Game developer and father to three children, Vince Zampella, was killed in a car crash on Sunday afternoon. According to NBC4 out of Los Angeles, the crash took place around 12:45 PM on Southern California's Angeles Crest Highway.
The California Highway Patrol says that the car was heading southbound on the road when it began to veer off to the side. The car "hit a concrete barrier and a passenger was ejected." The car then caught on fire with the driver stuck inside. The driver was reported to have passed away at the scene of the crash while the passenger died a short time later in the hospital. The California Highway Patrol did not share information on if Zampella was the driver or passenger, nor did they share what they think the reason was for the car to veer off the road to begin with.
Zampella was a founder of Respawn Entertainment in April 2010. While with Respawn, the studio released two games in the Titanfall franchise, Apex Legends, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. Zampella was also put in charge of Ripple Effect Studios where he worked with the team to get Battlefield 2042 back on track after that game's launch.
Prior to founding Respawn Entertainment, Zampella was the lead designer for Medal of Honor: Allied Assault. He then went on to found Infinity Ward. Infinity Ward's first title was 2003's Call of Duty.
Between Call of Duty, Medal of Honor, Battlefield, Apex Legends, and the Star Wars Jedi titles, it's impossible to state just how massive of an impact Zampella had on the gaming industry. He will surely be missed.
Our best wishes go out to Zampella's family and friends.
The most recent display of his character was when the EA app was having issues during the launch of BF6 and he simply told people to get refunds and buy it on Steam instead stating "that's where i'm playing it", which would have probably got him in hot water with his bosses if he weren't responsible for so much success in the company, or maybe i'm just impressed by any displays of warmth in this cold cold industry.
MOHAA is one of my favourite games of all time.