Ex-Infinity Ward bosses Jason West and Vince Zampella have opened a new studio called Respawn Entertainment to work with EA under the EA Partners program.

Under the Partners Program, West and Zampella will retain the ownership rights for any Intellectual Property they create – a point of contention in their legal bout with their former Infinity Ward publishing partner, Activision.

"Respawn Entertainment marks a fresh start for Jason and me," said Vince Zampella in a statement.

"We're excited," said Jason West. "Now that the team is in control of the games and brands, we can ensure that the fans are treated as well as they deserve."

Zampella continued, "For the past decade we led a great development team and poured our hearts into creating an epic game franchise.

"We're very proud of what we built - and proud that so many millions of fans enjoyed those games. Today we hope to do it all over again - open a new studio, hire a great team, and create brand new games with a new partner, EA," he said.

EA Games President Frank Gibeau added, "This is the start of a great publishing partnership - one that I expect will develop blockbuster game franchises. Jason and Vince are two of the top creative leaders in the entertainment industry. At EA, we're honoured to be their partners and to give them the support they need to hire a team and return to making incredible games."

In a statement to vg247, Activision wrote, "This agreement comes as no surprise to Activision given the myriad of improper activities detailed in the cross-complaint filed on Friday against Jason West and Vince Zampella. We look forward to continuing to work with Infinity Ward’s deep bench of proven talent on exciting new projects.”