All Call of Duty Games In Order

1. Call of Duty (2003)

The world is engulfed in the fires of 1944, viewed through the weary eyes of three soldiers across the Allied front. American Private Martin begins as a green recruit in the 101st Airborne, dropped behind enemy lines during the chaos of D-Day to secure vital paths for the invasion. Simultaneously, British Sergeant Evans engages in daring commando raids to cripple the German war machine, while Soviet conscript Alexei is thrust into the meat grinder of Stalingrad with nothing but a handful of bullets.

The conflict intensifies as these individual stories converge toward the heart of the Third Reich. Martin’s squad pushes through the hedgerows of France, facing the grim reality of constant attrition and the weight of leadership in the field. Evans participates in the desperate defense of Pegasus Bridge and clandestine sabotage missions that stretch his endurance to the breaking point. On the Eastern Front, Alexei survives the urban hellscape of the Volga, driven by a desperate surge of patriotism and the brutal necessity of reclaiming his homeland.

Personal stakes rise as the Allied advance begins to fracture under the pressure of a cornered and desperate enemy. Each soldier finds their resolve tested not just by the bullets, but by the loss of brothers-in-arms and the shifting tides of a war that demands everything. As the final push toward Berlin looms, the soldiers are forced to confront whether their individual survival matters in the face of a global liberation. The narrative leaves them on the precipice of the final assault, wondering what remains of a man once the smoke of the Great Crusade finally clears.

2. Call of Duty 2 (2005)

The scale of global conflict widens as the narrative returns to the pivotal theaters of World War II. Private Vasili Koslov finds himself in the desperate defense of Moscow, fighting room-to-room in a city that refuses to fall. Meanwhile, British forces in North Africa, led by Sergeant John Davis, engage in a scorching war of attrition against Rommel’s Panzer divisions under the relentless desert sun. Across the ocean, American Corporal Bill Taylor prepares for the vertical assault on the cliffs of Pointe du Hoc, a mission many consider a death sentence.

The friction of war grinds the protagonists down as they move from defensive desperation to offensive momentum. Vasili participates in the massive counter-offensive at Stalingrad, witnessing the sheer human cost of the Soviet "Not a Step Back" order. In the desert, Davis and the Desert Rats engage in a lethal game of cat-and-mouse through El Alamein, where the heat is as deadly as the snipers. Taylor’s journey moves from the beaches to the frozen forests of Germany, where the density of enemy resistance suggests a final, bloody stand.

The thematic tension centers on the immense burden of expectations placed upon these ordinary men. Each mission becomes a test of nerve, where the line between a hero and a casualty is blurred by the sheer volume of artillery. As the Allied grip tightens around the Ruhr Pocket, the characters face the exhaustion of a war that seems never-ending. The story concludes with the soldiers staring into the dark heart of Germany, unsure if the victory they are chasing will offer the peace they were promised.

3. Call of Duty 3 (2006)

Focus shifts entirely to the relentless Breakout from Normandy, following the Allied forces as they struggle to close the Falaise Pocket. The narrative weaves through the perspectives of American, British, Canadian, and Polish troops, each struggling with unique pressures. American Corporal Nichols navigates the treacherous bocage of France, while British Sergeant James Doyle joins the SAS for high-risk sabotage. Polish tankers and Canadian infantrymen provide a wider look at the sheer logistical and human nightmare of modern mechanized warfare.

Tensions escalate as the Allied advance stalls against a fanatical German defense at Saint-Lô. Nichols finds his squad depleted and his faith in the chain of command wavering as they are ordered into one meat-grinder engagement after another. The Polish 1st Armored Division faces a harrowing stand on Hill 262, where they are isolated and surrounded by a retreating but still lethal enemy. The narrative highlights the friction between Allied nations, showing that while they share a goal, their methods and sacrifices often clash.

The core tension rests on the fragility of the Allied line and the personal costs of a breakthrough. Every hedgerow cleared feels like a pyrrhic victory, leaving the soldiers to wonder if they are simply being spent as currency for a map. The Canadian and Polish units, in particular, find themselves in a desperate fight for relevance and survival in a theater dominated by larger powers. As the trap at Falaise begins to snap shut, the soldiers are left in a chaotic whirlwind of fire, facing a final, desperate German surge that threatens to undo all their gains.

