The first CoD started the series in World War II and featured a story campaign and multiplayer modes. It was first released on PC, Mac, and even the N-Gage handheld device.
CoD 2 brought the series to consoles for the first time, releasing on Xbox 360 alongside PC and Mac.
CoD 3 was Treyarch’s first foray into the series, keeping the fight in the 1940s. But things were about to change forever.
Call of Duty catapulted into the mainstream with CoD 4 when Infinity Ward brought the fight to the present day. Its awesome campaign and addictive multiplayer with the first prestige system likely changed gaming and FPS titles forever.
Treyarch upped its game in 2008 with World at War, introducing the highly successful Nazi Zombies mode to the series for the first time.
If CoD 4 was the series’ entry into the mainstream, then MW2 is what truly turned the franchise into an entertainment juggernaut. It sold a whopping 25 million copies, which was unheard of at the time. That number would only grow.
The success continued in 2010 with the first entry in the classic Black Ops series. The Zombies mode was expanded and the campaign introduced franchise favorite characters such as Frank Woods and Alex Mason.
The finale of the original Modern Warfare trilogy featured yet another epic campaign and addictive multiplayer.
The highest-selling CoD to date is often regarded by many to be one of the best in the series thanks to its competitive multiplayer, fun campaign, and further expansion of the Zombies universe.
The, thus far, standalone Ghosts title brought a dog named Riley to the fight
The first “jetpack” CoD game turned the focus of the franchise from “boots on the ground” to “flying in the air” for a few years. Exosuits allowed players to boost jump in all directions as well as jump high in the air, changing up the gameplay in a big way. It was also Sledgehammer Games’ first work in the series.
BO3 introduced specialists to the series for the first time. Each character had their own unique set of abilities and personalities.
Infinity Ward brought the fight to space in 2016 and many gamers felt the “jetpack” style of gameplay wearing thin. Activision heard the cries and the next CoD brought the fight back to Earth once more.
WWII returned the franchise to its roots with a grounded campaign and multiplayer experience.
CoD’s first foray into battle royale launched alongside BO4. Blackout showed Activision the world’s thirst for the last man standing mode and it began a huge turnaround for the series. This was also the first entry in the series to not have a campaign.
Smartphone gamers everywhere have been loving CoD: Mobile and its “greatest hits” theme. The game features modes, maps, characters, and weapons from across the franchise.
Infinity Ward rebooted the MW storyline with some new characters while returning ones like Captain Price and more. The gritty campaign was supplemented by addictive multiplayer, but the big kid on the block was just around the corner.
Warzone shook up the battle royale landscape and gaming everywhere when it was released at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, giving players around the world an escape into Verdansk with one of the most successful BR games released thus far. It’s become a flagship in the series with future games tied into it, live events, and constant content updates.
A direct sequel to Black Ops 1, Black Ops Cold War saw the return of characters like Frank Woods, Alex Mason, and Jason Hudson in the 1980s.
The franchise returned to World War II once more in 2021. Activision Blizzard has not released the sales numbers for Vanguard, but the company publicly acknowledged that the game did not meet expectations for sales. It attributed this to the WWII setting and a lack of innovation in the premium release.
MWII is a direct sequel to the rebooted Modern Warfare from 2019, and it is Infinity Ward’s first main series release since, not including Warzone. The campaign will see the return of Captain John Price, Sergeant Kyle “Gaz” Garrick, Simon “Ghost” Riley, and John “Soap” MacTavish. Infinity Ward has promised a revamped Gunsmith and AI systems.
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