Below these lists you’ll also find a complete Call of Duty timeline that shows the games in chronological order and offers a brief synopsis of each game. Almost all of these games are playable on Xbox, and between them they offer a staggering 29,385G in achievements (even more if you play multiple versions of the cross-generation titles).
Call of Duty Games in Release Order
The Call of Duty games in release order list is fairly straightforward and easy to follow, even if it’s quite substantial in size. Since the series’ inception in 2003, there have been a whopping 22 Call of Duty games released on console and PC. There were also a couple of mobile entries – Call of Duty: Mobile for Android and iOS devices, and Call Of Duty: Black Op: Declassified for the PS Vita, which we’re not including here.
- Call of Duty (2003)
- Call of Duty: Finest Hour (2004)
- Call of Duty 2 (2005)
- Call of Duty 2: Big Red One (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 Games in Chronological Order
Putting all the Call of Duty games in chronological order is much trickier. We’ve had remakes, alternate timelines and games set in the distant future, and it’s not always clear which games take place in the same universe or timeline. So, we’re going to rank them based on the earliest year that a mission in each game takes place in, and not worry about which pocket universe they reside in. This means that some games appear earlier than you might expect in the timeline due to flashback missions.
- Call of Duty: WWII (1940 – 1945)
- Call of Duty 2 (1941 – 1945)
- Call of Duty: Vanguard (1941 – 1945)
- Call of Duty (1942 – 1945)
- Call of Duty: Finest Hour (1942 – 1945)
- Call of Duty 2: Big Red One (1942 – 1944)
- Call of Duty: World at War (1942 – 1945)
- Call of Duty 3 (1944)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops (1961 – 1968)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (1981)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops II (1986 – 1989, but also 2025)
- Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (1996 – 2011)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (1999 – 2019)
- Call of Duty: Ghosts (2015-2027)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2016)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2016-2017)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (2043)
- Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2054 – 2061)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops III (2065 – 2070)
- Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2187)
How to play through the Call of Duty games in timeline order:
1. Call of Duty: WWII (1940 – 1945)
- Release date: November 3, 2017
- Developer: Sledgehammer Games
- Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, PC
There are a lot of Call of Duty games set during World War 2, but most of them focus on the later half of the war, when the good ol’ U S of A had joined the conflict. Call of Duty: WWII is mostly focused on American forces in 1944-1945, following the story of Private Ronald “Red” Daniels. He’s assigned to the United States Army’s First Infantry Division and we see his story unfold as the US pushes into Europe, from D-day all the way to the closing days of the war.
Despite this focus on the latter stages of the war, there are some scenes which take place in 1940, which means this is the furthest back that a Call of Duty game goes (at least until Call of Duty: Napoleonic Warfare gets the greenlight. Do it you cowards).
2. Call of Duty: Vanguard (1941 – 1945)
- Release date: November 5, 2021
- Developer: Sledgehammer Games
- Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, PC
The most recent of the COD games set in World War 2, Call of Duty: Vanguard follows the creation of Task Force Vanguard, a special ops unit composed of soldiers from various Allied nations.
The story is set during 1945, as Vanguard seeks to stop “Project Phoenix”, a Nazi plan to keep the war going despite the death of Hitler, but there are multiple flashbacks to earlier points in the war. These flashbacks focus on different members of the team and don’t run chronologically, but the earliest scene takes place in August 1941, following Private Lucas Riggs, an Australian soldier serving in the North African campaign.
3. Call of Duty 2 (1941 – 1945)
- Release date: October 25, 2005
- Developer: Infinity Ward
- Platforms: Xbox 360, PC, Mac
Call of Duty 2 is split across three different stories, following soldiers in the Soviet, British, and American armies. The Soviet campaign focuses on the Battle of Stalingrad as the Soviets battle to repel the German attackers. The British campaign is primarily set on the North African front before closing out in Europe, while the American campaign is naturally focused on D-Day and the Battle of Normandy.
While the overwhelming majority of the game is set between 1942 and 1945, the first mission in the Soviet campaign sneaks into December 1941, following Soviet protagonist Vasili Koslov as he runs through training to join the Red Army.
4. Call of Duty (1942 – 1945)
- Release date: October 29, 2003
- Developer: Infinity Ward
- Platforms: PC, Mac
The progenitor of the entire Call of Duty empire, the original game came out in the distant past of 2003 and kickstarted one of the biggest empires in gaming history. Twenty years on, the series has changed in a lot of ways and yet you can still see all of the DNA of modern COD games here.
