Vince Zampella, Call of Duty Co-Creator, Dies in Crash at 55

Vince Zampella, a pioneering video game developer best known as the co-creator of the Call of Duty franchise, died Sunday in a single-vehicle crash on a scenic highway north of Los Angeles. He was 55.

The accident occurred around 12:45 p.m. on Angeles Crest Highway in the San Gabriel Mountains, according to the California Highway Patrol. Authorities reported that the southbound Ferrari veered off the roadway, struck a concrete barrier, and burst into flames. The driver became trapped inside the burning vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene. A passenger was ejected and transported to a hospital, where that individual later succumbed to injuries. It remains unclear whether Zampella was the driver or the passenger, and the cause of the crash is still under investigation.

Zampella's career spanned decades and profoundly shaped the first-person shooter genre. He began in the industry at publisher GameTek and later worked at SegaSoft, where he met Jason West. Together with Grant Collier, they founded Infinity Ward in 2002 after serving as lead designers on Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, a World War II-themed shooter co-written by Steven Spielberg. Infinity Ward secured a deal...