Audio Director (Horror)

We are seeking an experienced Audio Director to lead the sonic vision for our horror game experiences. This role blends creative leadership, technical audio expertise, and cross-disciplinary collaboration to craft deeply immersive, emotionally charged player experiences.

The ideal candidate understands how sound shapes fear, tension, pacing, and psychological storytelling in interactive media. You know when silence is more powerful than music, how to build anticipation through environmental sound, and how to create audio systems that react dynamically to player behavior.

You will oversee all aspects of audio direction including music, sound design, VO implementation, interactive systems, mixing, outsourcing, and team leadership across multiple projects or live content pipelines.

• Lead internal audio teams as well as external composers, sound houses, VO vendors, and freelance partners.
• Provide clear creative feedback, mentorship, and production direction to the team.
• Help build scalable workflows for rapid iteration in production environments.
• Participate in milestone planning, risk assessment, and production prioritization.

• Define and maintain the overall sonic identity for horror-focused game experiences.
• Develop audio strategies that reinforce gameplay tension, emotional pacing, atmosphere, and narrative beats.
• Supervise implementation of adaptive music systems, environmental audio, creature vocalization, jump scares, ambience, and psychological audio cues.
• Partner closely with Creative, Narrative, Design, and Art leadership to ensure cohesive player immersion.

• Oversee creation and integration of high-quality sound effects, ambience, Foley, VO, and music.
• Guide implementation pipelines using Unreal Engine and Metasounds.
• Collaborate with Engineering and Technical Audio teams on interactive audio systems, optimization, and runtime performance.
• Establish audio standards, mix targets, loudness consistency, and platform compliance.

• Manage audio scope, scheduling, outsourcing, and deliverable tracking.
• Ensure high-quality implementation within technical and memory constraints.
• Support live updates, seasonal content, cinematic moments, and gameplay-driven audio needs.
• Partner with QA to identify and resolve audio bugs, mix issues, and implementation inconsistencies.

• 10+ years of professional game audio experience, including 5+ years of leadership experience.
• Shipped at least one horror, suspense, survival, or atmospheric title in a senior audio role.
• Deep understanding of interactive audio systems and player psychology in horror experiences.
• Strong experience with game engines such as Unreal Engine.
• Experience implementing audio using Unreal Engine and Metasounds.
• Strong communication and cross-functional leadership skills.
• Ability to balance creative ambition with production realities and technical constraints.

• Experience with procedural or reactive audio systems.
• Familiarity with Blueprint scripting or gameplay implementation workflows.
• Background in cinematic audio, spatial audio, or psychoacoustic sound design.
• Experience working on multiplayer, live-service, or UGC-enabled games.
• Understanding of accessibility standards for game audio.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Final compensation within the applicable salary range will be determined based on factors such as the applicant’s experience, qualifications, and work location.

San Francisco, CA; New York City, NY; Los Angeles, CA; Seattle, WA; Boston, MA; & Seattle, WA DC Metropolitan Areas:   $188,000 - $224,000 USD annually

Austin, TX; Denver, CO; Nashville, TN; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; & Miami, FL Metropolitan Areas:  $164,000- $195,000 USD annually

All Other U.S. Locations: $139,000 - $166,00 USD annually