Set during World War 2, the earliest mission in the game is set on August 10, 1942 as the protagonist of the American campaign, Private Martin, completes basic training. After that, the majority of the game is set in 1944-1945 as Allied forces push the Nazis back.
Fun fact: a lot of the dev team for the original Call of Duty had previously worked on the Medal of Honour series, and COD was codenamed “Medal of Honor Killer”. It’s safe to say that it succeeded in that goal.
5. Call of Duty: World at War (1942 – 1945)
- Release date: November 11, 2008
- Developer: Treyarch
- Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, Nintendo Wii, PC
In a rare break from the endless cycle of North Africa, D-Day, Germany that WW2 COD games can’t seem to escape, Call of Duty: World at War opens in the Pacific Theater. The opening mission takes place on August 17, 1942. You fill the boots of American Marine Private C. Miller, a prisoner on Makin Island, as he makes his escape and assists in the US assault on the island.
From there, things move back to familiar territory as we jump perspectives to Russian Private Dimitri Petrenko during the Battle of Stalingrad, but the US side of the story does stay in the Pacific and avoids the cinematic allure of D-Day, instead focusing on the Battle of Okinawa.
6. Call of Duty: Finest Hour (1942 – 1945)
- Release date: November 16, 2004
- Developer: Spark Unlimited
- Platforms: Xbox, PS2, Gamecube, PC
While it was the second game in the franchise, Call of Duty: Finest Hour holds the prestigious honor of being the first Call of Duty game on consoles. It’s based on the original Call of Duty, but it follows a separate story and has its own unique campaign.
Like the original, Call of Duty: Finest Hour is split into three campaigns that follow the Soviets, British, and Americans respectively. The earliest mission takes place in September 1942 during the Battle of Stalingrad. From there the missions progress into the African front and into Europe, before culminating in the Allied crossing of the Rhine.
7. Call of Duty 2: Big Red One (1942 – 1944)
- Release date: November 1, 2005
- Developer: Treyarch, High Voltage Software
- Platforms: Xbox, PS2, Gamecube
Much like Finest Hour was the accompaniment to the original, Call of Duty 2: Big Red One serves as a side-story for the second game. Weirdly though, while Call of Duty 2 came out on the Xbox 360, Big Red One only came out on the original Xbox, alongside the PS2 and PC. Make no mistake though, this isn’t an expansion pack, it’s a full release and deserves a spot on our list.
The name sounds weird, but the game is named after the U.S. Army’s 1st Infantry Division, nicknamed “Big Red One” because of the logo on their patch. The game follows them through their part in the North African campaign starting in November 1942, and the invasion of Sicily in 1943, before transitioning to the D-Day landings on Omaha beach and culminating with their push into Germany itself.
8. Call of Duty 3 (1944)
- Release date: November 7, 2006
- Developer: Treyarch
- Platforms: PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii
Call of Duty 3 is more focused than the other World War 2 era games, taking place entirely within 1944 during the Normandy breakout. We actually skip past D-Day and join the action a bit later on, playing as British, Canadian, American, and Polish forces throughout their push through occupied France.
It’s nice to see a spotlight shone on some of the lesser-seen parts of the war here, with the French Resistance, Canadians, and Polish forces all getting some major screentime.
9. Call of Duty: Black Ops (1961 – 1968)
- Release date: November 9, 2010
- Developer: Treyarch
- Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PC, Mac
A bit of a time jump here as we leap forwards 15 years from the end of World War 2 and straight into the midst of the Cold War with Call of Duty: Black Ops. Unlike most COD stories which are spread across multiple campaigns, we only got the one central story here, though we still bounce between three different protagonists: US soldier Captain Alex Mason, CIA agent Jason Hudson, and a Russian soldier named Viktor Reznov.
The general vibe of the story is different to most COD games; it’s more of a spy-thriller than a typical war game. The game opens with Mason being interrogated by unknown forces in 1968, and most of the game takes place as flashbacks to his previous missions, with the opening mission taking us back to 1961.
10. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (1981)
- Release date: November 13, 2020
- Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
- Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, PC
We’re now firmly in the Cold War era. It’s 1981 and the Soviets have taken on the mantle of America’s foil away from the Nazis. A Soviet agent codenamed Perseus is trying to destabilize the world and it’s up to you to stop them… unless you don’t feel like it.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War stands alone from other COD games in that there are multiple outcomes to the campaign, depending on the player’s choices during its missions. You can either put a stop to the Soviet plot, or make sure it happens. There are also some gameplay perks that you can choose, turning Black Ops Cold War into a sort-of mini role-playing experience.
