Call of Duty Zombies has been a staple of the COD market for the past 16 years with the release of World at War. As such, there have been some Call of Duty Zombies characters in the evolving storyline that leave quite a lasting impression in terms of their purpose, hilarity, and cool factor. Many of the best COD Zombies characters deserve mention in the eternal fight against the undead.
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While players love the round-based fights of COD Zombies, the game truly excels with its rich library of characters that hopefully only grow in Treyarch’s next entry into the series. With many different dimensions and universes to explore, it’s time to see who is the best COD Zombies character out there in the Aether.
10 Brutus
The Warden of Alcatraz Who Worships the Shadowman
The Warden of Alcatraz is one of the more interesting antagonists of the Zombies storyline, and it harks all the way back to Mob of the Dead. Brutus, in his human form, was the Warden of Alcatraz who worshipped the Shadowman and the Apothicons like a Satanic cult, and followed the guiding whispers of the Shadowman until he could lead a pocket dimension, a life sentence of power in a broken Alcatraz overrun with undead and the same four prisoners.
Brutus is intimidating in design, voice, and personality, as there is nothing Brutus wants more than to please the Shadowman by providing him with the blood of Primis Richtofen. Brutus will die over and again, just to repeat the cycle in any anger-filled efforts to retrieve his prize.
9 Dr. Monty
A Keeper Who Wants to Keep the Universe in a Constant Repetitive Cycle
Perhaps the most powerful character in the Aether storyline, Dr. Monty is one of the first and most important Keepers, which act as the angels of the universe. Dr. Monty is responsible for the sanctity of the multiverse, and in his service to the universe from the beginning of time, he is terrified to see it change. Dr. Monty has set in place an unbreaking cycle, which does make him an overruling antagonist, but it’s better than the Dark Aether corrupting time and space itself.
Dr. Monty is a conflicted ally, one who wants to see the right thing done for everyone, but for Monty, the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, and he doesn’t care who is harmed as long as the universe remains in its constant state of repetition.
8 Edward Richtofen (Ultimis)
The Mad German Scientist Who Seeks the Power of the Aether
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A German scientist from Group 935 during World War 2, Edward Richtofen was already a sadistic madman who enjoyed butchering his victims, but one who found a new purpose with Element 115. Edward Richtofen is the catalyst for the Call of Duty Zombies storyline, and with his growing insanity, he alone has set the course of the series, but his role as the antagonist isn’t quite so simple, nor is his humor.
Richtofen from the Ultimis timeline is hilarious, and every voice line from his mouth shows his sadistic nature and wackiness. Even when he’s not groaning about stabbing zombies, he’s on a mission to see himself guide an undead army. Richtofen’s constant scheming is a charming threat to players, but a troublesome nuisance to his so-called allies.
7 Takeo Masaki (Primis)
A Loyal Soldier to the Emperor Who Protects His Honor and His Friends
Loyal to the Emperor of Japan and cunning in his wit only matched by his ability with his katana, Takeo Masaki has a nobility unmatched. Takeo has an undying loyalty to the Emperor of Japan, and he talks about it quite a lot during his ventures with the Primis crew. This version of Takeo is more interesting than the Ultimis predecessor, as he isn’t afraid to challenge his crew and talk more than just a few proverbs.
Takeo’s unwavering loyalty to the Emperor is his truest character arc, in which he sees that he is but a pawn despite his years of servitude. Takeo may no longer have an Emperor to swear fidelity to, but he does have friends, and an army of undead that need cutting down.
6 Grigori Weaver
A CIA Agent Who Wants to Stop the Spread of the Dark Aether
Earning his start as a Special Agent for the CIA in Call of Duty: Black Ops, Weaver has since returned to lead Requiem, a special division that attempts to stop the spread of the Dark Aether and those who seek to wield its power. Weaver acts as an important bridge from the Call of Duty series’ campaigns to its Zombies mode, providing fans with a bridged canon between the two.
