Vince Zampellaone of the creators of the famous video game call of duty, He died this Sunday at the age of 55 in a traffic accident that occurred while he was driving through the San Gabriel Mountains north of Los Angeles, California. The developer was also behind titles like Apex Legends, Titanfall and the latest installments in the Battlefield series.
According to local media, the accident occurred around 12:45 p.m. while Zampella was traveling with a companion on board Ferrari on Angeles Crest Highway. The vehicle left the road and crashed into a concrete barrier.
The video game developer He was trapped in the car and consumed by flames. Meanwhile, the person traveling with him was ejected and later taken to a nearby hospital, where he also ultimately died.
Local authorities reported that the vehicle driven by the video game developer was one Ferrari 296 GTS model 2026 capable of generating more than 800 horsepower. However, the reasons that led to the accident are currently unknown.
Zampella is considered one of the founders of Zampella, along with Jason West and Grant Collier Infinity Wardthe studio behind the franchise of the popular war video game Call of duty. In 2010 and following the developer’s acquisition by Activision, both Zampella and West were fired and founded Respawn entertainment.
Zampella’s new studio brought games like Titanfall, Apex Legends and the Star Wars Jedi saga. Currently and since 2021 he is responsible for the saga Battlefieldthe sixth part of which had unprecedented sales success in 2025 7 million copies in just 3 days.
After I heard the news, Geoff Keighley Executive producer and host of The Game Awards He posted a heartfelt post on his X account, saying, “I can’t believe I’m writing this.” Vince Zampella a titan of the video game industryCo-creator of Call of Duty and co-founder of Respawn Entertainment, as well as a dear friend, died in a car accident in Los Angeles yesterday.
I can’t believe I’m writing this.
Vince Zampella, a giant of the video game industry, co-creator of Call of Duty and co-founder of Respawn Entertainment, not to mention a dear friend, died yesterday in a car accident in Los Angeles. pic.twitter.com/jW3bT88gsE
— Geoff Keighley (@geoffkeighley) December 22, 2025
The moderator described Zampella as “an extraordinary person.” “A player at heartbut also a Visionary leader with the rare ability to recognize talent and give people freedom and confidence to create something really great,” he said, adding that he cares deeply about doing the right thing. “Even when he works in large organizations, always strived to put the player at the centerto highlight experience, the job and those who have played,” he added.
“Although he created some of the most influential games of our time, I always felt that the best was yet to come.” It’s heartbreaking that we’ll never get to play ithe complained.
The Game Awards mourns Vince Zampella, co-creator of Call of Duty and co-founder of Infinity Ward and Respawn Entertainment. pic.twitter.com/TyiStehwsx
— The Game Awards (@thegameawards) December 22, 2025
As reported diversityCall of Duty is one of the most successful video game series of all time and became the third best-selling franchise in the world after Mario and Tetris, with more than 500 million copies sold and around 100 million monthly players.
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