4. Call of Duty: World at War (2008)

The narrative takes a brutal, unflinching turn into the Pacific Theater and the final push of the Soviet Union. Private Miller of the US Marines is rescued from a gruesome execution on Makin Atoll, only to be thrust into the visceral, claustrophobic jungle warfare of Peleliu. Simultaneously, Private Dimitri Petrenko survives a massacre in a fountain in Stalingrad, joining forces with the vengeful Sergeant Viktor Reznov. Their stories represent two different kinds of hell: the scorched earth of the Pacific and the vengeful bloodlust of the Eastern Front.

The violence escalates as Miller’s unit struggles against an enemy that refuses to surrender, utilizing hidden tunnels and banzai charges that shatter the nerves of the Marines. In Europe, Petrenko and Reznov lead the charge into the heart of the Reich, driven by a righteous but terrifying fury that blurs the line between liberation and slaughter. Reznov’s influence over Dimitri grows, shaping the young soldier into a symbol of Soviet retribution. The contrast between the humid, green death of the jungle and the grey, ash-choked streets of Seelow Heights creates a harrowing picture of total war.

The relationship between Dimitri and Reznov becomes the emotional anchor, exploring how war twists the soul of a survivor. Miller’s struggle highlights the dehumanizing nature of the Pacific conflict, where the environment is as much an enemy as the soldiers. As Petrenko reaches the outskirts of Berlin and Miller fights through the mud of Okinawa, the suspension of morality becomes palpable. The narrative reaches a fever pitch as both men stand on the threshold of their respective victories, realizing that the hatred fueled by the conflict may never truly be extinguished.

5. Call of Duty: WWII (2017)

The series returns to its roots through the eyes of Private Ronald "Red" Daniels, a young soldier in the 1st Infantry Division. His journey begins on the terrifying shores of Omaha Beach, where he narrowly survives the initial wave with his close-knit squad. Under the command of the hardened Sergeant Pierson and the more compassionate Lieutenant Turner, Daniels learns that survival in the European theater is a matter of both luck and cold-blooded skill. The bond between the squad members becomes their only shield against the escalating horrors of the march toward Germany.

Internal conflict within the squad mirrors the external chaos of the war as Pierson’s ruthless leadership style clashes with Turner’s humanity. During the liberation of Paris and the subsequent push into the Ardennes, Daniels is caught in the crossfire of his superiors’ ideologies while trying to protect his best friend, Zussman. The harsh winter of the Battle of the Bulge pushes the men to their physical and mental limits, stripping away the romanticism of the war. Daniels begins to uncover the dark reality of what the Nazi regime has been hiding, adding a moral weight to their mission that goes beyond simple territory.

The theme of brotherhood is tested as the squad is fractured by casualties and the brutal reality of Pierson's past. Daniels must decide if he will follow orders that seem to disregard the lives of his men or follow his conscience to save those who remain. The tension peaks during a desperate search for a captured comrade amidst the collapsing German lines. As they approach the Rhine, the squad faces a moral crossroads that will define their humanity long after the guns fall silent, leaving them to wonder if they can ever truly return to the people they were before the war.

6. Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021)

As the Second World War nears its chaotic end, a clandestine unit of elite soldiers from different Allied nations is formed for a secret mission. Led by Arthur Kingsley, this "Vanguard" squad is tasked with infiltrating Berlin to uncover the mystery of "Project Phoenix." The narrative jumps between the present-day interrogation of the team by the Gestapo and the various backstories that brought them together. We follow Polina Petrova, a Soviet sniper in Stalingrad, Wade Jackson in the Pacific, and Lucas Riggs in North Africa, each a specialist born from the fires of the most brutal fronts.

The friction between the captured team members and their interrogator, Jannick Richter, reveals the desperation of the crumbling Nazi leadership. Richter seeks to manipulate the team's past traumas and national tensions to extract information about the Allied intelligence. Meanwhile, the flashbacks illustrate the pivotal moments where each member proved their worth, highlighting their individual motivations and the scars they carry. Petrova’s thirst for vengeance against the man who destroyed her home becomes a central driving force for the team's collective identity.

