April 12, 2010 - Infinity Ward founders and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare designers Jason West and Vince Zampella announced this morning the formation of Respawn Entertainment, an independent studio that will develop games under the EA Partners program.
In an interview with IGN, West and Zampella discussed their new publishing deal with Electronic Arts, their desire to have control over their franchises, and making sure to not forget about the fans of their games.
While details on the team's direction are slim, Respawn Entertainment's first project could rival that of Call of Duty in terms of budget size and marketing blitz.
"It's going to be a big blockbuster; we know what we want to do in terms of scope and impact," West told IGN. "In terms of the game itself, it's entirely up in the air. The sky's the limit and we're focusing on hiring as a team right now."
The day after West and Zampella were fired from Activision the two received offers from just about every gaming publisher. West said the EA Partners program offered the best and most creative deal.
"We talked to all the major publishers and we were presented with deals," added West. "It really comes down to who's going to respect our culture, give us the freedom to do what we want to do, and let us own the IP so we can assure quality, and EA Partners did that for us."
