Vince Zampella in the Memories of Todd Howard and Hideo Kojima
The father of CoD and Titanfall in the words of other great developers
Vince Zampella was a great man, a giant, a true titan of the video game industry: the career of the brilliant mind who conceived masterpieces like Medal of Honor, Call of Duty, Titanfall, Apex Legends, and more, was likely cut short in the car accident he was involved in last December.
A career that was nonetheless long and successful, as we summarized HERE, and which is now being remembered by his collaborators and other great developers and friends who had the pleasure and honor of knowing the great Vince.
The occasion is the annual DICE Summit taking place these days in Las Vegas, during which Electronic Arts dedicated a panel to the creator of the latest Battlefield 6, and for the occasion, several illustrious figures, though not present on stage, sent their messages.
"His legacy isn't solely in the franchise or the awards – declares Laura Miele, President of Electronic Arts Entertainment according to the Game File report – It lives in every studio that chooses trust over fear, work over shortcuts, people over ego."
Zampella, Howard, Kojima, and the Unmade MGS
One of the testimonials came from Todd Howard of Bethesda, who recounts: "Vince was always on point: I always asked for his advice on every game I made, or on how the industry was moving." Howard added that he had nominated Zampella for a lifetime achievement award, but Vince had declined at the time.
Even more heartfelt was the testimony of Hideo Kojima: the creator of Death Stranding, as reported by Geoff Keighley, met Zampella after the release of Metal Gear Solid IV and the two had even entertained the idea of jointly developing a new first-person MGS, a project unfortunately never realized. It was no coincidence then that Kojima, after leaving Konami, also visited Zampella during his tour of various studios around the world before opening Kojima Productions: "He gave me a lot of support and advice – declares Hideo-san in his message – He showed me his studio and I incorporated some of the best aspects into ours."
To remind us once again of how valuable Vince Zampella's work was, we leave you with our Review of Battlefield 6.