5 Best Call of Duty games

The FPS family

Call of Duty: Black Ops III was released last week across all platforms, and let's just say it's not the best we've seen. So, I thought of looking back at the franchise to list 5 of the best Call of Duty games -- excluding Black Ops III, obviously.

Call of Duty, aka CoD, games should require no introduction but here it is anyway, the series started in 2003 with the release of the first game titled Call of Duty. The series launched on PC and later expanded to consoles. Some earlier titles were based on World War II, though the majority have more recent or futuristic settings. They are one big happy FPS family.

With the introduction formalities out of the way, here are the 5 best Call of Duty games.

5. Call of Duty 2

2005, Infinity Ward

This masterpiece, set during World War II, was the launch CoD title for Xbox 360. The game was praised for its graphics, sound, and gameplay and as a result sold very well. It featured a total of 27 missions that were divided into four campaigns, three stories, and perspectives of four soldiers.

The game was presented very well. The story was nice and strong. By the way, if you ever wondered which game brought health regeneration to Call of Duty, it is none other than the second game in Call of Duty series, which has the fifth position in our list here.

4. Call of Duty: World at War

2008, Treyarch

At number 4 comes World at War, the first game in Black Ops series. The game brought World War II setting back to Call of Duty. It is considered to be the fifth mainstream game of the series. The game introduced co-operative mode to the series.

The game's story is told from the perspectives of a US Navy Officer and a Red Army soldier and is based on many historical battles. It was praised by critics and praised by players. The realistic combat and good graphics along with a nice story earns it the fourth spot on this list. Also, those Nazi Zombies maps that you love, World at War is to be thanked for that.

3. Call of Duty: Black Ops

2010, Treyarch

This successor of World at War is the seventh game to be released under CoD series. Within 24 hours of release it managed to sell over 5.6 million copies; by 2011, 25 million copies were sold worldwide making it one of the best-selling video games in US, UK and Europe.

The game introduced crossbows with bolts and explosive ammunition as well as Dragon's Breath rounds and ballistic knives. It undoubtedly presented a compelling campaign and delivered a break from the modern war scene as in Modern Warfare. Following its prequel, Black Ops earns a spot on this list.

2. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

2009, Infinity Ward

MW2 finds a spot here largely because of the multiplayer experience it provided, this, however, does not mean that the campaign of the game failed to impress. Players everywhere praised the in-depth story mode, mini missions, and multiplayer.

The game introduced Special Ops co-operative mode, which allowed players to play locally on different campaign maps. Though Spec-Ops was one of the very few additions to the series it certainly played a huge part in earning it the second spot on this list.

Now for the last one.

Drumroll, please.........

The best Call of Duty game so far is......

1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

2007, Infinity Ward

You agree with me right? Modern Warfare is undoubtedly the best CoD game so far. The game was the first one to carry the series forward from Word War II to modern time wars. It had a brilliant campaign, which was appreciated by all. Moreover, it provided strong but balanced online content.

Killstreaks in multiplayer mode of CoD first debuted in this game. Its campaign brought a new level of immersion and intensity never seen before. MW managed to break Halo 3 sales records and became the best-selling video game in November 2007.

It also won Best Game and Best Graphics awards from various websites and received overall positive reviews. The game was and still is a masterpiece and hence is at the top of our list.

What do you think of this list? What are your favorite Call of Duty games? Be sure to comment below.