Call of Duty has been a titan of the gaming industry for over 22 years. There are 22 mainline titles in the Call of Duty series, but across the core developers of Infinity Ward, Treyarch Studios, Sledgehammer Games, and Raven Software, which of these annual releases can be considered the most iconic and successful? Below, we've compiled the best Call of Duty games that players should experience, as these COD games will engage players of all kinds with their selection of Multiplayer maps, exciting gameplay, memorable Campaign, and, of course, the terrifying Zombies.
Modern Warfare Vs Black Ops: Which Is The Best Call Of Duty Series?
Modern Warfare and Black Ops are the two staples of Call of Duty, but which series can be crowned as the king of the franchise?
Call of Duty 2
The Call of Duty That Laid the Groundwork Thanks to An Amazing Set of Campaigns
- Released
- October 25, 2005
- ESRB
- m
- Developer(s)
- Infinity Ward
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Engine
- iw, id tech 3
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- FPS
There's a reason Call of Duty continues on years later, and Call of Duty 2 can be thanked for that. While many modern gamers might not have played Call of Duty 2, they still need to respect that, although it's not the most recent COD, it's still the most deserving when it comes to recognition as one of the greatest. Call of Duty 2 stole the show in 2005 with its intense portrayal of World War 2, in which players are placed into realistic and immense battles spanning worldwide conflicts.
There's a lot to love about the "old but gold" style of its Multiplayer, and it holds strong as a great FPS game. However, being such an old title, players might be more interested in its Campaign than the Multiplayer, and there's nothing wrong with that, since the multiple Campaigns provided are impressive, as immersive as they are intense, and a true experience to play through.
Call of Duty: World at War
Showcasing the Horrors of World War 2, Now With Zombies!
- Released
- November 11, 2008
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Treyarch
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Engine
- IW
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- FPS
World at War was the start of something entirely unique in Call of Duty, partly due to the fact that it was the last World War 2 entry in the series for 9 years. World at War continued the tradition of gritty realism, as players battle across the Eastern Front as the U.S. Marines, while the Soviets take to Germany in a war epic unrivalled in gore and brutality. Not only does World at War have one of the most memorable Campaigns, but it also started a trend that would become a pillar of Call of Duty with its Zombies mode.
Zombies invited players to Nacht der Untoten, with an entirely unique arcade-style round-based mode where players must survive against waves of the undead. This mode was as terrifying as it was fun, and proved the potential of Treyarch Studios going forward. The Campaign and Zombies were stellar, and the innovation featured in Multiplayer, with its riveting maps and robust selection of weapons, perks, and maps, made World at War an all-timer Call of Duty title.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007)
Gritty, Grounded, in an All-New Modern Setting, and Create a Class System
- Released
- November 5, 2007
- ESRB
- m
- Developer(s)
- Infinity Ward
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Engine
- IW
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- FPS
Modern Warfare (2007) is seen as one of the greatest Call of Duty games of all time, and for good reason. Modern Warfare reinvented the series with its first inclusion into the modern world, separating itself from World War 2 to bring the more recent conflicts of the globe to light. Modern Warfare proved that it can use the modern setting to remain gritty and grounded thanks to its Campaign, but it's also the Multiplayer that deserves the credit for making Call of Duty so successful.
The Multiplayer of Modern Warfare changed the landscape of Call of Duty forever with its revolution of maps and classes to create. In terms of maps, Modern Warfare provided a thrilling landscape of close, medium, and long-range maps, all with intricate designs that made for intense engagements of warfare. The range of weapons, attachments, and perks really laid the foundation of what the future of Call of Duty would become, and it's a system that's followed forward with every Call of Duty without fail, but with deeper innovation.
Call of Duty: WW2
A Return to Boots on the Ground with Sprawling Action and Division
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 78 /100 Critics Rec: 70%
- Released
- August 25, 2017
- ESRB
- m
- Developer(s)
- Sledgehammer Games, Raven Software
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- First-Person Shooter
Call of Duty was stuck in the past for years, but then it seemed to get stuck in the future, leaving players at a loss for what they want next. Call of Duty decided to go back to its roots, 9 years after its last World War 2 game, to create WW2. This title was a return to form with boots on the ground action in the midst of WW2, and it didn't disappoint (for some). The Campaign was breathtaking in design, and its real stories of battles and soldiers, and the Zombies returned the series to Nazi horror experiments, only to fumble after the first map with lackluster DLCs. However, Multiplayer (slowly) became a saving grace.
The Multiplayer for WW2 wasn't great on launch. The Divisions system was restrictive, and the map designs just weren't that great. However, after a few updates, WW2 was overhauled to provide greater freedom with Divisions, Lootboxes were easy to earn and fun to get rewards from, and modes like Prop Hunt and War made WW2 distinct and replayable. War was one of the best modes from WW2 in sprawling teams of Axis and Allies fighting to attack and defend objectives to push forward to the end goal in a stunning display of war and hardship for thrilling and replayable battles.
