With mobile Runescape in mind, Jagex appoints three familiar faces to reinforce its marketing operations

Jagex announces its second trio of executive signings in just three months, after a triple intake back in November. All the new signings are set to boost the company’s marketing capabilities – and all are well-known to the company.

Ben Clarke, who was former head of global publishing at NaturalMotion, joins as Senior Marketing Director; Steven Tarry, former senior user acquisition manager at Zynga, joins to head Jagex’s user acquisition team; and Steven ‘Shed’ Wilson, former creative and content manager at Multiplay, arrives as head of video and live production.

Ben Clarke joins former NaturalMotion colleague Pete Lovell at Jagex. Before NaturalMotion he spent over five years at Electronic Arts where his last position was director of mobile publishing. Key experience given the launch of RuneScape on mobile later in 2018.

“The longstanding success that Jagex has seen with the RuneScape franchise is unprecedented. To have a devoted following for over 15 years is a testament to Jagex’s live-ops and games-as-a-service approach, and these qualities are fundamental to success on mobile. I am looking forward to being part of this exciting time and helping to deliver the message that RuneScape is a fully-fledged MMORPG that can be played whenever and wherever you want.”

Steven Tarry comes over from NaturalMotion’s parent company Zynga. He was responsible for user acquisition across the Zynga portfolio including CSR Racing 2, Words with Friends and Zynga Poker. Again he brings key mobile experience to the company.

He said: “I’m thrilled to be joining the Jagex team and honoured to work on such an iconic franchise as RuneScape with the greatest players in the world. I look forward to working with the team in Cambridge to increase our publishing capabilities and accelerate our growth across PC and mobile.”

Steven ‘Shed’ Wilson has spent the last eight years at Multiplay, and departs soon after founder Craig Fletcher left the company at the end of last year. He grew the company’s broadcast and production division. Overseeing the delivery of live stage and streaming productions for Multiplay’s Insomnia events. He also worked with third-parties, including Jagex, so he’s no stranger to the company either.

He commented: “Having spent the last five years working with the amazing team at Jagex on their events & video productions, it was the first and most obvious place to look when considering the next step in my career. Jagex has an unrivalled passion for its unique and innovative games, and is well known for investing in people to help drive the company’s vision of living games forward. I’m truly looking forward to what the next few years has in store!”

Speaking about all the appointment, John Burns, SVP of publishing at Jagex said: “This year is incredibly important for Jagex as we continue with our plans for growth and expansion, both in terms of our live games portfolio and team. Launching our RuneScape MMORPGs onto mobile devices in 2018 is a fundamental part of that growth, so it is essential we have the expertise to make them a success. The appointments of Ben Clarke and Steve Tarry, both experienced mobile industry marketers, helps us achieve that, while Shed Wilson’s experience will catapult our video and live productions to the next level.”