When players take it too far ft. Community Manager John Lloyd

Today’s guest is John Lloyd, Community Lead at The Path, a UK-based games marketing agency. John’s journey into community management began long before his first professional role—he spent years building and nurturing player communities in games like Age of Empires II, RuneScape, and Guild Wars 2. His passion for fostering player connection eventually led him to a career at Ubisoft before joining The Path, where he now manages communities across multiple studios and titles. We chat about how early online experiences shaped his community philosophy, the emotional toll of working in highly visible roles, and how he’s learned to protect his mental well-being after facing severe community backlash—including receiving death threats over in-game balance changes. John shares how he handles these difficult situations, the importance of empathy in community work, and why open communication between players and studios is vital. We also talk about his involvement with Limit Break, a UK mentorship program helping underrepresented people find guidance and opportunity in the games industry, and his perspective on mentoring the next generation of community professionals. Finally, John explains what it’s like working at an agency versus a studio, and how he balances multiple clients while staying authentic and transparent. Games mentioned in this episode: Age of Empires II RuneScape Gwent Elder Scrolls: Legends (TCG) Guild Wars 2 Find John on: LinkedIn Limit Break Email: [email protected] The Community Lounge is brought to you by Feature Upvote – Painlessly collect feedback from your players. More insights, less noise. Subscribe to the Community Lounge newsletter and get notified of new episodes and articles.  Chapters (00:00:00) - John Lloyd's Journey into Community Management(00:08:19) - Challenges Faced as a Community Manager(00:22:20) - Mentorship and Community Support(00:28:07) - Working at The Path: A Unique Perspective(00:35:04) - Gaming Interests and Community Connections