, including last year’s Kennerspiel des Jahres winner Endeavor: Deep Sea and big name titles such as Andromeda’s Edge and The Elder Scrolls: Betrayal of the Second Era.

Frosted is in line for a potential second Kennerspiel des Jahres win in a row this year as the publisher of Reiner Knizia’s tile-laying title Rebirth.

Alongside Kränzle’s arrival Frosted has also appointed Dennis Oettershagen as sales manager – a figure best known in German board game circles as a host of the Board Game Theory podcast.

He joins Frosted from barefoot shoe manufacturer Wildling, and previously spent more than a decade working for furniture giant IKEA.

Schönheiter said, “While Frosted Games wants to have a much stronger and better retail presence and experience – we are very much focused on a tight relationship with our players.

“…Dennis has exactly that experience from his previous job at Wildling shoes, a barefoot shoes pioneer. His main focus in 2026 will be to solidify our retail presence while overhauling our e-commerce platform and direct to consumer channels.”

Schönheiter added, “In general, I want to keep doing in 2026 what we have always been doing – creating and delivering phenomenal games with partners around the world.

“Our tag line is ‘We love games’. What seems like a foregone conclusion in an industry mainly driven by the hearts and souls of players that create games, it was nevertheless important to me to make that statement.

“And I want Frosted Games to publish games we love, not games that ‘just sell well’. And I want to keep investing in every single game, to give it the attention it needs and deserves always as a first thought – as a dedication, not a business model first.

“And I think that I have a great team that lets me achieve this goal, and I can see that the industry appreciates this as well.”

Titles set for release by Frosted this year include the German language version of Entropy, designed by Tommaso Battista, Simone Luciani and Nestore Mangone.

Last summer BoardGameWire reported that Frosted had signed a deal with industry heavyweight Asmodee to expand its distribution across Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

That deal came just over a year after Frosted ended its years-long distribution deal with Germany’s Pegasus Spiele, saying at the time that as a niche publisher of small print runs, “the wholesale route was no longer financially viable without either drastically increasing the prices of our games or making massive cuts somewhere in the production chain”.

The post Frosted Games brings in ex-Pegasus, HeidelBÄR marketing chief Michael Kränzle, hires podcaster as new sales head first appeared on .

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There are big spiky moments that happen in the meta that is the board game hobby, and the Brass: Pittsburgh crowdfunding campaign feels like one of them. It is after all, a successor to the #1 ranked game on BGG. That’s something! Enough so that it sent Mark into a bit of an existential spiral, and we’re here to talk him down. Before we catch a falling Wallace, we talk about Hummingbirds, Fendo, and Soothsayers.

If you don’t want to miss an episode, please subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Google Podcasts/Stitcher/Spotify, or add our RSS feed to your favourite app. Reviews and subscriptions really help us and would be greatly appreciated! To download the episode directly, click here.

If you’d like to discuss anything in the episode, please do so in the comments below, visit our BoardGameGeek guild, join our Discord, or Facebook Group! Any feedback is also always helpful. If you’d like to show your support for the show, we also have a Patreon with some fun rewards, and a merch store!

Timecodes:

06:59 – Hummingbirds
14:44 – Fendo
18:53 – Soothsayers
29:23 – Brass: Pittsburgh crowdfunding

Thank you to Heart Society for generously letting us use What’s On Your Mind, Kid? from their album Wake the Queens.

If you don’t want to miss an episode, please subscribe on Apple Podcasts/Google Podcasts/Stitcher/Spotify, or add our RSS feed to your favourite app. Reviews and subscriptions really help us and would be greatly appreciated! To download the episode directly, click here.

If you’d like to discuss anything in the episode, please do so in the comments below, visit our BoardGameGeek guild, join our Discord, or Facebook Group! Any feedback is also always helpful. If you’d like to show your support for the show, we also have a Patreon with some fun rewards, and a merch store!

Timecodes:

06:59 – Hummingbirds
14:44 – Fendo
18:53 – Soothsayers
29:23 – Brass: Pittsburgh crowdfunding

Thank you to Heart Society for generously letting us use What’s On Your Mind, Kid? from their album Wake the Queens.

The post BGB Podcast #359 – Top Brass appeared first on Board Game Barrage.