Mikolai Stroinski (or Mikołaj Stroiński, ; born 3 June 1979) is a Polish film, television, and video game composer. He is best known for composing music for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, The Witcher 3: Blood and Wine, Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, Age of Empires IV, Metamorphosis, Diablo Immortal, and Nobody Wants to Die. His work has received international recognition through awards from the Society of Composers & Lyricists, the Game Audio Network Guild, Digital Dragons, D.I.C.E and IGN the Canadian Game Awards, and other organizations.
Life and career He comes from a musical family. His father, Wojciech Stroiński, was a trumpeter and pianist in the Royal Rag Jazz Band in Poland (1969–1981). Mikolai was born in Nairobi, Kenya, and grew up in Warsaw and Zalesie Górne near the Polish capital. He graduated from the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice and the Berklee College of Music (2001) in Boston (2004), where he studied film scoring and jazz piano under Ray Santisi.
Career
Early work After graduating from Berklee College of Music, Stroinski settled in Los Angeles and established a music production studio. During the early stages of his career he composed and produced music for American television networks including CBS, NBC, ABC, FOX, Discovery Channel, History Channel, TLC, Spike TV, Lifetime, Animal Planet, and the CW. His music was used in numerous reality, documentary, and entertainment programs, including The Apprentice, Survivor, Kitchen Nightmares, Hell's Kitchen, Big Brother, Pawn Stars, and America's Next Top Model. He worked with David Vanacore for those shows.
He also worked on film and television productions in both Europe and North America, composing scores for feature films, documentaries, and television dramas. Among his early projects were Wonderful Summer, Modjeska – Woman Triumphant, Hired Gun, Paradoks, Bez Tajemnic (the Polish adaptation of ''In Treatment''), and Zbrodnia.
Video game music Stroinski's international profile increased substantially through his work in the video game industry. His score for The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (2014) received critical acclaim and established him as one of the leading composers working in narrative-driven games.
In 2015 he served as one of the principal composers of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, collaborating with Marcin Przybyłowicz and contributing several of the game's best-known musical themes. He later composed music for the acclaimed expansion Blood and Wine (2016), helping shape the musical identity of the duchy of Toussaint. The soundtrack received widespread praise and contributed to the game's numerous industry awards.
Following the success of The Witcher 3, Stroiński composed music for a diverse range of titles, including GWENT, Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales, Sniper Ghost Warrior 3, Bee Simulator, Metamorphosis, Chernobylite, Age of Empires IV, Diablo Immortal, and Nobody Wants to Die. His work is characterized by the integration of orchestral writing, ethnic instrumentation, electronic textures, and thematic storytelling.
In the 2020s he continued to compose for major international productions, including Riot Games' League of Legends, Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo Immortal, and Rebel Wolves' The Blood of Dawnwalker.
Animation Animation has become a focus of Stroinski's career. He has composed scores for animated feature films including Diplodocus (released in the United States as The Green Dinosaur), The Boy at the Edge of the World, and Wonderland, starring Mads Mikkelsen. He is also composing the score for the upcoming Moss, which is currently in production.
Film and television Alongside his game work, Stroinski has an active career in film and television. His credits include documentary, dramatic, and animated productions such as Over the Limit, Dangerous Words from the Fearless, The Liberator, Queen, Diplodocus, and The Boy at the Edge of the World. His music has been featured in productions distributed by Netflix and other international broadcasters.
Musical style and influences Stroinski's compositions frequently combine large-scale orchestral writing with folk, jazz, electronic, and world-music influences. Critics have noted his ability to create highly atmospheric musical environments that support narrative storytelling while maintaining strong melodic identities. His work often emphasizes cultural specificity, particularly in historical and fantasy settings, while employing contemporary production techniques.
His scores for The Witcher series are particularly noted for their use of Slavic musical influences and regional instrumentation, while later projects such as Age of Empires IV and Diablo Immortal demonstrate a broader global and historical palette.
Selected works Video games Year Game Developer 2014 MouseCraft Crunching Koalas The Vanishing of Ethan Carter The Astronauts The Witcher Adventure Game CD Projekt Red, Can Explode Games 2015 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt CD Projekt Red 2017 Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 CI Games Gwent: The Witcher Card Game CD Projekt Red 2018 Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales CD Projekt Red Jujubee Attack of the Earthlings Team Junkfish Detached: Non-VR Edition Anshar Studios2019 Varsav Game Studios2019 Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts CI Games 2020 Metamorphosis Ovid Works2021 Chernobylite The Farm 51 Age of Empires IV Relic Entertainment, World's Edge2022 Diablo Immortal Blizzard Entertainment, NetEase2024 Nobody Wants to Die Critical Hit Games2025 Assassin's Creed Jade Ubisoft2026 The Blood of Dawnwalker Rebel Wolves, Bandai Namco Entertainment
Television
Breakthrough with Tony Robbins (2010) Baby Boomer Bunnies (2011) Paradoks (2012) Without Secrets (2012–2013) Zbrodnia (2014–2015) Kaprys losu (2016) The Liberator (2020) Capelli Code (2021) Queen (2022)
Film
Hired Gun (2009) Modjeska – Woman Triumphant (2009) Wonderful Summer (2010) Marchewkowe pole (2016) Over the Limit (2017) Dangerous Words from the Fearless (2017) Diplo: The Mighty Dinosaur (2024) The Boy at the Edge of the World (2025)
Awards and nominations YearResultAwardCategoryWorkRef.2014Annual Game Music AwardsBest Score Orchestral / Cinematic;Outstanding Contribution – Newcomer of the YearThe Vanishing of Ethan Carter201518th Annual D.I.C.E. AwardsOutstanding Achievement in Original Music CompositionGame Developers Choice AwardsBest AudioHollywood Music in Media AwardsBest Original Score – Video GameThe Witcher 3: Wild HuntNAVGTR AwardsOriginal Dramatic Score, FranchiseBest of IGNBest Original MusicThe Game AwardsBest Score / SoundtrackPlayStation.Blog Game of the Year AwardsBest SoundtrackGlobal Game AwardsBest Audio2019Digital Dragons AwardsBest Game SoundtrackThronebreaker: The Witcher Tales2020Music+Sound AwardsBest Original Composition in GamingGame Audio Network Guild AwardsBest Original Instrumental;Best Music in a Casual Game;Best Original Soundtrack AlbumBest Music for an Indie Game2021MetamorphosisMusic of the YearSociety of Composers & LyricistsOutstanding Original Score for Interactive Media2022Canadian Game AwardsBest Score / SoundtrackAge of Empires IV
References
External links (in English)
Mikolai Stroinski in Polish Internet Movie Database (in Polish)