Vince Zampella, the former co-founder and studio head of Infinity Ward and, more recently, the head of Respawn Entertainment, has died at age 55. According to an NBC Los Angeles report, Zampella was killed Sunday, December 21, in a car crash involving a 2026 Ferrari 296 GTS on Southern California’s Angeles Crest Highway. It was a single-car crash, reported around 12:45 PM Pacific.
The California Highway Patrol said the Ferrari was heading southbound when it veered off the road just after exiting a tunnel and hit a concrete barrier. Zampella was confirmed to be the driver of the vehicle and was trapped in the ensuing car fire. He was pronounced dead at the scene, while an unknown passenger in the vehicle was ejected and later died at the hospital.
Zampella is one of the most influential video game designers in the industry, especially in the first-person shooter (FPS) space. He formed Infinity Ward along with Jason West and Grant Collier, leading to the creation of the Call of Duty series. Activision acquired Infinity Ward shortly after the first game’s release, and under Activision, Zampella went on to create Call of Duty 2, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
After a breakup with Activision, Zampella founded Respawn Entertainment, which led to great games like Titanfall, Titanfall 2, and the Star Wars Jedi series. Respawn was eventually acquired by EA in 2017, and Zampella continued to lead Respawn Entertainment and recently contributed to Battlefield 6. It’s a huge loss for the industry.
