Is it fate? Seven of the 11 employees that parted ways with Modern Warfare developer Infinity Ward on a terse note have joined the ranks of Respawn Entertainment, the new venture formed earlier this month by fired IW co-founders Jason West and Vince Zampella. As the studio made a call-to-hire immediately following its launch, it’s no surprise to see these employees reuniting under the leadership of two familiar faces.

Leading the pack is former IW lead designer Todd Alderman, joined by lead animators Mark Grisby and John Paul Messerly, according to a G4TV report. Lead artist Chris Cherubini has also jumped ship, along with software engineer Rayme C. Vinson, programmer Jon Shiring, and Mackey McCandlish.

Slowly but surely, the core driving force behind Modern Warfare is reassembling. At this point, seeing more IW staff defect to Respawn would hardly shock us.

UPDATE: Seven (And Counting) Ex-Infinity Ward Employees Join Respawn [G4TV]

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