Samantha Ryan
For this Electronic Arts SVP, Success Is All About How You Play the Games Samantha Ryan joined Electronic Arts in March 2015 as senior vice president and group general manager for EA Mobile, where she will lead the PopCap, Waystone, and Firemonkeys teams to drive successful live services and develop the next generation of mobile games. In her new role at Electronic Arts, she’s tasked with leading incredible mobile games like
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PROFILES IN DIVERSITY JOURNAL Summer 2015
Plants vs. Zombies, Real Racing, and Bejeweled, and applying her experience in AAA console and PC franchises to the mobile landscape. “I grew up as a gamer,” said Samantha. “We had an Atari 2600 and a Commodore 64 growing up. At that time, you couldn’t pursue a degree in games, but In the back of my mind I wanted to do something I was really passionate about. I always knew.” As the lead on games like MiddleEarth: Shadow of Mordor, Mortal Kombat X and Batman Arkham Knight for Warner Bros., Samantha is one of the few women who have led the development of “core” videogames. Her leadership on Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor led to it being named to countless “Game of the Year” lists and recognized as one of the most critically acclaimed games of 2014. Samantha has emerged as a formidable leader in the interactive entertainment industry traditionally dominated by men. Prior to joining EA, Samantha served as senior vice president of production and development for Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, where she played a critical role in the success of titles such as Injustice: Gods Among Us, the award-winning Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, and the Batman: Arkham Franchise. “I was President of Monolith Productions when Warner Bros. acquired the company,” said Samantha. “I had the opportunity to manage all of Warner Bros. Studios, going from managing a 100-person team to eventually over 2,000 worldwide. I got to be there for the full ride.” Samantha Ryan lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her family. PDJ
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