Still, there remained some hope that amidst West and Zampella’s lawsuit with Activision that the two would be able to reacquire the franchise and bring that magic they instilled in Modern Warfare back to the series.
Commenting on this issue — as he is wont to do on numerous occasions — analyst and licensed lawyer Michael Pachter says that West and Zampella unfortunately will never be able to reacquire the Call of Duty brand as they were merely employees working on Activision’s property.
When West and Zampella were working for Infinity Ward they may have been granted creative control, but that does not imply ownership of the brand. If creative control is established by the court case, West and Zampella could be looking at reasonable compensation, but as Pachter puts it, “[They] have no prayer of obtaining control of the brand.”
It is disheartening to see two creative people lose control of the series they helped make the juggernaut is today, but West and Zampella were at the whim of Activision. Terminating their employment eliminated that creative control over the property and any entitlement to the brand. Now it’s in the hands of Activision, with employment at Activision being the only way for West and Zampella to work on Call of Duty again.
Infinity Ward, minus West, Zampella, and other key creative people, is still moving forward with their next Call of Duty title as if no lawsuit exists. The developer is experiencing bumps on the road, but those are more likely due to stresses placed by Activision to deliver a yearly Call of Duty.
Though they might not be getting Call of Duty back, we do hope that West and Zampella can turn Respawn Entertainment into just as successful a developer as Infinity Ward.
Do you think, in the long run, that the Call of Duty brand will survive without West and Zampella? What do you hope to see Respawn Entertainment bring us in the future?
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Source: Industry Gamers
