Worst Call of Duty Games of all time

The Call of Duty franchise is one of the most popular in gaming. Activision's first-person shooter franchise is their golden goose, with annual releases garnering lavish profits with each new entry. While the franchise has seen incredible highs, so too has the series hit lows.

We've listed some of our picks for the Call of Duty games that missed the mark, leaving a sour taste in fans' mouths.

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Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare

Why do people play Call of Duty? It can feel like Activision forgot the answer to this question when making Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. This futuristic entry in the Call of Duty franchise removes the grounded approach to gunplay and firefights by introducing Exo-suits for soldiers. Fans and critics noted that this move seemed like a direct answer to competitors like Titanfall, a newer title from EA and Respawn Entertainment.

Instead of honing what made Call of Duty stand out, Sledgehammer Games copied another shooter's strength, which didn't translate well. Pair that with a poorly-written narrative hinging on Kevin Spacey's performance and quick-time events so poor that they spawned the Press F to Pay Respects meme. You'll see the beginning of a downward trend for Activision's most popular franchise.

Call of Duty: WWII

Something about World War II and Call of Duty hasn't mixed lately. In 2017, Sledgehammer Games built call of Duty WWII with Sledgehammer Games at the helm. Players panned this release as decent, but nothing noteworthy. The story is one of the weakest in Call of Duty.

It jumps between characters too often to let players form an attachment with them, and the multiplayer, while controlling competently, feels designed to push predatory microtransactions. The lackluster package led to backlash from fans and critics for the insistence on spending extra money in-game despite WWII releasing for total retail price.

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Call of Duty: Vanguard

The most recent entry in the Call of Duty franchise from Sledgehammer Games, Call of Duty: Vanguard, takes players to World War II again in this repetitive Call of Duty entry. Vanguard sports a story with atrocious AI, poorly written characters, and levels reminiscent of previous franchise iterations. One of the most detested features of Call of Duty: Vanguard is the Zombies game mode. Zombies in Vanguard lacks the structure, layouts, and progression system that made the previous Zombies game modes so addictive to fans, leaving users with a hollow experience that many didn't care to pick up after a few tries. Ultimately, Vanguard feels like a corporate checklist and not a passionate project that wanted to provide a unique Call of Duty experience. It feels worse than Call of Duty WWII did years before it.

Call of Duty: Ghosts

Few games in the Call of Duty franchise have seen the level of disdain that Call of Duty: Ghosts does. In 2013, the PS4 and Xbox One launched, giving fans hope that the Call of Duty franchise would leap forward with the new technology. This take on tactical warfare from Infinity Ward did not make many fans happy. This entry sees criticism for its story that doesn't feel new or tell a memorable war story. Not only is the tale undesirable, but the multiplayer suffered from a plethora of issues, including large maps that made games feel lifeless and empty.

For more on Call of Duty, visit some of our other articles here on Pro Game Guides, like When does Call of Duty: Warzone Pacific Season 2 end?