Published by Activision and developed by several different studios over time, Call of Duty is one of the most popular first-person shooter franchises available with sixteen different installments in the series. The franchise first started as a World War II game but later expanded and transformed into a more modern shooter featuring futuristic worlds and weapons, and advanced technologies.
The franchise also branched out to include card games, action figures, and comic books all based on Call of Duty games. It's also a perennial contender for the best Esports game available. Recognized by the Guinness World Records as the best-selling first-person shooter franchise, now with over 300 million copies sold, now is a good time to look at their ten biggest successes that helped them reach that stratosphere. This article and that record don't even include the 60 million downloads from Call of Duty: Warzone, an immensely successful free-to-play game.
Updated August 17th, 2021 by Mark Sammut: Call of Duty is and seems set to always be a fixture of the shooter genre, and that certainly translates into great sales for Activision. The franchise has shipped hundreds of millions of units over the years, a figure that is constantly expanding. Since the last time this article was revisited, a few of the sales numbers have changed, while some indication of Call Of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's commercial performance has been provided.
Please note that there isn't exact and up-to-date data available for every entry in the franchise, so the most recent information possible will be utilized.
Special Mention: Call Of Duty: Mobile – $1 Billion In Revenue
Call of Duty: Mobile exists in its own world, so it shouldn't be directly compared to the console games. The free-to-play title had a somewhat slow start, but it eventually blossomed into a huge commercial success. After around 18 months on the market, Activision confirmed that Call of Duty: Mobile had earned approximately $1 billion in revenue.
In terms of "units sold," the number was at around 250 million within the first year; however, in this case, this translates to how many people downloaded the app.
16 Call Of Duty – 4.5 Million
Originally titled Call of Duty: Finest Hour, this was the game that launched a juggernaut. As an innocent competitor to the Medal of Honor series, it tapped a base of players that loved the genre but didn't get enough multiplayer action in other World War 2 games.
To say that it capitalized on its opportunity would be an understatement. Developers for these styles of games have risen and fallen, but none of them have established the empire kicked off by this initial appetizer of what would become the best-selling main course in FPS history. The game had an OK start to life and eventually reached roughly 4.5 million units sold around a decade after its debut.
15 Call Of Duty: Black Ops Cold War – 5.7 Million (Within First Month)
Although by no means a flop in the grand scheme of things, Black Ops Cold War was a bit slower off the mark than some of its predecessors, particularly Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. The game earned $687 million within six weeks of its launch, a solid but unspectacular number for Activision's property.
Within one month of its debut, Black Ops Cold War had shipped at least 5.7 million units. Naturally, that number has increased a lot since then as the game has constantly ranked as one of the highest-selling titles of 2021.
14 Call Of Duty 2 – 5.9 Million
Testing the waters after their first game, Call of Duty 2 had a lot riding on it. The first game, while profitable, could have just been a one-hit-wonder. Without a centralized protagonist to carry the series, developers were worried that the next game would not carry enough of the fans to continue.
Of course, these turned out to be phantom worries as this game was even more successful than the first. It tapped a market of gamers that loved the action, the stories, and the multiplayer combat which laid a foundation for the franchise over the next two decades.
13 Call Of Duty 3 – 7.2 Million
Fans of the series are grateful that Call of Duty 3 continued the growing trend in sales back in 2006. It was an awful risk to release a game one year after the previous game and many were worried that releasing a game in back-to-back years would over-saturate the market.
Of course, history shows that Call of Duty fans pretty much expect a new game every single year. In some cases, like 2020, they've even gotten two major installments released in the same calendar period.
12 Call Of Duty: Infinite Warfare – 13.6 Million
It's hard to think that selling 13.6 million copies is somehow a commercial disappointment. However, in 2016, sandwiched between two other Call of Duty games that were far more successful, Infinite Warfare felt like a big slowdown in the action.
It wasn't due to a lack of vision or creativity. Taking place in the future and in space, the weapons, suits, and maps were all ahead of their time. It was also ahead of what many fans were ready for and, as a result, didn't live up to the standard set by other entries.
11 Call Of Duty: Black Ops 4 – 14.3 Million
Notoriously, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is the only main installment without a campaign. While the franchise has primarily become known for its multiplayer content, there are still plenty of people who pick up Call of Duty for their blockbuster single-player campaigns. Consequently, Black Ops 4 must have lost some sales due to its decision to cater to only a section of its fanbase.
According to VGChartz, which should be taken with a grain of salt, Black Ops 4 has moved more than 14 million units across the PS4, Xbox One, and PC. For a more concrete figure, Black Ops 4 Activision considered earned around $500 million within just three days of its launch. Despite seemingly performing quite well, Black Ops 4 to be a commercial disappointment.
10 Call Of Duty: World At War – 15.02 Million
Call of Duty: World at War is similar to previous games in the franchise but features more mature content and allows players to complete objectives in multiple ways. While not the biggest hit in the series, it performed well overall, eventually reaching approximately 15 million units sold.
The single-player campaign follows three characters: Marine Raider Private Miller, US Navy Petty Officer Locke, and Red Army Soldier Private Dimitri Petrenko across the Eastern and Pacific front involving Nazi Germany, Empire of Japan, Soviet Union, and the United States. The game also received a Microsoft Mobile version developed by Glu.
