Jagex names Phil Mansell as COO and acting CEO

Phil Mansell has been named as the COO and acting CEO of Runescape developer Jagex following the departure of outgoing CEO Rod Cousens.

Mansell was previously the VP of Studios at Jagex, and brings 18 years of games industry experience to the role after stints with Bullfrog, Sony, EA and Climax in a variety of lead game design roles. He’s been with Jagex since 2011, when he joined as a lead designer.

As Jagex, Mansell has been credited with encouraging a resurgence in both Runescape and it’s classic variant, leading to Jagex posting record financial results last year. Jagex was purchased in September last year by a group of Chinese investors and is now the major part of the publicly listed Chinese games outfit Zhongji Holding.

Jagex recently outlined their current strategy, which involves expanding the Runescape franchise, with new games and multimedia opportunities based on the Runescape IP. Currently this has involved the release of card game Chronicle and mobile game Runescape Idle Adventures, with Runescape’s first expansion expected to come this year.

In an emailed statement, Mansell said: “Off the back of record financial performance, Jagex is in an incredibly fortunate and positive position. We have become stronger with every year that passes and now that we are united with our parent company, ZhongJi Holding, it is both an honour and a privilege to be take Jagex to its next stage.”