Now in it's third year the MCV Pacific 30 Under Thirty returns to crown the class of 2014.
The below list celebrates the up and coming talent across Australia and New Zealand. Covering all parts of the Games Industry, the MCV Pacific 30 Under Thirty highlights those to watch.
To this year's thirty - a huge and well deserved congratulations!
Liz, also known as ‘Fooliz’ to EA’s dedicated community, is the Maxis, BioWare and PopCap Community Specialist. Liz was integral in driving and delivering a number of community focused events, such as the E3 Cinematic Event, the Live Stream of EA’s Gamescom Press Conference at Sydney’s Bavarian Bier Café and PAX Australia. Liz was a key team member working on the planning and execution of the campaigns for The Sims 4 and Dragon Age: Inquisition and is focused on building and nurturing fans across EA’s owned channels.
Charlie is one of the newest members of the IGN team, having signed on early in 2014. Charlie spent time previously with media agency Mediacom, working across the Electronic Arts portfolio. Charlie joint manages IGN’s extensive advertising network, ensuring IGN’s business runs at its most optimum. Charlie is brimming with creativity and new ideas to integrate an advertiser’s message into the site. Charlie is recognised as one of the up and coming talents in the Ziff Davis family.
Seen by many as the face of video games in Australia, “Hex” hosts both Good Game and Good Game Spawn Point on ABC TV, a role she has filled since 2010. As further evidence of her industry Status, Stephanie will host the MCV Pacific Wards for the third time this May. Stephanie has been a longtime advocate for female gamers and continues to grow her already massive fan base. At 29 Stephanie has become a main stay and household name in the Australian Games Industry.
Chris is the community lead for EA SPORTS in the Asia Pacific Region. Chris drives social media and community engagement across to a huge audience, which on top of APAC, includes the Middle East and South Africa. Chris is a key member of the EA SPORTS team, having had a strong 2014. Chris directly worked with both gaming and sporting communities for successful launches across the FIFA, UFC and other EA SPORTS brands.
Over the past twelve months, Jane has moved from strength to strength within the EB Games Community Team. Jane recently ascended to the role of Community Manager and is now responsible for EB’s social media channels, which are comprised of 450,000 followers and one of the most engaged retail communities in Australia. Jane was instrumental in the running of several EB Events, including the hugely successful midnight launches for Destiny, Pokémon Alpha Sapphire and Pokémon Omega Ruby and Call of Duty Advanced Warfare. Jane was also tasked with managing the Community Hub at EB Expo.
Josh is nigh on 30 Under Thirty royalty, entering the list for the third successive time. Josh has been an influential driving force for classification reform in Australia, including the R18+ rating in Australia, as well as movements towards mobile and online classification reform. As the legal expert for the Australian games industry, Josh is a force to be reckoned with.
Eileen is responsible for EA’s email marketing communications across eleven territories in Asia-Pacific. Eileen delivered high quality work whilst facing challenging requirements during the Titanfall Beta and EA SPORTS’ push into the Middle East market in 2014. Eileen has consistently improved all of EA’s key metrics in CRM and was also integral in helping with the delivery of the over-arching Asia-Pacific digital communications strategy. Eileen has recently joined EA’s Global Network Engagement team to deliver on EA’s CRM and player engagement strategies for Asia Pacific.
Alice has taken games and the issues within to the masses, writing as a freelance journalist since 2007. Alice is best known for her work within the Herald Sun and The Age newspapers in Melbourne, often using her Herald Sun opinion column to speak out for women in games. In addition, Alice hosts Planeswalker Plus, the Magic the Gathering segment of New Game Plus on Channel 31 and was the co-organiser for the Diversity Lounge at PAX Aus which was designed to create inclusive gaming communities.
2014 was a break out year for Matthew. Having started as a senior writer with NZ Gamer in early 2013, Matthew rose to the role of News Editor in 2014. Matthew has been cited as an integral part of the New Zealand Games Industry, whose feature articles have helped shape the way Kiwi’s view gaming. One to watch for the future, Matthew is set to have a big gaming career ahead of him.
Emmelita joined IGN in 2013 and has been an integral part of the sales team ever since. Emmelita’s focus has been working with the world’s biggest brands and integrating them with the games we know and love across all of IGN’s touch points. 2014 was a fantastic year for Emmelita, she was able to introduce many non-endemic brands to the world of interactive gaming and is now focused on IGN’s games partners’ full time.