9 Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare – 17.28 Million
The fourth installment in the series was developed by Infinity Ward and it breaks the setting from the World War II featured in previous titles and sets the new game in modern times. In a single-player campaign, the player controls six different characters while controlling British Secret Air Service Sergent John "Soap" MacTavish for the majority of the time.
The story is set in the year 2011 where a radical leader has executed the president of an unnamed country in the Middle East while an ultranationalist movement ignites civil war in Russia. Thanks to its polish, it became the best-selling game of 2007 and has sold 17.28 million copies. Players might want to start with this game while the latest Call of Duty game is still working out its bugs.
8 Call Of Duty: WWII – 19.82 Million
Call of Duty: WWII is a fourteenth installment in the Call of Duty series and the second game to be developed by Sledgehammer Games. Unlike almost all previous titles, WWII doesn't feature the handy health regeneration, though it does have several other characteristics that are the hallmark of Call of Duty games.
The game is set in various battlefields in Western Europe and follows the historical progress of Operation Overlord. The player is put in the boots of Ronald "Red" Daniels as a part of the 1st Infantry Division. The game received favorable reviews and sold approximately 19.82 million copies, making it the ninth best-selling Call of Duty game.
7 Call Of Duty: Advanced Warfare – 21.76 Million
Published in 2014, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare sold 21.76 million copies, becoming a commercial and critical success thanks to positive reviews. The game's setting is highly futuristic (set in the year 2054) and the plot revolves around the private military organization called Atlas while the player controls former US Marine Jack Mitchell.
The game begins with the North Korean invasion of Seoul in which the protagonist loses an arm, resulting in him being discharged from the military. Later he receives an advanced prosthetic arm and joins Atlas.
6 Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 – 25.02 Million
A direct sequel to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, the game once again loosely follows John "Soap" McTavish, but this time in a supporting role. The plot revolves around four United States Army Rangers who are defending the country from the Russian invasion, while the special forces hunt for Vladimir Makarov, the leader of the Russian ultranationalist party.
The game received universal acclaim, particularly for the campaign, multiplayer, and the amount of content. It managed to sell 4.7 million copies in the first 24 hours of the launch and, as of 2020, it has sold 25.02 million copies in total. Players still adore it despite the memes that poke a bunch of holes in the story.
5 Call Of Duty: Black Ops 3 – 26.72 Million
While critically less successful than the previous titles in the series, Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 still managed to perform quite well commercially and, with 26.72 million copies, climbed to the fifth best-selling Call of Duty game. The multiplayer helped save the game and it's still the preferred experience while Black Ops Cold War is working out some of its biggest issues PvP issues.
The game is set 40 years after the events of the previous game in a world threatened by climate change and challenged by new technologies. The third Cold War is ongoing between two global alliances – Winslow Accord and Common Defense Pact. Like the previous Black Ops games, it follows a team of black ops soldiers who work for Winslow Accord.
4 Call Of Duty: Ghosts – 28.98 Million
Like the previous entry on the list, Call of Duty: Ghost performed better financially than it did critically – it sold 28.98 million copies worldwide. Logan Walker is the new protagonist of the game, with several other characters also playable, including a non-human playable character for the first time - a German Shepard named Riley.
The game is set in the near future where the Middle East suffered nuclear destruction. Oil-producing South American countries unified and formed the Federation of Americas and have grown into a global superpower invading and conquering Central America and starting a war with the United States.
3 Call Of Duty: Black Ops II – 29.59 Million
Published in 2012 by Activision and developed by Treyarch, Call of Duty: Black Ops II is set in the late 1980s where the player controls Alex Mason and Frank Woods. The plot revolves around antagonist Raul Menendez who kidnapped Woods and plotted against the United States and China so he could start the second Cold War. The game has nonlinear gameplay and features multiple endings.
It received quite positive reviews from critics and sold 29.59 million copies, making it the third best-selling Call of Duty videogame. It raised the bar and heightened the debate over whether Black Ops or Modern Warfare is the better series.
2 Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – 30.71 Million
Developed jointly by Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 was a massive commercial success, it sold 6.5 million copies just in the first 24 hours, and as of 2020, it has exploded in sales for a total of 30.71 million copies. Just as the sales haven't stopped, the memes about the game have proven likewise unstoppable.
The game's plot starts right after the last mission of the previous game and is once again centered around Task Force 141. With the help of Delta Force and Special Air Service, the unit hunts for reoccurring villain Vladimir Makarov. Like its predecessor, the game is divided into three sets of missions called Acts.
1 Call Of Duty: Black Ops – 30.72 Million
With 30.72 million copies sold, Call of Duty: Black Ops is the best-selling entry in the franchise, as well as one of the best-selling video games of all time. It serves as a sequel to Call of Duty: World at War and takes place during the Cold War between 1961 and 1968 in various locations such as Kazakhstan, the Ural Mountains, Cuba, Hong Kong, Laos, the Arctic Circle, and Siberia. The characters in the game are voiced by many known actors such as Ice Cube, Gary Oldman, Ed Harris, and Andrew Picardo.
The game also received a version for mobiles and smartphones which features a different storyline and different characters. Players of the Black Ops series will be delighted to know there are elements of the current game that can't be appreciated unless they've played previous games, like this one, first.