A beautiful gesture from Infinity Ward: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 pays tribute to Vince Zampella. The shooter's credits feature a dedicated screen simply reading "In memoriam – Vince Zampella." Geoff Keighley noticed this and shared the information on X.
Zampella died in a car accident in December 2025. This was just two months after the release of Battlefield 6, which he had led back to prominence as head of the series.
Who Was Vince Zampella?
Zampella was one of the most influential figures in the modern shooter genre. He began his career as a graphic designer in the 90s, working for companies like Atari and Sega. His big breakthrough came as Lead Designer for Medal of Honor: Allied Assault at Electronic Arts.
After that, he co-founded Infinity Ward with Grant Collier and Jason West. With Activision as publisher, they aimed to build a shooter that would surpass Medal of Honor. You know the result: Call of Duty. Zampella led the studio through numerous installments of the series, up to Modern Warfare 2 in 2009.
Then came the split. Following a bitter dispute with Activision, Zampella and West were fired, and in 2010 they founded Respawn Entertainment. There, they created Titanfall, Titanfall 2, Apex Legends, and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. EA acquired Respawn in 2017.
What Did Zampella Do for Battlefield?
In 2020, Zampella took over the leadership of DICE LA, and a year later, the entire Battlefield series. It desperately needed a reboot, as Battlefield 2042 had been a disaster. With Battlefield 6, the comeback was successful: The shooter sold over 7 million copies in just three days, making it the biggest launch in series history. How things have progressed since then is shown, for example, by the reversal of the XP reduction after Season 5.
When Does Modern Warfare 4 Release?
Modern Warfare 4's multiplayer launches on October 23rd. Those who pre-ordered can already play DMZ starting October 20th. You can find all details regarding times and Early Access in our overview of Early Access, DMZ start, and release times.
From our perspective, this tribute is more than just courtesy. Zampella had not been involved with Call of Duty for over a decade, and his departure from Infinity Ward was anything but peaceful. The fact that the studio still honors him in the credits shows how significant his contribution to both the series and the studio remains. That the very man who revived the rival Battlefield brand is honored in the new Call of Duty is a rare sign of respect transcending publisher boundaries.
Zampella's influence extends far beyond individual brands. Whether you play Call of Duty, Battlefield, or Apex Legends: Without his work, the shooter genre would look different today.
Source: VGC
What does Vince Zampella's legacy mean to you? Tell us in the comments which of his games influenced you the most.
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