Vince Zampella, Call of Duty Co-Creator and Respawn Founder, Dies at 55 in Car Crash

Vince Zampella, the visionary co-founder of Infinity Ward and Respawn Entertainment, died Sunday, December 22, 2025, at age 55 in a single-car crash on Angeles Crest Highway near Los Angeles. Electronic Arts, Zampella's employer as GM of Respawn and group GM for EA studios, confirmed the news Monday, calling him a "titan" whose passion defined multiplayer gaming.

Zampella co-founded Infinity Ward in 2002 with Jason West, birthing the Call of Duty franchise in 2003. The series revolutionized the FPS market with cinematic campaigns and addictive online multiplayer modes, selling over 425 million copies lifetime. Hits like Modern Warfare (2007) introduced killstreaks, prestige, and squad-based chaos, setting the blueprint for all modern shooters.

Fired by Activision in 2010 amid royalty disputes, Zampella and West founded Respawn in 2010, debuting the excellent Titanfall in 2014. Its wall-running, Titan drops, and seamless multiplayer earned acclaim, influencing later games like Apex Legends.

EA acquired Respawn for $455M in 2017 and Zampella became Battlefield franchise GM in 2021, overseeing Battlefield 2042's rocky launch and reboot efforts as well as the recent success of Battlefield 6.

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Zampella's death leaves a void at EA, where his leadership has been critical for the success of Apex and the turn-around of Battlefield. While the teams at EA and Respawn will continue to carry on his legacy it will be a massive hit to everyone working on the games that he helped to shape.

Zampella's multiplayer innovations; fast-paced gameplay, accessibility to a wide audience, and focus on community building, are seen everywhere today. And he was seen as a visionary leader in the industry, who will be sorely missed.

We here at GameMinr send up our prayers for Vince and his family in this difficult time.

(Sources: BBC, LA Times)