The Witcher 4 Developer CD Projekt Red has hired longtime Blizzard veteran Russell Brower as its new sound director. The award-winning composer will reportedly contribute to both the next Witcher the game and Cyberpunk 2077 continuation.
Brower is best known for his contributions to the audio of some of Blizzard's biggest games ever, including World of Warcraft, star craft 2, Diablo 3, Monitoringand Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft. He is also a three-time Emmy winner for previous television work in the 1990s. After leaving Blizzard in the summer of 2017, the industry veteran continued composing on a freelance basis.
The Witcher 4, 5 and 6 are still targeting an incredibly ambitious launch window
CDPR confirms that the second Witcher trilogy remains on target for an exceptionally ambitious launch schedule, both by studio and industry standards.
Russell Brower joins CDPR as Audio Director
Eight and a half years later, Brower has returned to a major studio leadership role after joining CD Projekt Red as Audio Director. He began the role in January 2026, according to his LinkedIn profile. CDPR did not formally announce the hiring, in line with its typical practice of not publicizing individual appointments, even at the senior leadership level. But based on recent job postings, Brower will likely contribute to both of the company's upcoming AAA projects: The Witcher 4 and that Cyberpunk 2077 continuation.
The Witcher 4 developer assembles an All-Star Team
Brower is far from the first industry veteran to join CDPR in recent months. In November 2025 Witcher 4 developer hired Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 game designer Karel Kolmann, followed by Baldur's Gate 3 senior film artist Felix Pedulla a month later. Both employments suggested The Witcher 4 would be their next project. Given that state of affairs, it appears that CDPR is currently putting together an all-star team for the next one Witcher game.
Brower's resume is as impressive as they come
To date, Brower has amassed over 70 video game credits across more than 35 projects, ranging from Wolf Pack (1993) to Tarisland (2024). During his 12-year tenure at Blizzard, the industry veteran composed large-scale orchestrations with strong thematic hooks and oversaw end-to-end audio management on numerous titles.
Russell Brower's video game credits
|
Year |
Game |
Credit |
|---|---|---|
|
1993 |
Wolf Pack |
Sound effects |
|
1993 |
Ultra bots |
Sound |
|
1994 |
Armor fist |
Sound effects |
|
1996 |
Disney Activity Center: The Lion King |
Original music and sound design |
|
1996 |
F-22 Lightning 2 |
Sound effects |
|
1997 |
Disney is ready for math with Pooh |
Sound design and editing |
|
1997 |
Disney's Animated Storybook: 101 Dalmatians |
Sound research and design |
|
1997 |
Disney is ready to read with Pooh |
Sound design |
|
2002 |
Delta Force: Task Force Dagger |
Audio support |
|
2002 |
Delta Force: Urban Warfare |
Dialogue recording engineer |
|
2003 |
Delta Force: Black Hawk Down |
Mission dialogue, original music |
|
2004 |
Delta Force: Black Hawk Down – Team Saber |
Voice talent |
|
2004 |
Joint Operations: Typhoon Rising |
Musical performance |
|
2004 |
Joint Operations: Escalation |
Dialogue direction |
|
2007 |
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade |
Sound director |
|
2008 |
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King |
Sound director |
|
2010 |
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm |
Sound director |
|
2010 |
StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty |
Composer |
|
2012 |
Diablo 3 |
Composer |
|
2013 |
StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm |
Sound director |
|
2014 |
Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft |
Sound director |
|
2014 |
Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls |
Senior Audio Director, Composer |
|
2014 |
World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor |
Senior Audio Director, Principal Composer |
|
2015 |
Heroes of the Storm |
Sound |
|
2015 |
StarCraft 2: Legacy of the Void |
Senior Audio Director |
|
2016 |
Monitoring |
Senior Audio Director |
|
2016 |
World of Warcraft: Legion |
Senior Audio Director, Principal Composer |
|
2016 |
StarCraft 2: Nova Covert Ops – Mission Pack 3 |
Senior Audio Director |
|
2017 |
StarCraft: Remastered |
Senior Audio Director |
|
2018 |
World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth |
Legacy Theme Composer |
|
2019 |
Arena of Valor: The Return of Volkath |
Composer |
|
2019 |
Dota 2: The International 2019 Music Pack |
Composer |
|
2024 |
Tarisland |
Composer |
The Witcher 4 has been in active development since November 2024. CDPR is still not committing to a concrete release window for its next game. However, the company has twice now stated its intention to release the other Witcher trilogy over six years, which confirms it The Witcher 5 and 6 would have to develop significantly faster than the previous part.
Source: MobyGames, Lymbasy / Reddit