Call of Duty: Black Ops
A Cold War Thriller Begins Treyarch's Call of Duty Identity
Call of Duty: Black Ops
- Released
- November 9, 2010
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Treyarch
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Engine
- iw
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- FPS
Call of Duty: Black Ops is truly where Treyarch found its footing, as the Black Ops series has been the mainline COD for Treyarch ever since, continuing on with 2025's Black Ops 7. The original game had it all, from a thrilling Campaign, to a haunting Zombies mode, and an addictive Multiplayer. For the Campaign, players were treated to a story of twists, turns, and political intrigue, with an unwinding mystery into the Vietnam War, the dawning Cold War, and MK-ULTRA. Seperate from the Campaign was Zombies, a successful mode continuing from World at War that brought some of the best maps forward with Kino der Toten, Call of the Dead, Moon, and more! Black Ops was a complete experience for all players, but what of the Multiplayer?
Further fleshed out from World at War, and with even more action than before, Black Ops excelled at providing a thrilling experience. Players could play a multitude of fun modes like Gun Game and One in a Chamber to gamble their CoD Points, a currency used to purchase new equipment for their loadouts. The maps were extremely fun with their narrow 3-lane system, providing an arcadey feel to such a fun and rewarding title.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3
The Best Zombies is Bolstered by One of the Series' Best Movement Tech
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 79 /100 Critics Rec: 69%
- Released
- November 6, 2015
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Treyarch
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- FPS
Black Ops 3 holds a strong spot as one of the best COD games of all time, but it has a few factors that treat this as an uphill battle. Firstly, there's the Campaign. Coming off the stellar Campaigns of Black Ops and Black Ops 2, Black Ops 3 certainly falls short with a convoluted and non-linear Campaign that isn't exactly memorable. It's also during the peak of Call of Duty's controversial time of futuristic warfare, but that works in Black Ops 3's favor for some truly innovative and fun combat. Multiplayer is bolstered thanks to jet boosters, which allow more free movement in the air, on the ground, and even on walls, as players can now ride across them. Maps complement the gunplay and movement well for an addictive Multiplayer experience, but there's one other factor of Black Ops 3 that makes it rank so high.
Black Ops 3 Zombies is the defining part of Black Ops 3. While many of Treyarch's COD s have featured a round-based Zombies mode, none elevate it or celebrate it to the degree of Black Ops 3. The story is at its best, as are the weapon selections, maps, and innovation. There's plenty to do across each map, and the easter eggs are the blueprints going forward. Black Ops 3 Zombies is extremely fun, and Zombies Chronicles just adds so much replayability that spoils players thanks to the remakes of some incredible maps from previous titles.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009)
Infinity Ward's Magnum Opus Provides OP and Thrilling Multiplayer
- Released
- November 10, 2009
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
- Infinity Ward
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Multiplayer
- Local Multiplayer, Online Multiplayer
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Shooter
The original 2009 Modern Warfare 2 is Infinity Ward's best Call of Duty, and it often contends with the top spot for the best Call of Duty of all time. Modern Warfare 2 certainly deserves both these spots, and for good reason. The most impressionable aspect of Modern Warfare 2 is its Campaign, which continues in a bold direction to show how gritty it is and how realistic it is at the forefront. The tragic betrayal, the action set pieces, and the unforgettable and scarring No Russian all provide such intensity that remains unstoppable, partly due to the immense controversy of its airport massacre.
While players love the Campaign, the real reason to stick around is for the Multiplayer. Modern Warfare 2 wages war on all players, even outside of its nostalgia. Modern Warfare 2 remains for players, and it seems that every weapon and every perk is designed to be so overpowered that it ends up remaining entirely balanced. The meta can be whatever you like, as rapid time-to-kill (TTK) makes every gunfight engaging, thrilling, and faster so that you're always in the action.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
The Campaign, Zombies, and Multiplayer Provide a Trinity of Pure Excellence
- Released
- November 13, 2012
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
- Treyarch
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Engine
- iw
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- FPS
Black Ops 2 is (arguably) the best Call of Duty, and it's certainly the best work from Treyarch when it comes to balancing Campaign, Zombies, and especially Multiplayer. For the Campaign, players are enthralled in a spanning timeline of war from the past and future, with interesting characters and choices that shape the narrative of David "Section" Mason and the world around him. Even outside of the Campaign, Zombies once again thrills with innovative maps like TranZit and Die Rise, and while these maps were a bit too ambitious for the time, the later DLCs of Black Ops 2 saw Mob of the Dead and Origins come to life, which are considered some of the best COD Zombies maps ever, and for good reason!
Even without Zombies, Black Ops 2 provides the best Multiplayer experience for players to enjoy. The "Pick 10" system is elite for changing the formula of Call of Duty, where every decision in a loadout matters. The meta was fun, with a variety of weapons and perks to make or break a build, and who could forget the stellar map selections of Hijacked, Nuketown 2025, and more? Black Ops 2 is the peak of Call of Duty, and it's no wonder it's finally getting a direct sequel with Black Ops 7 on November 14, 2025.
Best Call of Duty Copycat Games
Call of Duty might just be the king of the FPS genre, but that doesn't mean there aren't impressive alternatives to check out.