Weaver’s story has yet to be concluded, and this one-eyed Special Agent can offer much due to his incredible skills as both a fighter and a commanding officer. Only time will tell what relationship he will have in Black Ops 6, or how the consequences of his resentment of “Eddie” Richtofen will shape him.
5 “Tank” Dempsey (Primis)
An Expert Zombie Killer, Hoorah!
A flesh-addict’s worst nightmare, “Tank” Dempsey from the Primis timeline is an American Marine on a mission to find a better future, all while somewhat enjoying the thrills of killing hordes of undead. There are more links between Primis Dempsey and Ultimis Dempsey than the other characters, and their gun-ho attitude towards zombies makes him a lot of fun, but still a more serious version of the character.
Dempsey wants to be a hero, and serving as a U.S. Marine, he would be tasked with intercepting Doctor Edward Richtofen, only to find himself involved in his mischievous schemes to save the universe. While Dempsey questions Richtofen’s every move, there is a layer of trust and dependency there that makes him a good friend.
4 Russman
The Former Agent of Broken Arrow Plagued By 115-Induced Memory Loss
Serving as one of the leads for the Victis crew, Russman survives in a world where the dead walk the earth thanks to Richtofen’s grand scheme and the destruction of Earth from Maxis. Russman wasn’t always a hardened zombie survivor, as his skills hark back to his time at Broken Arrow, in which he was a proud agent who handled the darkness of Element 115 at the request of his superiors.
Suffering from 115-induced delusions and amnesia, Russman has a dark past that is clouded in fog, and his importance as a member of Broken Arrow makes him someone who deserves the spotlight. Russman, when he isn’t forgetting who he is, is a great survivor that wants to try and fix a broken world.
3 Nikolai Belinski (Primis)
A Stoic Soldier Forced to Destroy the Multiverse and His Friends
While everyone might know of the drunkard Nikolai from the Ultimis timeline, it is the Nikolai from Primis that acts as the more grounded and troubled character of the two. A younger Nikolai who hides a tragic past and doesn’t cower behind vodka, this Nikolai has the resilience to fight many wars and cheat death, and to do what he must to ensure a future without chaos, even if that results in the death of himself and his friends.
Nikolai Belinski acts as a frustrated reminder of Richtofen’s scheming, and his mistrust comes from a tragic past in which his heart and mind had been blackened by war. With his soul still in-tact, Nikolai Belinski could do what Richtofen wasn’t brave enough to do: save the world, at the cost of himself.
2 Samantha Maxis
An Innocent Girl Corrupted by Dark Aether to Control an Undead Army
Samantha Maxis is one of the few characters in the Zombies storyline who has only evolved, without the use of the multiverse. The original Samantha Maxis has endured so much pain and suffering, far too much for a child to bare. Samantha Maxis was drowning in Dark Aether to make her the Demonic Announcer that controlled the undead hordes. Through much trial and torment, Samantha was finally freed, and she would finally be able to reunite with her father and do away with the zombie hordes at the House.
Samantha Maxis was the original antagonist of Call of Duty Zombies, and that alone makes her special. Yet, it’s her evolution as a character, and her recent turn to adulthood in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War that makes her even more interesting and compelling. She’s a woman with a mission to stop the Dark Aether, something that she knows far too much about as one of its two survivors.
1 Edward Richtofen (Primis)
A Man Who Travels the Multiverse, Trying So Very Hard to Do the Right Thing
A man who has tried so very hard to do the right thing, Edward Richtofen from the Primis timeline is perhaps the greatest character to come out of Call of Duty Zombies, and perhaps one of the best in Call of Duty, period. Richtofen is flawed, and that’s what makes him so compelling. His entire purpose is driven by the desire to come out of calamities unscathed and alive to save the universe from its own extinction.
Richtofen is perhaps the main protagonist of the Aether story, and his intellect and burdened purpose make him extremely compelling. Armed with knowledge of the past and future, Richtofen will cheat, deceive, and kill to ensure a better tomorrow for himself and those he cares about.
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