Over the past twelve months, Henry has continued to go from strength to strength with Dick Smith, seeing him return to the 30 Under Thirty for the second straight year. Henry has fast become the backbone of Dick Smith’s gaming team with the retailer making a huge push into the market last year. In addition to his work with catalogue execution and in store layouts, Henry a long-time gamer has become an integral part of the decision making process and is on the front line, liaising with both suppliers and stores.
Emma is part of the next generation of the Australian Games Industry, bursting on to the Games Industry scene in 2014. Since establishing her YouTube Channel under the alias of “EmmaExegames” she has continued to build a steady a loyal fan base, with the channel now boasting almost 6,500 subscribers. Emma joined the Surprise Attack team in September 2014 and has quickly proven herself as a valuable asset to the team. Emma is a double threat, as she continues to run her YouTube channel and is the fast track to become an industry force.
After founding Press Start Australia in 2013, Shannon has quickly grown the site by employing a unique social media based strategy. Shannon has grown Press Start’s social media audience to in excess of 15,000 followers – 10,000 on Twitter alone. Press start has become an up and coming site for all gaming news, thanks in large to Shannon’s tireless hard work and dedication. In addition to writing a large amount of the site himself, Shannon manages a small team of writers and is responsible for the website design, coding and back-end.
Papu returns to the 30 Under Thirty for the third straight year, continuing to drive the marketing and sales of Activision’s licensed title ranges across Australia and New Zealand. Papu has proven himself to be a highly efficient, dynamic and methodical marketing professional with experience in maximising awareness to drive sales and profitability. After kicking off his career with Xbox Australia and continuing on at Activision, Papu has cemented himself in the industry and at only 29 has big things ahead of him.
Daniel is one of Australia’s brightest young writers and has constantly pushed himself on to bigger and better things. Daniel has filled the editor’s chair at both PC PowerPlay and Gamespot and created his own stealth gaming site and ad-free independent print publication Sneaky Bastards – with all of this was achieved before his 25th birthday. 2014 marks Daniel’s third entry into the 30 Under Thirty and given his age, we don’t think it will be his last.
Jess, also known as “Jiggsy”, is the Community Specialist for EA’s shooter and action Category and is an integral member of the EA iCommunications team. Jess has successfully developed and executed countless social media campaigns and community events and assisted in the management of Global and Local Facebook pages, with a combined total of over 20 million fans. In 2014, Jess spearheaded the “The Battlefield Film Challenge”, an ANZ initiative designed to celebrate the passionate and creative community the game has cultivated over the past 10 years. The top five videos were showcased in a Film Festival-style screening at the internationally recognised Bondi Pavilion.
Returning to the 30 Under Thirty for the second consecutive year, James joined Australian indie publisher and marketing consultancy firm Surprise Attack as head of communications in March 2014. Hitting the ground running, he was heavily involved in Surprise Attack Games' flagship launch, Screencheat, which was featured in all major international gaming media outlets. Meanwhile, at Surprise Attack Consulting, James was an integral part of bringing in and executing new agency business for Wasteland 2, SMITE, Never Alone, Curve Digital, Rising Star Games, Mindscape, and Team 17.
Since joining EB Games in 2009, Elisha has steadily climbed the ranks at EB. As EB’s marketing manager, Elisha is responsible for ensuring all marketing and point of sale are delivered in store. Elisha spearheads the company’s involvement with the Starlight Children’s Foundation during Starlight Week – an event that has become a cornerstone of the gaming calendar. Her colleagues have described her as a critical part of the chain that makes EB Games so successful. Elisha’s influence and dedication to her job, the company and to Starlight are second to none.
Working across all of EA’s brands in Australia & New Zealand, Kate has played a vital role in the iCommunications team. Throughout 2014, Kate was a crucial member in the planning and execution of events such as the Dragon Age: Inquisition Preview Event and the EA SPORTS and Adidas FIFA Fans First Event - consistently proving her dedication and skills to the industry and her team. Kate has also provided valuable support in the development and implementation of the Australia and New Zealand PR strategies, media relations and talent engagement.
Since joining EB Expo in 2012, Nicky has quickly progressed and is now second-in-charge of the EB Event Team. Nicky has well established herself within the company and its events and is now joint organiser of EB Expo and all of EB Games’ other events. In 2014, Nicky took charge of the planning and execution of the Robot Wars UK show which was featured at EB Expo and was responsible for EB Games’ three large event trials at Brisbane EKKA, the Adelaide Show and Supernova Brisbane. Nicky is a highly respected member of the EB Games team with a bright future ahead.
