There is without a doubt less than a handful of video games, across all genres, that is more popular than the Call of Duty franchise. The first person shooter game, which began in 2003, is one of the most successful video game franchises in history. While being able to sell tens of millions of copies, it has managed to revolutionalize and redefine its genre thanks to its originality that is based off themes of World War II. The franchise has since gone ahead to incorporate other time periods and conflicts and can be found on numerous other platforms where millions of people worldwide have been able to play it.
Call of Duty is published by Activision while a number of developers have contributed to it. It was first developed by American video game developer Infinity Ward before Treyarch came into the scene in 2005 and Sledgehammer Games in 2011. The three developers are in a cycle as they take turns in creating each game as a new game is released every year.
How Many Call Of Duty Games Are There?
Aside from 2004, the creators of Call of Duty has released a game each year since the release of the first game in 2003. That means that as of 2018, the franchise has released 15 games. But aside from this 15, however, more than a dozen more games from the franchise have been released either specifically for consoles and/or for handheld devices.
Order Of Release And Dates Of Call of Duty Games
Below is a look at all the games in the main series of the Call of Duty franchise.
1. Call of Duty
Release Date: October 29, 2003
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, OS X
Developer: Infinity Ward
Sales: 4.5 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
The first installment of the series was the first first-person shooter video game that was grounded in a more realistic setting, which was from World War II. It also had more realistic gameplay, something that warmed it up to gamers worldwide. It further appealed to gamers around the world as it allowed the player to see the conflict from three sides – the Americans, the British, and the Soviets, as they get to feature as a soldier from each side during the single-player campaign.
2. Call of Duty 2
Release Date: October 5, 2005
Platforms: Xbox 360, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, OS X
Developer: Infinity Ward
Sales: 5.9 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
This came as the sequel to the first installment in the franchise. Here, players also got to play the game through the perspectives of four soldiers: one in the Red Army (Russia), one in the United States Army, and two in the British Army. It also featured new aspects like regenerating health and a nearby grenade indicator.
3. Call of Duty 3
Release Date: November 7, 2006
Platforms: PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii
Developer: Treyarch
Sales: 7.2 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
While the third installment in the video game series was bashed for not introducing any changes to gameplay aside from updated graphics, it was praised for its single-player campaign mode which was played through four different protagonists instead of the multiple campaign modes in other games.
4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Release Date: November 5, 2007
Platforms: PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Microsoft Windows, OS X
Developer: Infinity Ward
Sales: 15.7 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
As the name suggests, this was the first game in the series to break away from the World War II setting. It was instead set in modern times, the year 2011 to be exact when the president of an unnamed country in the Middle East is executed by a radical leader, and an ultranationalist movement ignites a civil war in Russia. The game is played through the perspectives of a U.S. Force Reconnaissance Marine and a British SAS commando.
5. Call of Duty: World at War
Release Date: November 11, 2008
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Microsoft Windows
Developer: Treyarch
Sales: 15.7 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
This installment returns to the setting of World War II and is based on several historical battles. It is also the first in the Black Ops storyline. The game is played from the perspectives of two US and one Russian soldier – Marine Raider Private C. Miller, US Navy Petty Officer Locke, and Red Army soldier Private Dimitri Petrenko.
6. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Release Date: November 10, 2009
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, OS X
Developer: Infinity Ward
Sales: 22.7 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
The sixth game in the franchise is a direct sequel to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare as it continues the same storyline. A significant addition to the game was the “Spec Ops” mode which allowed a series of separate missions to be undertaken solo or co-operatively.
7. Call of Duty: Black Ops
Release Date: November 9, 2010
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Microsoft Windows, OS X
Developer: Treyarch
Sales: 26.2 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
This installment was based on fictional events that took place during the Cold War era as it was based off machinations and secret operations that occur behind the scene.
8. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Release Date: November 8, 2011
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, Microsoft Windows, OS X
Developer: Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games
Sales: 26.5 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
Modern Warfare 3, which was a continuation of Modern Warfare 2, is the first game in the series to be co-developed by Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games. It begins right after the events of its final mission in the previous game and went on to become the best-selling game in the franchise.
