Vince Zampella, Co-Creator of Call of Duty, Dies at 55 in Car Crash
Vince Zampella, a pioneering figure in the video game industry and co-creator of the iconic Call of Duty franchise, died in a car crash in Los Angeles on 23 December 2025 at the age of 55.
Zampella co-founded Infinity Ward alongside Jason West and helped shape the multiplayer shooter genre that remains influential today. He initially led Medal of Honor: Allied Assault as lead designer at 2015, Inc in Tulsa before leaving Electronic Arts when development was moved in-house, leading to the formation of Infinity Ward.
Call of Duty made its debut as a World War II shooter that emphasized squad-based, cinematic battles and authenticity through multiple lead characters. The series transitioned to a modern setting with 2007's Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, which introduced a contemporary near-war narrative and online multiplayer innovations like kill-streaks.
After being fired from Infinity Ward in 2010, Zampella and West co-founded Respawn Entertainment, where they released Titanfall in 2014. Respawn later launched Apex Legends in 2019, which rapidly attracted 10 million players within the first 72 hours.
Zampella also oversaw Respawn’s Star Wars titles, including Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order in 2019 and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor in 2023.
In 2020, Electronic Arts appointed him to lead the Battlefield franchise. Battlefield 6 was released in October 2025 and sold 7 million copies within three days, marking the best opening in the series' history.