11. Call of Duty: Black Ops II (1986 – 1989, but also 2025)
- Release date: November 13, 2012
- Developer: Treyarch
- Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii U, PC
This entry is a bit all over the place, since Call of Duty: Black Ops II has two distinct story arcs that it follows and a non-linear structure to the campaign means that you can tackle most of it in any order you feel like. The “modern day” sections of the game take place in 2025, but there are several flashback missions that take place during the late 1980s.
The modern day sections of the game follow David Mason, son of original Black Ops protagonist Alex Mason. Younger Mason is working for a US Spec Ops team hunting down a terrorist called Raul Menendez, while the flashback missions mirror this tale, showing Papa Mason’s attempts to track down the very same Menendez back in the 80s.
12. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (1996 – 2011)
- Release date: November 5, 2007
- Developer: Infinity Ward
- Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PC, Mac
The original Modern Warfare, not to be confused with the remake that we’ll get to in a second. Ironically the sands of time have meant that Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare isn’t quite as modern as it once was, but it’s still one of the best Call of Duty games of them all.
The vast majority of the game takes place in 2011 in a fictional and unnamed country in the Middle East, where a terrorist coup is underway. Add a Russian civil war and stolen nuclear weapons into the mix and you’ve got a full bingo card of video game threats to the US to take on. We see the action from the perspectives of US Marine Paul Jackson and Sgt. “Soap” MacTavish of the British SAS.
The COD games bloody love a flashback though, so there is a jump back to 1996 for one of the game’s most iconic missions, “All Ghillied Up”. Undoubtedly one of the high points of the series, and arguably the game that propelled Call of Duty to the stardom it enjoys today.
13. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (1999 – 2019)
- Release date: October 25, 2019
- Developer: Infinity Ward
- Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, PC
No, you’re not in The Matrix and this isn’t déjà vu. The reboot Call of Duty: Modern Warfare shares almost the same name as its predecessor, but it has a vastly different plot to the original. Some of the characters are the same, but that’s about it.
Chief amongst the changes are the dates, as Infinity Ward wanted to bring the game into the modern era (again). As a result, the majority of the game is set in 2019, and the flashback assassination mission has been bumped up a few years too, now taking place in 1999.
This time around, we follow a CIA agent called Alex as he attempts to stop a terrorist organization called Al-Qatala. They steal some chemical weapons and use them to attack London, dragging the SAS into the picture in the process. From there, we head off to the fictional country of Urzikstan (hey at least it got a name this time) to team up with some rebels and battle against, you guessed it, those dastardly Russians, once again.
14. Call of Duty: Ghosts (2015-2027)
- Release date: November 5, 2013
- Developer: Infinity Ward
- Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, Wii U, PC
It’s alternate timeline time. Call of Duty: Ghosts is predominantly set in the not-too-distant future of 2027, but there are several key flashbacks that take place in 2015 and 2017. During 2017, the US gets shot by its own super space railguns after they’re captured by the Federation — a coalition of basically every central and south American country. Several major cities are destroyed including Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Houston, and Miami, and the US gets kicked right down the superpower pecking order.
From there we jump forward ten years to 2027, the war between the US and the Federation has reached a standstill. You take control of the Ghosts, a US Spec Ops team trying to save what’s left of the country from the Federation’s latest plot.
15. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2016)
- Release date: November 10, 2009
- Developer: Infinity Ward
- Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, Wii U, PC
Things are about to get really complicated now, so stick with us. This entry is for the first iteration of Modern Warfare 2, which launched in 2009, and is set in 2016. Not to be confused with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, which uses roman numerals, and released in 2022.
Infinity Ward’s war on my filing system aside, Modern Warfare 2 takes place five years after the original game and follows Soap MacTavish, now a captain in the SAS, as he tries to hunt down the terrorist leader of Russia, Vladimir Makarov. Things escalate at an alarming rate when Russia launches a full-scale invasion of the US, and what follows is a classic tale of betrayals, backstabbing, and explosions.
Remastered versions were released on Xbox One, PS4, and PC in 2020.
16. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2016-2017)
- Release date: November 8, 2011
- Developer: Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games
- Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PC
The finale of the original Modern Warfare trilogy picked up immediately following the end of the last game, and sees SAS baddasses Soap and Price teaming up with Russian loyalists to help end the war between the US and Russia. Eventually Russian forces are sent packing from US soil and the Russian president tries to call off the whole thing, but gets kidnapped by the dastardly Makarov.
