In the last decade, the gaming industry has been pushing towards online cooperative multiplayer games, whether it’s the likes of MMORPGs like World of Warcraft or story-based first-person shooters like Destiny. In this sea of online-only multiplayer games, the local couch co-op games must be treated as gems because a few titles, like Borderlands, andIt Takes Two keep the sub-genre alive.

Though the Call of Duty series has also moved beyond its inclusion of co-op modes which most of the earlier installments had in some capacity, it is worthwhile to take a look back at how valuable the feature was to bring friends to a local gathering together. Here are some of the best Call of Duty games that players can still boot up for some local split-screen co-op fun.

Updated on April 10, 2024, by Waseem Muhammad: Call of Duty as a video game series continues to grow in popularity. This is because, with every installment, the developers change the landscape and fully revamp the game based on what the community likes. They also focus heavily on extensive marketing campaigns, bringing in collaborations with celebrities and influencers.

The franchise has seen many installments throughout its time. Many games in the series are known for their cooperative offline mode that allows friends and families to play them either locally or via a network connection. Though not used by everyone, the Split-Screen is still a highly appreciated feature in the Call of Duty community. Not only does the Split-Screen exist for the Campaign, but it also allows players to try out the different modes and tackle the challenges together. This update adds a new Call of Duty split-screen entry as well as minor changes to the existing ones.

6:40

Related

14 Best First-Person Shooters Of All Time

Time to shoot 'em up... these games are the best of the best when it comes to FPS options.

6 Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2014)

Two-Player Local Multiplayer and Exo Survival Mode

Looking back at the Call of Duty series, it's hard not to mention Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, as it marked a period of the franchise's full-blown attempt at a futuristic sci-fi setting. Thanks to a host of new gadgets, including hoverbikes and exoskeletons, Advanced Warfare introduced a degree of verticality that was seldom seen before in the popular shooter series. The fast-paced action and dynamic maneuverability breathed new life into the series and made the gunplay even more engaging. The futuristic setting, even though not appreciated by some of the community, the other half was pleased to have a new look in the Call of Duty franchise.

Although Advanced Warfare's cinematic campaign does not support split-screen co-op, friends can team up locally to take on challenges in the multiplayer and survival modes. It should be noted that the couch co-op support is only available for console players, and only up to two players can pair up locally.

The survival mode presented here is titled Exo Survival, which sees players battle against 25 rounds of increasingly powerful enemies to rank up gear and unlock more weapons. Players are equipped with an exoskeleton suit that gives them several traversal and mobility features. There are also loadouts available so players can customize them according to their playstyle. The game mode also offers maps with environmental hazards and different layouts, allowing players to understand the map and covers to use to their advantage. Playing the Exo Survival mode cooperatively alone is a good reason to pick up Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare!

5 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2022)

Two-Player Local Multiplayer

Perhaps the split-screen co-op capability isn’t a distant reality. Although most of the Call of Duty games have excluded any local co-op support for campaign or other modes in the game, including zombie mode, local split-screen multiplayer still has some presence in games on the modern generation of consoles. Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (2022) does not support the traditional four-player local multiplayer, but players can still enjoy two-player split-screen co-op by setting up a private match in the multiplayer mode of the game. This local multiplayer functionality will also carry over to the upcoming sequel, Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3.

The split-screen multiplayer support for Modern Warfare 2 (2022) is only available on consoles. What makes the two-player split-screen multiplayer so fun is the fact that players can try out online modes as well, including Search and Destroy and Team Deathmatch against other online players. The only exception is the Free-For-All mode, which is only accessible by playing solo.

4 Call of Duty: World At War

Two-Player Campaign And Zombie Mode, Four-Player Local Multiplayer

Call of Duty: World At War was the first game in the series to have a co-op campaign, with Black Ops 3 being the only other game to have a full story mode with co-op support. While the PC version only allows online co-op or playing local co-op with the possibility of LAN, the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of Call of Duty: World At War have support for local split-screen cooperative play for up to two players in the campaign and zombie mode of the game. The latter is unlocked after finishing the roughly seven-hour long story mode and points earned in either of these modes contribute towards racking up perks in the multiplayer mode of the game. Interestingly enough, World At War's inclusion of the zombie mode was a first for the series, and ever since then, it has become so popular and has continued to be part of subsequent installments in the COD franchise.

It is important to note that, unlike other installments in the Call of Duty series, World At War does not introduce any AI/CPU combatants in the local multiplayer mode, so there will just be one friend against another across the whole map.

3 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011)

Two-Player Spec Ops Mode, Four-Player Local Multiplayer

While Sledgehammer’s Call of Duty games like Modern Warfare 3 (2011) leave out the zombie mode, the developer replaces it with a dedicated split-screen co-op mode called Spec Ops. The mode returns from Modern Warfare 2 (2009) with its objective-based Mission Mode. Set in the backdrop of the campaign missions and their locales, Mission Mode consists of 24 objectives that span from stealth encounters to explosive set-pieces.

Related

The Best Call of Duty Snipers, Ranked

Sniper Rifles are highly effective weapons in the Call of Duty series, and here are the best of them.

A new addition in Modern Warfare 3 (2011) from its predecessor was a Survival mode within Spec Ops, which pits the two players against a wave of increasingly difficult enemy encounters. Survival mode incorporates the same maps as those in the multiplayer mode, so it can be a good way to learn the layout of the environments before heading for a more competitive experience.

2 Call of Duty: Ghosts

Two-Player Support for Safeguard Mode, Extinction Mode, and Local Multiplayer

Similar to the Survival portion of Spec Ops mode in Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 (2011), Call of Duty: Ghosts provides the co-op experience in its Safeguard mode, where a player can team up with another to defeat AI enemies in a series of waves that can range from 20 to 100 levels depending on the difficulty selected. The enemy behavior and maps play similar to a multiplayer match with perks being air-dropped after a certain number of waves are cleared.

To add to the co-op experience, Call of Duty: Ghosts’ take on the zombie mode, Extinction, is a wild arcade-y ride into a sci-fi landscape swarming with undead alien specimens. The maps here are relatively expansive and allow for much more player freedom and perk customization. As players earn more skill points, they are able to unlock powerful new weapons and classes, so the mode also has a great deal of replayability.

1 Call of Duty: Black Ops 3

Two-Player Support For Campaign, Four-Player Support For Zombie Mode and Local Multiplayer

The old Treyarch’s Call of Duty games have always catered to local couch co-op in one way or another. With the jump to PS4 and Xbox One systems, Black Ops 3 brings back two-player split-screen support for the campaign while also retaining four-player split-screen support for all its local multiplayer and zombie modes. Harnessing the power of the hardware and sticking by the decision of a two-player coop campaign, the developers expanded on the level design of the campaign to allow for more open-ended exploration as well as take on challenges that require collaboration between the players to progress forward.

Completing the campaign clocks around a decent nine hours of playtime. Players can then hop into arguably the best zombie mode, “Nightmares,” which is pleasingly around the same length as the story mode, so there is a lot of co-op fun to be had here. While Black Ops harnesses the power of the hardware it landed on, there is no split-screen support for older consoles, including PS3 and Xbox 360. The split-screen settings on PS4 and Xbox One are customizable and can be adjusted in the menu for a smoother experience.

6:09

More

Best Local Co-Op & Split-Screen PS3 Games, Ranked

The PlayStation 3 is a fantastic console that had some amazing local co-op and split-screen games over the years it was active.