Call of Duty titles have been such a phenomenon in first-person shooter video games. Ever since its initial release, the franchise has enjoyed an enormous fan base, and the sales numbers over the years are a testament to it. But the sales numbers do not necessarily show off a good game. The franchise is a mix of great games, average ones, and extreme duds that makes fans question their investment choices.
It is clear that studios looking to milk a successful franchise often tend to fall into the sequel trap, and Call of Duty is no exception. But as the franchise installments grew, so did the marketing budget. The franchise had some of the best marketing campaigns and video shorts that let the fanbase forget the sub-par nature of the last installment and be excited for the upcoming ones. One such leaf out of their marketing books is the franchise's cover art.
10 Call Of Duty
Several other covers are better than the Call of Duty OG, but this one is here for the nostalgic factor and the first-time attraction. The first game was released in 2003, and the cover art was generic but tended to the needs of that time.
A squad of Allied troopers is seen hunkering down behind the rubble of an urban battlefield, presumably somewhere on the Western Front, with one of them pointing a finger in an attempt to break the fourth wall. The game was set during World War 2, and the cover art does justice to its content.
9 Call Of Duty: Black Ops 2
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is one of the sub-phases in the Call of Duty franchise that focuses on a more special division kind of gameplay featuring a non-linear story narrative that jumps back and forth between 1980 and 2025. The game was received with mostly positive reviews from fans and critics.
Released at the tail end of 2012, the game's cover took to a monochrome palette with the main character one amongst the shadows wielding dual pistols while a beam of light does enough justice to highlight him, giving it an eerie look.
8 Call Of Duty: Black Ops 3
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 is the immediate sequel to its predecessor (Black Ops 2) and was released in 2015. The game is set in 2065, 40 years after the events of Black Ops 2, and follows the narrative of a 4-team black ops unit. The game also featured a zombie mode and nightmare mode for the first time in the franchise.
The cover of the game was the second-best in the Black Ops phase and featured the theme of the sub-franchise seen in earlier titles. The main character is suited up in a futuristic heavy armor (almost resembling Judge Dredd) and is also seen wielding a dual pistol loadout. However, the background stands out a little differently with the outline of the Roman numeral III set ablaze in subtle flames, giving it a very indistinct action-packed look.
7 Call Of Duty 2
This was probably the best cover art of the initial trilogy of COD games set during WW2. This was also undoubtedly the best game of that phase. Released in 2005, the game takes players across the deserts of North Africa to the beaches of Normandy.
The cover art sticks to the theme of its predecessors, showing a platoon of Allied troops fighting against Axis bunkers on D-Day. The cover art shows just enough to tease the game's contents and bring in new players to the fanbase.
6 Call Of Duty: Black Ops
The first installment in the Black Ops phase, the game was an attempt to break the shackles of the Modern Warfare trilogy and venture into something better. The game met with mixed reviews for its campaign and was controversial for portraying Fidel Castro as a target.
However, the game featured a cinematic cover with the main character wielding his dual pistol loadout in a desaturated and high contrast color palette. The color palette takes to the 1960s flimsy look, which fits well with the game's setting.
5 Call Of Duty: WW2
It might be weird to see the World War 2 reboot high up in the list, but there is a valid reason. After a series of dismal games in the franchise, fans wanted the developers to stick to what the franchise initially was. And thus came a return to World War 2. The game was released in 2017 and was generally received well by fans and critics.
The cover features what one can assume to be one of the main characters looking deeply across the fourth wall and into the eyes of the players.
4 Call Of Duty Ghosts
Call of Duty Ghosts was released in 2013 and followed a group of highly trained mercenaries (if one can call them that) in a pursuit to stop the evildoers from destroying the world. As lame as it sounds, the game also fell in the average reception bracket, and the fans were getting a little bored with soulless campaigns.
However, the game cover looked slightly different from any of the others in the franchise. The cover features the main character in a profile view wearing a facemask that pays homage to the ghost from the earlier installments. When put up against all the COD cover arts, this is one of the more striking examples.
3 Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
When released in 2011, Modern Warfare 3 held the highest number of day one and pre-order sales in the video game industry's history. The game was well-received by fans and critics, although some felt there was room for improvements in the short single-player campaign.
However, the game's cover art was on par with a cinematic poster. The pitch white backdrop, dust and speckles flying, and a swaggy main character with an automatic weapon was everything a Mission Impossible movie would take inspiration from.
2 Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was a massive hit among fans and critics alike. The game is a direct sequel to Modern Warfare and gets going right away. However, this was when the studios focused more on the multiplayer aspect and gave too little to the campaign. This was the start of many such installments that began to lose quality and game hours into the single-player campaign.
The cover art for the game was a complete story altogether. The colors took to a more Saharan desert tone, and one could see a character relatable to the present-day armed forces. This was as close as they got to recreating a contemporary warfare scene.
1 Black Ops: Cold War
This comes as no surprise. Black Ops: Cold War was released in 2020 and fully used the new-gen console's capabilities. The graphics were excellent, the narrative was grand, and the gameplay was enjoyable. Cold War was an instant hit and served as a much-needed refreshment in the dark times of the year.
The Cover Art is creative. This was unlike any other Call of Duty game in the franchise, and it looked beautiful. The design elements and the pin-up/sticker templates made it all too colorful and, at the same time, awesome.