If you’ve spent any time in a lobby lately, you know the vibe. It’s chaotic. It’s loud. Honestly, it’s a miracle the franchise is still the juggernaut it is after two decades of annual releases. Keeping track of all CODs in order isn't just about dates; it’s about tracing the evolution of the modern first-person shooter from a clunky PC game to a multi-billion dollar cultural phenomenon that basically dictates how people spend their Friday nights.
We’ve seen it all. The gritty trenches of WWII. The neon-soaked streets of a futuristic Tokyo. Even outer space, which, let’s be real, most people hated at the time but now remember with a weird sort of nostalgia.
The Golden Era of World War II
It all started in 2003. Infinity Ward, a team made up of former Medal of Honor devs, dropped the original Call of Duty. It was a PC exclusive back then. It felt different because you weren't a lone wolf superhero. You were just a soldier. A cog in the machine.
Then came Call of Duty 2 in 2005. This was the big one for the Xbox 360 launch. It introduced regenerating health, a mechanic that literally changed every shooter that followed. No more hunting for medkits. You just hid behind a crate and waited for the red jelly on your screen to disappear. Simple. Effective. Kind of genius for the time.
Call of Duty 3 (2006) was Treyarch’s first big swing at a mainline console title. It’s often the forgotten middle child. It was fine, but it didn't have that "it" factor. People were starting to get bored of the M1 Garand "ping" sound. They wanted something new. Something modern.
Modern Warfare Changed Everything
In 2007, the world shifted. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare arrived and basically deleted every other shooter from the conversation.
Think about the "All Ghillied Up" mission. Crawling through the grass in Pripyat while a radiation counter clicks in your ear. It wasn't just a game; it was a cinematic masterpiece. But the real hook was the multiplayer. Killstreaks. Perks. Leveling up to unlock a gold desert eagle. This is where the "XP" addiction truly began for millions of players.
Then, the timeline starts to get a bit crowded.
- World at War (2008): Treyarch went back to WWII but made it dark. Gritty. Gory. Most importantly? It gave us Nazi Zombies. What started as a hidden Easter egg became a pillar of the franchise.
- Modern Warfare 2 (2009): Peak COD for many. It was broken, unbalanced, and incredibly fun. The Akimbo Model 1887s? The One Man Army noob tubes? It was a mess, but it was our mess. Hans Zimmer even did the music.
- Black Ops (2010): This took us into the Cold War. Brainwashing, Mason, Numbers. It felt like a fever dream in the best way possible.
The Identity Crisis Years
By the time Modern Warfare 3 (2011) and Black Ops II (2012) rolled around, the formula was starting to show some wear and tear, even if the sales didn't reflect it. Black Ops II was actually pretty bold—it introduced branching storylines and multiple endings. It was also the first time the series dipped its toes into the "near future."
Then things got weird.
Call of Duty: Ghosts (2013) tried to sell us on a dog named Riley and "fish AI." It didn't land. The maps were too big. The vibe was off.
Next came the "Jetpack Era."
- Advanced Warfare (2014): Sledgehammer Games brought in Kevin Spacey and double-jumping. It was fast. Maybe too fast.
- Black Ops III (2015): Specialist characters and wall-running.
- Infinite Warfare (2016): This was the breaking point. The trailer became one of the most disliked videos on YouTube. People wanted boots on the ground, not space lasers.
The Warzone Pivot and Modern Reboots
Sledgehammer tried to course-correct with Call of Duty: WWII in 2017. It was okay. Safe. But the real shift happened in 2019 with the Modern Warfare reboot.
Infinity Ward rebuilt the engine from scratch. The guns felt heavy. The sounds were terrifyingly realistic. And then, in early 2020, Warzone dropped. It was a free-to-play Battle Royale that launched right when everyone was stuck at home. It saved the franchise from stagnating.
But keeping all CODs in order since then has been a headache. We had Black Ops Cold War (2020), which was developed under a brutal crunch. Then Vanguard (2021), which felt like a reskinned Modern Warfare in a WWII setting.
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The naming conventions became a nightmare. Modern Warfare II (2022) and Modern Warfare III (2023) confused everyone. Was it a sequel to the 2009 game? No, it was a sequel to the 2019 reboot. Modern Warfare III was particularly controversial because it started as DLC and was stretched into a full-priced game with a campaign that took about four hours to finish.
Black Ops 6 and the Microsoft Era
Now we are in the era of Black Ops 6 (2024). It's the first one to land on Game Pass on day one. It feels like a return to form for Treyarch—more focus on movement (Omnimovement) and that classic 1990s spy thriller aesthetic.
If you are looking for the definitive list of mainline entries for your collection, here is the chronological release order:
- Call of Duty (2003)
- Call of Duty 2 (2005)
- Call of Duty 3 (2006)
- Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007)
- Call of Duty: World at War (2008)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops II (2012)
- Call of Duty: Ghosts (2013)
- Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2014)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops III (2015)
- Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2016)
- Call of Duty: WWII (2017)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (2018)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (2020)
- Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (2024)
Why the Order Actually Matters
You might think, "Who cares? It's just more shooting." But the progression of these games shows the shifting tastes of pop culture. In the mid-2000s, we were obsessed with the heroism of the "Greatest Generation." By 2010, we were fascinated by conspiracy theories and the Cold War. By 2015, everything was about "enhanced humans" and sci-fi.
Now? We’ve come full circle. We want "tactical" realism. We want nostalgia. That’s why Activision keeps bringing back maps like Rust, Shipment, and Nuketown. They know we’re chasing a feeling we had in 2009.
The technical leap between World at War and Black Ops 6 is staggering. We went from basic 60fps targets on consoles to complex, interconnected ecosystems where your progress in a mobile game affects your weapon skins on a $3,000 PC.
Actionable Steps for the Modern Player
If you're trying to jump back in after years away, don't just buy the newest one and hope for the best.
Check the storage requirements first. These games are massive. Modern Warfare III and the Call of Duty HQ launcher can easily eat up over 200GB of space. You might need an external SSD before you even hit the "download" button.
Also, focus on one sub-series. If you like fast, arcadey action, stick with the Black Ops games. If you prefer a slightly more grounded, tactical feel, the Modern Warfare reboot series is your best bet.
Finally, don't ignore the older titles. On PC, many of the older games still have dedicated (though small) communities. Just be careful with older titles like Black Ops III on PC—security exploits can be an issue, so look into community-made patches like the T7 Patch before you hop into a public lobby.
The franchise isn't slowing down. Whether you love the yearly cycle or hate it, the "COD-ification" of gaming is here to stay. Grab your controller, mute the lobby, and try to remember why we all fell in love with these games in the first place: the simple, satisfying loop of a well-placed headshot.
Get your storage ready by clearing at least 250GB. Download the COD HQ launcher. Start with the "Omnimovement" tutorials in Black Ops 6 to get your muscle memory up to speed with 2026 standards.