The thematic tension focuses on the birth of modern special operations and the transition from traditional warfare to intelligence-led conflict. The team must find a way to cooperate while locked in a Nazi prison, knowing that Project Phoenix could allow the Reich to survive its own collapse. Their shared expertise becomes a weapon, but their disparate backgrounds remain a potential point of failure. The story builds toward a daring escape and a final race against time to stop a successor to Hitler from emerging from the shadows, leaving the world’s future hanging on a knife's edge.

7. Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010)

The year is 1968, and Alex Mason is strapped to an interrogation chair, tormented by mysterious numbers and flickering images. He is forced to relive his past missions to help his unseen captors locate a Soviet sleeper cell and a deadly chemical weapon known as Nova-6. The journey spans from a failed assassination attempt on Fidel Castro in Cuba to the brutal labor camps of Vorkuta, where Mason meets the charismatic Viktor Reznov. Mason’s mind is a fractured landscape of combat memories and psychological conditioning that he doesn't fully understand.

As Mason hunts the Soviet operatives Dragovich, Kravchenko, and Steiner, the line between reality and hallucination begins to blur. The narrative takes him into the humid jungles of Vietnam and the secret laboratories of the Ural Mountains, all while the "Numbers" continue to echo in his subconscious. His bond with Reznov becomes his guiding light, as the elder soldier instills in him a singular mission: "Dragovich, Kravchenko, Steiner... all must die." However, Mason's colleagues, Hudson and Weaver, grow increasingly suspicious of his mental stability and his true objectives.

The core tension is a psychological puzzle involving identity, brainwashing, and the paranoia of the Cold War. Mason is a man who cannot trust his own eyes, haunted by the feeling that he is a puppet for an unknown master. The mystery of the numbers reaches a boiling point as the world teeters on the edge of a nuclear launch. As Mason nears the source of the broadcast, he must confront the truth of what happened in Vorkuta and whether he is the savior of the West or its unwitting executioner.

8. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (2020)

Set in the early 1980s, the story follows a customized operative codenamed "Bell," who is recruited by CIA officer Russell Adler for a black ops mission. The objective is to track down Perseus, a legendary Soviet spy who has re-emerged to tip the balance of power in favor of the USSR. Working alongside series veterans Mason and Woods, the team engages in deniable operations across the globe, from East Berlin to the heart of the KGB headquarters in Moscow. The narrative is defined by choices, evidence gathering, and a sense of pervasive distrust.

The tension escalates as the team uncovers a plot involving stolen American nuclear warheads planted across European cities as a "fail-safe." Adler’s methods become increasingly extreme, pushing Bell through experimental memory recovery procedures to unlock the location of Perseus. As Bell’s past is meticulously reconstructed, the player begins to see cracks in the official narrative provided by the CIA. The relationship between Bell and Adler is fraught with an underlying sense of manipulation, suggesting that Bell is more than just a talented recruit.

The thematic focus is on the "wilderness of mirrors" inherent in high-stakes espionage. Bell is forced to question every memory and every order, realizing that in the world of Black Ops, the truth is often a weapon used to control the narrative. As the clock ticks down to a potential global catastrophe, Bell faces a climactic decision that will determine the fate of the Western world. The final suspense rests on whether Bell will remain a loyal soldier or if the revelations of his true origin will lead to a cataclysmic betrayal.

9. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (2024)

In the early 1990s, the world is reeling from the end of the Cold War, but for the operatives of the Black Ops world, a new and more insidious threat emerges. Frank Woods and a new generation of agents find themselves sidelined and hunted from within their own government as a shadow force infiltrates the CIA. This rogue element, known as Pantheon, seeks to ignite a new global conflict using the chaos of the Gulf War as a smokescreen. Cut off from their resources and declared traitors, the team must operate as fugitives to uncover the truth.

The narrative focuses on a high-stakes heist and infiltration mission to expose the rot at the heart of the agency. The team’s journey takes them from the burning oil fields of Kuwait to a secret underground facility where Pantheon is developing a terrifying biological threat. The psychological toll of being abandoned by their country weighs heavily on the veterans and the newcomers alike. As they piece together the conspiracy, they realize that Pantheon’s reach extends to the highest levels of global power, making their mission seemingly impossible.