9. Call of Duty: Black Ops II
Release Date: November 13, 2012
Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Wii U, Microsoft Windows.
Developer: Treyarch
Sales: 24.2 Million Copies Worldwide (2013)
The ninth installment of the Call of Duty franchise was a sequel to the seventh installment, the original Black Ops. The two games proved to be very similar, however, it was the first game in the franchise with two campaigns set in different times – the 1980s and the 2020s.
10. Call of Duty: Ghosts
Release Date: November 5, 2013
Platforms: PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Nintendo Wii U, Microsoft Windows
Developer: Infinity Ward.
Sales: 19 Million Copies Worldwide (2014)
Call of Duty fans worldwide who know the game know that Ghosts could pass as a sequel to Modern Warfare 3, with the only difference to the games being their name. The game further introduces new characters and gives the player the ability to control an animal in the single-player campaign.
11. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
Release Date: November 4, 2014
Platforms: PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
Developer: Sledgehammer Games
Sales: Unspecified
Advanced Warfare’s story was set in a futuristic setting in the 2050s and 2060s. It follows United States Marine Jack Mitchell and his involvement with a private military corporation named Atlas, who sells its services to the highest bidder.
12. Call of Duty: Black Ops III
Release Date: November 6, 2015
Platforms: PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
Developer: Treyarch
Sales: Unspecified
Just as Advanced Warfare had moved to abandon the World War II/Cold War era settings for a more futuristic one, Black Ops III followed suit as it was set 40 years after the events of Black Ops II, in 2065.
13. Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
Release Date: November 4, 2016
Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
Developer: Infinity Ward
Sales: Unspecified
For the very time, the game was able to take combat to space as Infinite Warfare’s campaign is centered around a battle for the Solar System. The events here also take place in the far future, however, the exact year is intentionally left unknown by the developers.
14. Call of Duty: WWII
Release Date: November 3, 2017
Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
Developer: Sledgehammer Games
Sales: Unspecified
After a few years of flirting with the future, the game went back to its original World War II theme as this installment was centered around the events of the European theatre. Because of the time setting of the game, developers opted to give players a more traditional Call of Duty experience as they removed advanced technology and mechanics.
15. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
Release Date: October 12, 2018
Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
Developer: Treyarch
Sales: Unspecified
The fifteenth installment of the game series was the first without a traditional single-player campaign mode. It instead had battle royale and solo missions modes, a move that was not well received by fans.
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Call of Duty Spin-Offs
1. Call of Duty: Finest Hour
Release Date: November 16, 2004
Platforms: PlayStation 2, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube
Developer: Spark Unlimited
2. Call of Duty 2: Big Red One
Release Date: November 1, 2005
Platforms: PlayStation 2, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube
Developer: Treyarch
3. Call of Duty: Roads to Victory
Release Date: March 13, 2007
Platforms: PlayStation Portable
Developer: Amaze Entertainment
4. Call of Duty: World at War – Final Fronts
Release Date: November 10, 2008
Platforms: PlayStation 2
Developer: Rebellion Developments
5. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Mobilized
Release Date: November 10, 2009
Platforms: Nintendo DS
Developer: n-Space
6. Call of Duty: Zombies
Release Date: November 16, 2009
Platforms: iOS, Android
Developer: Ideaworks Game Studio, Treyarch
7. Call of Duty: The War Collection
Release Date: June 1, 2010
Platform: Xbox 360
Developer: Activision
8. Call of Duty: Black Ops DS
Release Date: November 9, 2010
Platform: Nintendo DS
Developer: n-Space
9. Call of Duty: Black Ops – Zombies
Release Date: December 1, 2011
Platforms: iOS, Android
Developer: Ideaworks Game Studio
10. Call of Duty: Black Ops: Declassified
Release Date: November 13, 2012
Platforms: PlayStation Vita
Developer: nStigate Games
11. Call of Duty: Strike Team
Release Date: September 5, 2013
Platforms: iOS, Android
Developer: The Blast Furnace
12. Call of Duty: Heroes
Release Date: November 26, 2014
Platforms: iOS, Android
Developer: Faceroll Games