Call of Duty at 20: After 22 Games and Counting, This Franchise Is Still Dominating Like a True Force Without Losing Its Hardpoint

“History is written by the victor.”

It’s a historic day for the biggest FPS franchise. After 20 years, Call of Duty has accumulated staggering figures. Its popularity is on a level that rivals can only dream of. After all, generating over $30 billion in revenue and selling close to 450 million copies is not a joke.

More than two decades ago, few critics said Call of Duty had no future. In 2023, it has not only proved the doubters wrong but also amassed an unparalleled fan following, to say the least. Not to mention that it’s getting stronger each year, thanks to a brand new premium release from Activision; a simple yet effective formula.

Call of Duty and its giant FPS brand simply refuses to slow down despite being 20 years old

For the uninitiated, the first game in the iconic action series was released on October 29, 2003. It was seen as a competitor to the then FPS crown holder Medal of Honor. The result? Infinity Ward’s first foray in the first-person shooter genre outperformed Medal of Honor. Further, it even attracted all the attention for the rate at which it was growing. People were talking about it and Activision was ready to keep the momentum running, at any cost.

That objective still holds true and the yearly releases from the publisher are a testament to its commitment to consistently offer a new COD. As a result, and coming as no surprise, the existence of Call of Duty has become a key reason for video games doing record-breaking business.

Now, they have even left behind Hollywood blockbusters, making billions of dollars, compared to how the situation was 20 years ago. These days, titles like Modern Warfare II are grossing $1 billion in mere 10 days. Yes, it’s happening for real.

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If one has to find a secret behind the enormous success of brand COD, it has to be experimentation. Looking at this franchise, one cannot say that it only consists of Black Ops or Modern Warfare games. There have been various other titles as well from the makers; they have made a significant impact too.

Games like Vanguard, Advanced Warfare, WWII, World at War, Ghosts, and Infinite Warfare prove this point. Yes, they were not extremely popular but still managed to introduce a lot of fan-favorite elements. In short, there has been a risk-and-reward approach taken by Activision. Most of the time, though, it has worked out.

How many mainline Call of Duty Games have released since 2003?

Just in case anyone missed out on keeping track, here’s the list of all 22 mainline COD games in order. The upcoming Modern Warfare 3 is not included in it.

• Call of Duty (2003), Infinity Ward
• Call of Duty 2 (2005), Infinity Ward
• Call of Duty 3 (2006), Treyarch Studios
• Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007), Infinity Ward
• Call of Duty: World at War (2008), Treyarch Studios
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009), Infinity Ward
• Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010), Treyarch Studios
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011), Infinity Ward
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 (2012), Treyarch Studios
• Call of Duty: Ghosts (2013), Infinity Ward, Neversoft, Raven Software
• Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2014), Sledgehammer Games, High Moon Studios
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 (2015), Treyarch Studios, Beenox, Mercenary Technology
• Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2016), Infinity Ward, Raven Software, Treyarch Studios, High Moon Studios, Beenox, Vicarious Visions
• Call of Duty: WWII (2017), Sledgehammer Games, Raven Software
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (2018), Treyarch Studios, Raven Software, Beenox
• Call of Duty Mobile (2019), TiMi Studio Group
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019), Infinity Ward, Raven Software, Sledgehammer Games
• Call of Duty: Warzone (2020), Infinity Ward, Raven Software, Treyarch Studios, Sledgehammer Games, Beenox, High Moon Studios, Activision Shanghai, Toys For Bob
• Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (2020), Treyarch Studios, Raven Software, Sledgehammer Games, Beenox, High Moon Studios, Activision Shanghai, Demonware
• Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021), Sledgehammer Games, Treyarch Studios, Raven Software, Beenox, High Moon Studios, Activision Shanghai, Demonware
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022), Infinity Ward, Raven Software, Beenox, Treyarch Studios, High Moon Studios, Sledgehammer Games
• Call of Duty: Warzone (2022), Infinity Ward, Raven Software, Beenox, Treyarch, High Moon Studios, Sledgehammer Games

The future is looking good for COD and its community

With its next installment Modern Warfare 3, the series will continue to expand even further. Developed by Sledgehammer Games, it will be a direct sequel to MWII from last year. Similar to past offerings, it will also consist of several unique features and mechanics. Additionally, players will also witness the presence of Zombies – a first in Modern Warfare universe.

It’s been twenty years for the fans who have witnessed a record-setting run of their beloved saga. Hopefully, future games will carry forward its glorious legacy. And the franchise has now found a new home, too, in Microsoft.

It will be really interesting to see how Activision joins forces with Xbox to deliver even better games.

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