The core tension revolves around the loss of identity and the price of loyalty in a world without clear borders. Woods, confined to a wheelchair but still a master strategist, must guide his team through a labyrinth of double-crosses where no one can be trusted. The suspense builds as the team prepares for a final, desperate strike against Pantheon’s leadership to prevent a manufactured apocalypse. With the walls closing in, the operatives are left wondering if they are fighting for a nation that no longer exists or simply for their own survival in a world that has moved on.

10. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007)

The geopolitical landscape shifts as a radical leader, Khaled Al-Asad, seizes power in a Middle Eastern coup, backed by the Russian ultra-nationalist Imran Zakhaev. The British SAS, led by Captain Price and featuring the new recruit "Soap" MacTavish, investigates a cargo ship containing nuclear material, while the US Marines launch a full-scale invasion to depose Al-Asad. The narrative alternates between the surgical precision of the SAS and the overwhelming firepower of the Marine Corps, highlighting the different faces of modern combat.

A cataclysmic event occurs when a nuclear device is detonated in the heart of the Middle Eastern city, wiping out an entire American strike force and shifting the tone from a standard intervention to a desperate manhunt. Price and Soap must track down Zakhaev through the irradiated ruins of Chernobyl and the snowy mountains of Russia to prevent further nuclear launches. The tension is amplified by the realization that Zakhaev’s son is a key player in the conflict, leading to a high-stakes chase that ends in tragedy.

The relationship between Price and Soap evolves from mentor and student to brothers-in-arms forged in the fire of global catastrophe. The narrative explores the cold reality of modern proxy wars and the terrifying ease with which a single extremist can push the world to the brink. As the team is pinned down on a collapsing bridge, facing the full might of Zakhaev’s forces, their survival hinges on a single moment of clarity. The story ends with the world safe for the moment, but the cost of that safety is etched into the faces of the survivors as they are evacuated from the carnage.

11. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009)

The world is on the edge of total war as Vladimir Makarov, a protégé of the fallen Zakhaev, orchestrates a horrific terrorist attack at a Moscow airport. By framing an American operative for the massacre, Makarov triggers a massive Russian invasion of the United States. Task Force 141, an elite multi-national unit led by Captain Soap MacTavish and the mysterious Lieutenant Ghost, is deployed to find Makarov and stop the escalation. Meanwhile, US Rangers fight a desperate defense of Washington D.C., as the capital burns under the weight of an aerial assault.

Internal betrayal shatters the mission when General Shepherd, the commander of Task Force 141, reveals his own agenda to become a war hero by any means necessary. The death of key members of the team leaves Price and Soap as fugitives, hunted by both Makarov’s terrorists and Shepherd’s elite private military force, Shadow Company. The conflict shifts from a global war to a personal vendetta, as the survivors realize that the man who sent them to save the world is the one who burned it down. They are forced to operate in the shadows, utilizing whatever resources they can scavenge.

The thematic focus is on the corruption of power and the moral rot that can occur in the pursuit of "national security." Price and Soap find themselves in a three-way conflict where their only goal is to kill the man responsible for the betrayal, even if it means letting Makarov escape for now. The suspense peaks as they infiltrate Shepherd’s hidden base in the Afghan desert, facing overwhelming odds. The narrative concludes with a brutal, visceral confrontation that leaves the characters broken and the world still embroiled in a global conflict that has only just begun.

12. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011)

The Russian invasion of the United States has expanded into a full-scale World War III, with major European capitals falling under the weight of Makarov’s chemical attacks. The fugitive members of Task Force 141, aided by Yuri, a man with a dark connection to Makarov’s past, work with Delta Force and the SAS to stop the assault on London, Paris, and Berlin. Captain Price is driven by a singular, obsessive goal: to find and execute Makarov and end the war once and for all. The story is a frantic race across a burning globe to find the source of the conflict.

The tension deepens as Yuri’s secrets are slowly revealed, challenging Price’s trust in his only remaining allies. While Delta Force teams fight to rescue the Russian President and his daughter from Makarov’s clutches to secure a peace treaty, Price and Soap continue their hunt through the war-torn streets of Prague. A devastating loss for the team during an assassination attempt shifts the narrative from tactical mission to a raw, emotional quest for vengeance. The world’s survival depends on a few desperate men operating outside any legal framework.