Russia escalates things by invading Europe too. Try not to worry about where they found the manpower and resources to invade most of the world simultaneously and just enjoy the over-the-top carnage. Makarov gets what’s coming to him in the end, in fairly grim fashion too.
17. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022)
- Release date: October 28, 2022
- Developer: Infinity Ward
- Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, PC
Following on from the 2019 reboot, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II takes place entirely within 2022. We join up with Task Force 141, who we saw getting assembled, Avenger’s style, at the end of the last game.
Soap and the boys are out to stop an Iranian terrorist called Major Hassan Zyani in what turns out to be quite the globe-trotting adventure. We visit real cities Amsterdam and Chicago, along with a fake Mexican city and two fictional Middle Eastern countries — Urzikstan making its return, and the United Republic of Adal.
18. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023)
- Release date: November 10, 2023
- Developer: Sledgehammer Games
- Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, PC
It’s time to finish the fight. The most recently released entry on this list, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III wraps up the reboot storyline and takes place entirely within 2023.
Price and the gang are on the hunt for Vladimir Makarov, who has been somehow spearheading global terrorist operations from his cozy cell in the Gulag since he got captured in 2019’s Modern Warfare. Makarov gets busted out of jail by a Russian private military company and it’s up to Task Force 141 to stop him before he can enact his evil schemes.
19. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (2043)
- Release date: October 12, 2018
- Developer: Treyarch
- Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, PC
Ah yes, the Call of Duty that made everyone very angry by not including a single-player campaign. Instead, we got our story delivered through the three multiplayer game modes: Multiplayer, Zombies, and the brand-new Blackout mode, a battle royale mode that served as the precursor to today’s wildly popular Warzone.
There are a series of tutorial missions at Specialist HQ which take place in 2043, while the multiplayer carnage of Blackout itself is nebulously in the 2040s after that point.
20. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2054 – 2061)
- Release date: November 4, 2014
- Developer: Sledgehammer Games
- Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, PC
This isn’t just regular warfare, this is Advanced Warfare. Advanced Warfare is the first proper Call of Duty campaign that takes place in the distant future, both chronologically and by release order.
We take control of Private Jack Mitchell of the US Marines in the year 2054, where his first mission doesn’t go well. His best friend dies and he loses his arm, which gets him discharged from the marines. But when a private military corporation called Atlas offers him a sweet robot arm and a new career, he jumps at the opportunity. From there we follow Mitchell’s career within Atlas over a five-year span as he slowly uncovers the sinister truth behind his charismatic employer.
21. Call of Duty: Black Ops III (2065 – 2070)
- Release date: November 6, 2015
- Developer: Treyarch
- Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4, PS3, PC, Mac
Call of Duty: Black Ops III is a direct follow-up to Black Ops II, despite the hefty 40-year time jump. The game is set in 2065 – 2070 and shows us the aftermath of the drone strikes that rocked the world in 2025. Since then, there has been a renewed focus on ground combat, with cybernetically-enhanced soldiers and robots ruling the battlefield.
We’re an unnamed protagonist this time around, and boy do we have a bad time in the opening mission, getting our arms ripped off by a Grunt combat robot. Thankfully this is the future, so we get some sweet robot arms. From there we jump forward to 2070 and find ourselves embroiled in the Third Cold War between two superpowers — the Winslow Accord and the Common Defense Pact.
22. Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2187)
- Release date: November 4, 2016
- Developer: Infinity Ward
- Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, PC
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare is the most futuristic of the COD games, taking place in the far-flung future of 2187 — that’s more in line with Star Trek’s timeline than the rest of the COD games. Humanity has colonized much of the solar system. And yet, war never changes, as we find ourselves embroiled in a brutal conflict after a breakaway faction called the Settlement Defense Front launches a surprise attack on Earth, crippling the United Nations Space Alliance. We take command of Lt. Nick Reyes as he rallies the UNSA’s remaining forces and takes the fight to the enemy.
Unlike most COD games, Infinite Warfare has optional side missions that you can embark on alongside the core story missions. You operate from the UNSA Retribution, a space warfare carrier which serves as your hub between missions. Infinite Warfare takes advantage of its unique setting with some space dogfights, zero-G, and ship boarding actions, and it’s honestly one of the most underrated titles in the series.
Laura Adams is a tech enthusiast residing in the UK. Her articles cover the latest technological innovations, from AI to consumer gadgets, providing readers with a glimpse into the future of technology.
