Vince Zampella, 55, former CEO of Infinity Ward, the studio behind the Call of Duty video game series, and director of Respawn Entertainment, has died in a car accident in Los Angeles, NBC4 reports.
According to police, his car went off the road, crashed into a concrete barrier and ejected the passenger. However, the driver was trapped in the burning vehicle and died at the scene. Authorities told NBC4 that the passenger died at the hospital.
Zampella's death in the crash was also confirmed by gaming journalist and The Game Awards host Jeff Keeley. "Vince Zampella, a titan of the video game industry, creator of Call of Duty, co-founder of Respawn Entertainment, and a close friend of mine, died yesterday in a car accident in Los Angeles," he wrote.
Zampella began his career in the industry in the 1990s. He began his career at GameTek and Atari before becoming the lead designer on Medal of Honor: Allied Assault. He later founded Infinity Ward, where he led the development of Call of Duty 2, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, among others. After developing Call of Duty, publisher Activision acquired Infinity Ward.
After leaving Activision in 2010, Zampella founded Respawn Entertainment, which publishes the Titanfall series. The developer was later acquired by Electronic Arts (EA). Under the new publisher's leadership, Respawn Entertainment released Apex Legends, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
As of 2021, Zampella has held a senior position at EA, responsible for the Battlefield series. He is leading the development of Battlefield 6, which is scheduled for release in 2025.