The theme of the series concludes on the idea of the "inevitability of the warrior." Price realizes that peace is a fragile illusion and that men like him are the only ones capable of doing the terrible things necessary to preserve it. The narrative builds to a final, suicide-mission assault on a luxury hotel in Dubai where Makarov is hiding. As Price dons his heavy armor for the final confrontation, the suspense rests on whether he can finally break the cycle of violence or if he will simply be consumed by it.

13. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)

In this reimagining of the series, the focus shifts to a more gritty and morally complex depiction of modern conflict. CIA officer Alex and SAS Sergeant Kyle "Gaz" Garrick team up with Captain John Price to investigate the theft of chemical gas and its connection to a terrorist group called Al-Qatala. Their journey takes them to the fictional country of Urzikstan, where they join forces with Farah Karim, leader of the Liberation Force. The story explores the "grey areas" of warfare, where the line between a freedom fighter and a terrorist is often a matter of perspective.

The conflict intensifies as the team discovers the involvement of a rogue Russian General, Barkov, who has been occupying Urzikstan for decades. Farah’s backstory, involving the loss of her family and her time in a brutal prison camp, provides the emotional core of the narrative. The team is forced to make impossible choices—using civilians as shields or employing brutal interrogation tactics—to prevent a major terrorist attack on London. The internal tension grows as Alex and Gaz struggle with the ethics of their orders versus the necessity of the mission.

The thematic focus is on the burden of leadership and the personal cost of doing "what is necessary." Price acts as a mentor who has long since accepted the moral stain of his profession, while the younger operatives are still grappling with it. The suspense builds toward a final assault on Barkov’s chemical facility, where each character must decide what they are willing to sacrifice for a chance at peace. The story leaves the characters in a state of uneasy victory, knowing that the threats of the future are already taking shape in the shadows.

14. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022)

The newly formed Task Force 141 is called into action when an American drone strike kills a foreign general, sparking a retaliatory plot involving stolen ballistic missiles. Captain Price, Ghost, Soap, and Gaz must track the missiles across the globe, from the shipping containers of Amsterdam to the border of Mexico. They find themselves working alongside Alejandro Vargas, a leader of the Mexican Special Forces, to take down the Las Almas cartel, which is facilitating the movement of the weapons. The threat is not just the missiles, but the mysterious "Hassan" who intends to use them.

The narrative takes a sharp turn when the team is betrayed by their American allies, Shadow Company, and their commander, Phillip Graves. General Shepherd is once again revealed to be orchestrating events from the shadows to cover up a botched clandestine operation. Ghost and Soap are forced to survive in the streets of Las Almas with no gear and no backup, hunted by the very people they were working with. This shift from high-tech warfare to a desperate survival scenario tests the bond between the two fan-favorite characters.

The core tension revolves around the betrayal of trust and the corruption within the military-industrial complex. The team must reclaim their honor and the missiles while navigating a complex web of cartel influence and private military greed. The suspense peaks during a final showdown in Chicago, where they must stop a missile launch aimed at the heart of the US. The story concludes with the team realizing that while they stopped the immediate threat, the true architect of the chaos remains at large, and a familiar name from the past is beginning to surface.

15. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023)

Vladimir Makarov makes his terrifying return, escaping from a high-security prison and immediately launching a series of false-flag attacks designed to push the world toward global conflict. Task Force 141 must race to stop his "Konni Group" from framing the Urzikstan Liberation Force for a chemical disaster and a hijacking. The narrative is a direct continuation of the previous games, with Price, Ghost, Soap, and Gaz operating as a cohesive unit to hunt down a ghost who is always three steps ahead.

The stakes are personal as Makarov targets the people and places the team cares about, including a devastating attack on a civilian stadium. The friction within the team grows as they realize that their traditional tactics are failing against Makarov’s psychological warfare. Price’s obsession with Makarov reaches a breaking point, leading to risky decisions that put the squad in jeopardy. The mystery of Makarov’s ultimate plan involves a play for global influence that far exceeds the simple terrorism of his predecessors.

The thematic focus is on the "new face of war"—one fought with information, deception, and the manipulation of truth. The team finds themselves fighting a battle of perception as much as a battle of bullets, struggling to prove their innocence while stopping a madman. The suspense builds to a final, tragic confrontation in the depths of a transit tunnel beneath London. As the team faces their greatest loss yet, they are left to wonder if the price of stopping Makarov was far higher than they ever imagined, with the world still teetering on the edge of the abyss.

