Call of Duty is a first-person FPS franchise from Activision. From its WW2 beginnings, the series has become one of the biggest and most popular shooters in the modern day. The Call of Duty games were first developed by Infinity Ward, then also by Treyarch and Sledgehammer Games, with the latest title being Modern Warfare II, released on Oct 28, 2022.
In this article, Gurugamer is going to showcase all mainline games in the Call Of Duty series.
World War II Games
While the earlier games are considered legendary, the newer (yearly release) games have run the CoD formula to the ground.
Call of Duty 1 (2003)
Call of Duty 1 actually holds up pretty well in 2022, and I was surprised how much of the series' DNA you can feel even in this first installment. The aiming and shooting feel tight, and the general quality of the environments and set pieces were of a good standard.
It was cool to discover certain sound effects and visual cues (like that metallic tink-tink of a grenade landing by your feet) have their origin right here in the very first game and continue to be used in modern games today.
Call of Duty 2 (2005)
Call of Duty 2 is the pinnacle of the series, and in my humble opinion, the campaign has not been beaten since. The level of immersion at the time was unbeaten in the gaming landscape; soldiers would chatter, the Germans would scream and the weapons sounded great.
There are so many moments of pure awe in the campaign, the atmosphere and little details made it feel real. The graphics still hold up well today, which is a testament to the passion placed into this game by Infinity Ward. The variety of different campaigns and war fronts was its greatest strength too, from the Russians, Brits and American forces.
Call of Duty 3 (2006)
This is the first CoD game from Treyarch. Its gameplay and graphics may not be as revolutionary as Infinity Ward's CoD2, but CoD 3 still represents a memorable WWII shooter that rings a high note in the franchise's narrative track record.
It brings little new to the table. Has some very fun objectives and some interesting characters, but they were largely forgettable.
Call of Duty: WWII (2017)
Does it play like a WW2 Call of Duty? Yes, however, it is modernized to keep up with the times. The characters are memorable, the battles feel satisfying, and the weapons feel old and functional (but well-balanced). However, the multiplayer is pretty much unplayable, with non-functional servers filled with cheaters.
Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021)
The heavily scripted and linear campaign is hit-and-miss, while the expensive multiplayer mode will keep you busy in a reliable way, without offering any remarkable innovation. It would be more accurate to refer to Vanguard as a $70 expansion pass for Warzone than its own entity.
Modern Warfare series
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007)
One of the best games of the franchise, the highly acclaimed Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is a must-have for a fan of the Call of Duty games. The game's single-player experience is phenomenal. From the beginning raid on the Russian tanker to the cataclysmic end of the U.S campaign to the brilliant All Ghillied Up mission, the game will keep you hooked. The story is believable but not over the top compared to the future releases in the franchise.
The Multiplayer is where Call of Duty shines. When it was released, the game included many new features not seen in the previous Call of Duty games, such as the now standard Create a Class, Killstreaks, etc, all of which feel balanced and nothing too overpowered (except maybe the P90).
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009)
Despite being a game released in 2009, the game is still considered the pinnacle of the Call Of Duty franchise to this day. And even if this game is played now, its performance does not live up to its reputation.
There weren't many first-person shooters describing modern warfare at the time. Under the aura of Modern Warfare's success in the previous game, Modern Warfare 2 goes a step further and tells a more wonderful story, and even now, its story is very excellent too.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011)
The campaign is also a true classic and possibly one of the best in the series. The story continues from the previous games and reaches a thrilling climax. The gameplay is pretty solid and the gun selection is pretty good. The multiplayer is mostly dead and you'll be stuck with the campaign and Spec Ops.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is the sixteenth entry in the Call of Duty series and is also a reboot of the Modern Warfare series. It brings the franchise back to its root with an incredible campaign, a new graphic engine and an addictive Multiplayer mode along with Specs Ops.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022)
The gunplay is good and the core gameplay is solid (like most CoDs) but there are just so many problems. Maps suck, no gun game, spec ops feels half-baked at best, lacking many game modes that have been in cod for over a decade. Literally just MW 2019 but worse in almost every way.
Black Ops story arc
Call of Duty: World at War (2008)
This game is genuinely amongst the best Call of Duty games, and it's genuinely an incredible game. The campaign was really good, Nazi zombie is a blast, even better with friends, and the multiplayer was really good back in the day.
Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010)
The story is one of (If not the best) in the series, the style of the story being presented is amazing. The memories from Mason's mind are presented to him and we get to travel to the past and see the hardships he had to face to complete his missions. There's too much to say without going into extreme detail.
Zombies are amazing, nothing to say, it's just so much fun to achieve those high rounds with your friends on Five and Kino, and sometimes let loose on Dead Ops.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II (2012)
Black Ops 2 follows the same formula as the first game, with a focus on the single-player campaign and zombies. Multiplayer was good back in the day, but now it is dead.
Call of Duty: Black Ops III (2015)
If you love COD Zombies this is the best game for it. The new maps are fantastic, way more detailed and in-depth than, say, Vanguard or Cold War. Get Chronicles if you want to experience classic maps such as Kino or Nacht.
Steam Workshop is also available if you feel like downloading custom maps, weapons, perks, textures, and skins.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (2018)
The first Black Ops without a Single Player campaign. So, did they deliver an online experience that makes up for it? I don't think so. It is basically just a very basic online shooter with Battle Royale tackled in. As usual, Zombies is still fun.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (2020)
The campaign comes back in Cold War, and it is good enough. Zombies mode is pretty fun even if the map is not as good as BO2 zombie maps. The changes they did to the game make it fresh enough, and I like the idea of exfil. Multiplayer is not the best but it is decent enough to play.
Standalone games
Call of Duty: Ghosts (2013)
Call of Duty: Ghosts campaign was actually a lot of fun, however, it only lasts for like 6 hours. I thought the story was pretty good outside of the super-cliched cliffhanger, which likely will never actually be resolved. The Multiplayer is dead.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2014)
So we get another typical CoD campaign, the story is great, although not at the same level as Black Ops 2 was. Your choices do not impact the ending, in fact, the campaign is pretty much all linear. The Multiplayer is dead, the same as Ghost. This is the fate of quite a few CoD games, outside of the classics mentioned above.
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2016)
The campaign is short as hell and has no replay value though it is a lot of fun. During this campaign, you will be flying a space-faring fighter jet. Zombies is 10/10, with fluid gameplay and weapon customization. Similar to the above games, multiplayer is pretty much dead.
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