"What? How could you? MWR on the worst CoD games list?" We know. It looks crazy. CoD 4 is a top three of all time, and there's no debate. But the Remaster set a terrible precedent for how Call of Duty could release future remasters. They changed the maps (and changing maps like Crash and Overgrown is sacrilege), you could only buy it as a bundle with Infinite Warfare, and they added a lootbox system. Adding a lootbox system is bad enough in itself, but the worst part is that they released new and broken weapons (which had never been in the original) into the game via these gambling boxes. So they took what we know and love and monetized it like pimps. A shame. | © Activision Blizzard
Sledeghammer tried to emulate Treyarch's success with a future-setting in Advanced Warfare, but they clearly lacked their own vision, and their Exo-suit system was one of the worst we've ever had, allowing for cheesy rather than skillful movement. Yes, the game was good for comp, and yes, Exo-Zombies worked surprisingly well, but Advanced Warfare is ultimately forgettable and failed to introduce anything that improved the franchise. | © Activision Blizzard
Vanguard's setting in World War II was a huge step back and players just weren't fond of getting back into it. Additionally, technical issues and bugs at launch were horrible and never completely fixed. Also, the multiplayer map design and balance issues led to a lot of frustration. Add a crazy short TTK and the fact that it was the third game in a row to be integrated into Warzone and you get a pretty bad experience. The Zombies mode with only one big map that offers challenge portals and no round based maps also didn't help. | © Activision Blizzard
This one was obviously going to make the list, and was probably the least well received in its time. The problem with Ghosts is that it felt like one of the older, very low-TTK MW games, but just jazzed up slightly for next-gen (Ghosts was the first PS4 title). Nothing was innovative or well perfected, and by comparison, we had just received Black Ops 2 the year before. What saves Ghosts from being the very worst is that the game had a great SnD scene. Plus, the Vector was godlike. | © Activision Blizzard
When Infinite Warfare was first revealed, the trailer was record-breaking on YouTube... but for the most down votes in a 24-hour period. People HATED what they saw in IW. It was yet another CoD set in space, and it was released when the franchise was at an all-time low. Fans had made it clear for years that they wanted a boots on the ground game again, but instead, we got jetpacks.
The only thing you can say in defense of Infinite Warfare was that it had a great campaign. But let's be honest, you buy CoD for multiplayer and Infinite Warfare's multiplayer was garbage. | © Activision Blizzard
Call of Duty has been through four main eras; the early WW2 days, the OG MW Trilogy (the Golden Age), the jetpack era, and now we're living through the age of the tac-sprint. All of these periods have had their peaks and valleys, but today, we want to turn back time and revisit some of the lowest lows. The worst CoDs in franchise history. You can probably guess at least a couple of obvious stinkers.
While you're revisiting out the darker chapters in Call of Duty history...