Since starting with CBSi as a Campaign Manager in 2011, Jayde has quickly become an integral part of the CBSi business team. Jayde was quickly promoted to her role as Account Executive in 2012, which she still holds. A consummate professional, Jayde’s outgoing, bubbly and bright personality has married perfectly with her work ethic and has seen her become one of the industry’s leading talents. Working across a portfolio of the industry’s who’s who, Jayde is an up and comer to watch.
Jason has been known for producing great video editorial in gaming for several years now, and has led his team in producing two full years of weekly TV shows since the advent of New Game Plus, following its many previous iterations. Jason has also been a driving force in guiding his team’s successful transitioning to streaming and on demand video production, as well as event and video production services. During his career, Jason has maintained his passion and energy for gaming and has been admired by his peers and the industry alike.
Eve returns for the second straight year after transitioning from National Account Executive to her new role as Category Manager – Gaming in April of 2014. Eve has been an integral part in the advent and success of Incomm’s business and the overall take up of prepaid digital gaming solutions into Australian retail. Rising from her humble beginnings at store level in JB Hifi to where she is today, Eve has proven herself to be a star of today and one to keep an eye on for the future.
Florian has fast become an integral part of Ubisoft Australia’s marketing team and returns to the 30 Under Thirty in 2014. After moving to the firm as a Marketing and Sales Assistant after leaving Sony France, Florian was promoted in May last year to Trade Marketing Executive and plays a key role in the way Ubisoft takes their product to market. At only 26 years old, Florian has a big future ahead of him and is one person we can expect to see in this list over the coming years.
Since joining the SCEA online team in 2013, Adam has gone from strength to strength, overlooking the content and digital strategies for PlayStation’s social media and digital channels across Australia and New Zealand. Since Adam’s joining, SCEA’s social channels have grown exponentially and he deservedly returns to the 30 Under Thirty again in 2014. Adam, through his tireless work, has earned the respect of his peers and the industry.
Evan joined the IGN in 2014 after having spent time at media agency Mediacom, working across Electronic Arts accounts. We have been told, that while his FIFA skills need some work, his gaming credentials truly shine when it comes to strategy and action RPGs. Evan is now looking after the Ziff Davis Tech portfolio and has successfully grown IGN’s presence within the gaming hardware and peripherals industry.
Cassandra joined Rinsed just over two years ago as an Account Coordinator. Since then she has been promoted to Account Manager, working across Product Launches, Consumer Events, Media Events and Experiential Activations. In addition to her management of the Activision account, Cassandra is credited for her creative edge from her design background allowing her to bring the events to life. Cassandra work across Activision’s 2012 and 2014 EB Expo booths, Activision’s 2014 JB Hifi Conference booth, the Skylanders Giants Influencer Launch and Skylanders Giants Activation at the Easter Show, have garnered her praise from her team and client alike.
Daniel is the undisputed voice of all things Nintendo in Australia and returns to the 30 Under Thirty again in 2014. Known simply as ‘Vook’, Daniel has been the go to source for all Nintendo news, previews and reviews for over 15 years. He is known industry wide for his work ethic, diligence and ‘nose to the ground’ ability to break stories. With the new look and new direction that the Vooks site has taken, Daniel will continue to drive the Nintendo story forward.
Alex has earned a reputation as one of Australia’s most prolific and broad writers in the Australian gaming media. Alex first started as specialist eSports writer but has branched out to traditional gaming criticism, pursued overlooked problems in gaming culture and has interviewed some of the most influential members of the industry about challenging topics. Alex is a senior writer and contributor for ABC Technology & Games, and has contributed for games.on.net and Techly. In 2014 Alex was recognised for his talents, being nominated for the 2014 Optus IT Journalism awards for Best Video Game Journalist and has spoken at PAX Aus for the last two years on the state of eSports in Australia.
Put simply Jamie is the face of Nintendo in Australia and has continued to deliver time and time again after taking on an expanded role in 2013, which saw him recognised in that year’s 30 Under Thirty. 2014 was a massive year for Nintendo with the launch of several of the company’s biggest selling titles, including Super Smash Bros. on both Wii U and 3DS, as well as the New 3DS and 3DS XL handhelds – Jamie took it all in his stride.