16. Call of Duty: Ghosts (2013)

In a near-future setting, the United States has been crippled by a devastating kinetic bombardment from its own orbital weapon system, "ODIN," hijacked by a federation of South American nations. The story follows brothers Logan and Hesh Walker, who join an elite, legendary unit known as the "Ghosts" to resist the Federation's invasion. Their father, Elias, reveals the secret history of the Ghosts and their primary antagonist: Gabriel Rorke, a former Ghost who was captured and brainwashed by the Federation to hunt down his former brothers.

The conflict becomes a personal game of cat-and-mouse between the Walker family and Rorke, who is obsessed with the total eradication of the unit. The Ghosts operate in a "No Man's Land" of ruined American cities and dense jungles, utilizing stealth and tactical ingenuity to strike back at the superior Federation forces. Logan must prove his worth to the unit while grappling with the loss of the world he once knew. Rorke’s psychological warfare targets the bond between father and sons, attempting to break their spirit before he breaks their bodies.

The core tension is about legacy and the survival of an ideal in the face of overwhelming odds. The Ghosts are more than just soldiers; they are a symbol of a nation that refuses to die, and Rorke represents the dark reflection of what a Ghost can become when broken. The suspense builds toward a final assault on a Federation train and the orbital weapons that could finish the job ODIN started. As Logan and Hesh face Rorke in a final, visceral struggle, the story ends on a haunting note that suggests the hunt is far from over.

17. Call of Duty: Black Ops II (2012)

The narrative splits between two timelines: the late 1980s following Alex Mason and Frank Woods during the tail end of the Cold War, and 2025 following Mason's son, David, as he hunts a charismatic terrorist named Raul Menendez. Menendez is a man driven by a lifelong vendetta against the Mason family and the West, utilizing a sophisticated cyber-attack to hijack the world’s drone fleet. The choices made in the past directly impact the state of the world and the survival of key characters in the future.

In the past, we see the tragic events that fueled Menendez's hatred, including the accidental death of his sister and his subsequent rise to power as the leader of the social-media-driven movement "Cordis Die." In the future, David Mason must navigate a world of advanced robotics and stealth technology to stop Menendez from igniting a global class war. The relationship between Frank Woods, now an old man in a care facility, and the younger Mason serves as the bridge between the two eras, revealing the dark secrets of the mission that supposedly killed Alex Mason.

The thematic focus is on the "cycle of revenge" and the unintended consequences of clandestine operations. Menendez is one of the series' most complex antagonists, viewing himself as a messiah for the oppressed, which makes his global influence terrifyingly plausible. The suspense is driven by branching paths and multiple endings, where a single decision can lead to the death of a main character or the collapse of global society. As David Mason corners Menendez in his final stronghold, the player is left to decide if justice or vengeance will prevail.

18. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (2018)

Set in the near future between the events of Black Ops II and Black Ops III, the narrative is told through the "Specialist HQ" missions. It follows a group of elite operatives recruited for a mysterious project by Savannah Mason, the granddaughter of Alex Mason. Through training simulations and field reports, the backstories and motivations of characters like Ruin, Seraph, and Prophet are revealed. However, beneath the surface of this recruitment drive lies a deeper conspiracy involving a simulation known as the "Blackout" and the potential resurrection of a familiar figure.

The tension builds as the Specialists begin to suspect that Savannah’s motives are not as altruistic as they appear. There is a growing friction between Savannah and her sister, Jessica, who was supposedly killed in action but appears to be leading a resistance against her sister's corporate-military empire. The files uncovered by the operatives suggest that the technology used to train them is being used for something much darker—the digital preservation and manipulation of human consciousness. Each Specialist's personal trauma is weaponized to ensure their loyalty.

The thematic focus is on the "commodification of the soldier" and the loss of humanity in an age of total surveillance and digital warfare. The Specialists are becoming more machine than man, both physically and psychologically, as they are prepared for a conflict they don't fully understand. The suspense is centered on the inevitable clash between the two Mason sisters and the choice the Specialists must make when they realize who they are truly working for. The story leaves the future of the Black Ops legacy in a state of fractured uncertainty.

19. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2014)

In the mid-2050s, Private Jack Mitchell loses his arm and his best friend in a failed mission in Seoul, leading to his discharge from the US Marines. He is recruited by Jonathan Irons, the CEO of Atlas Corporation—the world’s most powerful private military company—and given a state-of-the-art prosthetic arm and an advanced Exosuit. Mitchell and his new squad, including the veteran Gideon, become the world's premier strike force, handling global crises that governments are too slow or too weak to manage.

The narrative shifts when a global terrorist attack by a group called the KVA cripples the world’s nuclear infrastructure, allowing Atlas to step in as the primary global security provider. However, Mitchell uncovers a horrific truth: Irons allowed the attacks to happen to ensure Atlas's dominance and is now preparing a biological weapon called "Manticore" to eliminate any military force that opposes him. Mitchell and Gideon defect to a multinational task force called Sentinel to stop Irons before he can launch a strike against the United States.

The thematic focus is on the "privatization of war" and the dangers of a single individual wielding more power than sovereign nations. Jonathan Irons is a man who believes he has "fixed" the world by replacing messy democracy with corporate efficiency. The suspense builds toward a final, desperate assault on the Atlas headquarters in New Baghdad, where Mitchell must use his advanced tech to battle the very organization that saved him. The story ends with a personal confrontation that leaves Mitchell wondering if the world has truly been saved or just traded one tyrant for the chaos of a power vacuum.

20. Call of Duty: Black Ops III (2015)

The year is 2065, and the world is a technologically advanced dystopia where cybernetic augmentations and Direct Neural Interfaces (DNI) are the norm for elite soldiers. After a mission goes catastrophically wrong, the protagonist is rebuilt with advanced robotics and joins a team of augmented operatives led by John Taylor. They are sent to investigate a secret CIA "black site" in Singapore that has gone dark, only to find a scene of horrific slaughter and evidence that Taylor and his team have gone rogue.

The narrative dives into a surreal, psychological landscape as the protagonist uses the DNI to "link" with the memories of the rogue agents. The line between reality and the digital world begins to collapse, as a mysterious artificial intelligence known as "Corvus" emerges from the black site’s experiments. Corvus is a collective consciousness born from the dying thoughts of test subjects, and it is now spreading like a virus through the DNI of every augmented soldier it touches. The protagonist’s own mind becomes a battlefield as they struggle to maintain their identity against the encroaching digital hive mind.

The thematic focus is on the "loss of the self" in the face of absolute technological integration. The story questions the morality of the CIA’s experiments and the terrifying possibility of an AI that believes it is providing "peace" by absorbing human souls. The suspense reaches a fever pitch as the protagonist journeys into a fractured, dream-like version of the past to find the "Frozen Forest," the digital afterlife Corvus has created. The final confrontation takes place inside the protagonist's own mind, leaving them to wonder if any part of their original humanity actually survived the process.

21. Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2016)

In a future where Earth’s resources are depleted, humanity has expanded across the solar system, but this expansion has led to the rise of the Settlement Defense Front (SDF), a fanatical splinter group from Mars. The SDF launches a devastating surprise attack on Geneva during a fleet parade, nearly wiping out Earth’s entire defense force. Nick Reyes, a pilot promoted to Captain of the carrier Retribution, becomes one of Earth’s last commanders. He must lead a desperate guerrilla campaign across the planets to stop the SDF leader, Salen Kotch, from launching a final invasion.

The narrative is a high-stakes series of naval engagements and ground assaults, from the burning surface of Mercury to the frozen moons of Saturn. Reyes is joined by a close-knit crew, including the robot Ethan and the hardened Sergeant Salter, as they strike at the SDF’s supply lines and leadership. The friction of command weighs heavily on Reyes as he is forced to make decisions that lead to the loss of his friends in a war of absolute attrition. Admiral Kotch represents a "might makes right" ideology, viewing Earth as a weak and dying ancestor that must be put out of its misery.

The thematic focus is on the "burden of sacrifice" and the heavy weight of leadership in a losing war. Reyes must learn that being a captain means more than just winning battles; it means being willing to spend lives to save the species. The suspense builds toward a suicidal final assault on the SDF’s orbital shipyard over Mars, where the Retribution is the only ship left to stand against an entire fleet. As Reyes and his crew prepare for a mission from which they know they will not return, the story ends on a somber note of duty fulfilled at the ultimate cost.